About the Climbing Grade Converter
This climbing grade converter translates a route or boulder grade from one system to the others. Pick a sport or trad route grade in the Yosemite Decimal System (YDS), French sport, UIAA or Australian Ewbank scale, or a bouldering grade on the American V-scale or the Fontainebleau (Font) scale, and it shows the equivalent in every other system plus a complete comparison chart.
It is useful when you travel — a 5.10c crag in the US is roughly 6b in Spain or France, VII in Germany and 20 in Australia — when you read guidebooks or online logbooks from another country, or when you set goals in a gym that grades differently from your local crag.
Grade comparisons are approximate. Grades are subjective, vary between areas and rock types, and the scales do not line up step for step; the chart follows the commonly published sport-climbing comparison. Route and boulder grades measure different things and should not be converted into each other.
How to use the climbing grade converter
- 1Choose the grading system you want to convert from.
- 2Pick the grade from the list.
- 3Read the equivalents in the other systems.
- 4Scan the chart to see the grades above and below yours.
Formula and method
There is no mathematical formula linking climbing grades; each system grew up separately (YDS in California, French sport grades in Europe, UIAA in the Alps, Ewbank in Australia, the V-scale at Hueco Tanks and Font in Fontainebleau). The converter uses a comparison table that aligns grades of similar difficulty row by row and reads across from the grade you pick.
The route table follows the RockFax and theCrag comparison reproduced on Wikipedia: from 5.10a upward each YDS letter grade is roughly one Ewbank number, and above about 5.12a (French 7a+) the sport grades line up closely. Where a system has no grade that matches a row, an in-between value such as VII+/VIII− is shown. For bouldering, several V grades span two Font grades — V3 covers 6A and 6A+, for example — so both are shown. Results are guides, not exact equivalents.
- YDS
- Yosemite Decimal System, e.g. 5.10c
- French
- French sport grade, e.g. 6b
- V / Font
- Bouldering grades, e.g. V4 ≈ 6B/6B+
Worked examples
YDS 5.10c to French and UIAA
A 5.10c in the US lines up with French 6b, UIAA VII and Ewbank 20 — a solid intermediate sport grade in most areas.
French 7a to YDS
The classic 7a milestone in Europe is about 5.11d in the US and VIII on the UIAA scale, falling between 23 and 24 on the Australian Ewbank scale. One grade up, 7a+ matches 5.12a, VIII+ and Ewbank 24.
Bouldering V5 to Font
V5 spans Font 6C and 6C+, so either grade in a Fontainebleau guidebook is roughly a V5 problem.
Frequently asked questions
What is 5.10 in French grades?+
The 5.10 range runs from about French 6a (5.10a) to 6b+ (5.10d). A mid-5.10 such as 5.10b or 5.10c is roughly 6a+ to 6b.
What V grade is 7A in Font?+
Font 7A is usually given as V6, and 7A+ as V7. Bouldering grades in the 6s are split more finely in Font, so V3, V4 and V5 each cover two Font grades.
Can I convert route grades to bouldering grades?+
Not reliably. Route grades rate a whole pitch including endurance, while boulder grades rate short, powerful problems. As a rough guide a V-grade boulder feels like a route crux several grades harder, but the comparison varies too much to be useful.
Why do grades differ between gyms and crags?+
Grades are a consensus opinion. Gym setters, local traditions, rock type and the height or style of a climber all affect how hard a route feels, so the same grade can vary by one or more steps between venues.
What is a good climbing grade for a beginner?+
Most new climbers start around 5.6–5.8 (French 4c–5b) on routes and VB–V1 in bouldering. Reaching 5.10 (French 6a–6b+) or V3–V4 within the first year or two is common with regular climbing.
What does the letter after 5.10 mean?+
From 5.10 upward, YDS adds letters a, b, c and d to split each number into four steps of increasing difficulty, so 5.10d is harder than 5.10a and just below 5.11a.