Real per-subject scaling from the 2025 VTAC report, SAC marks mapped through the actual study-score distribution, and a reverse mode that works backwards from your goal. No sign-up, no fake precision.
Add every 3/4 subject you're doing (or did as an accelerated subject). English is compulsory for an ATAR.
🇦🇺 Not doing VCE? Atarly is coming to the HSC, QCE, WACE, SACE and more.
Join your state's waitlist →Four steps happen between your SAC marks and the number VTAC hands you in December. This calculator runs all four.
A study score isn't a percentage — it's a rank. VCAA fits every subject to a distribution with a mean of 30 and SD of 7, so ~70% overall lands near the state median of 30, and consistent A+ work (~88%) sits near 40.
Each study score is scaled by cohort strength. In 2025 a raw 30 in Specialist Maths scaled to 43, while the same 30 scaled down in less competitive studies. Scaling measures competition, not difficulty.
Your best English study (compulsory) + your best three other scaled scores count in full, then up to two more subjects add 10% each. That sum is your VTAC aggregate.
VTAC converts aggregates to a state-wide rank between 0 and 99.95. In 2025, an aggregate of about 146 was a 90.00 ATAR and about 184 was a 99.00.
Straight from the 2025 VTAC scaling report — what a raw study score became after scaling, for a few common subjects.
| Subject | Raw 30 became | Raw 40 became | Effect at 30 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Specialist Mathematics | 43 | 51 | +13 |
| Latin | 36 | 47 | +6 |
| Mathematical Methods | 35 | 46 | +5 |
| Chinese (Second Language) | 38 | 47 | +8 |
| English | 33 | 43 | +3 |
| Biology | 34 | 44 | +4 |
| Chemistry | 27 | 37 | −3 |
| Psychology | 26 | 38 | −4 |
| General Mathematics | 26 | 38 | −4 |
| Business Management | 30 | 41 | ±0 |
| Physical Education | 25 | 38 | −5 |
| Visual Communication Design | 25 | 34 | −5 |
Notice the pattern: scaling bites hardest in the middle of the range and flattens out near 50 — a raw 49 in English barely moves. That's why this calculator uses VTAC's full anchor curves for every subject instead of adding a single flat adjustment, which is where most quick ATAR calculators drift from reality.
Each subject gets a study score out of 50, VTAC scales it, then your scaled English (or EAL, Literature, English Language) plus your best three other scaled scores count in full and up to two more add 10% each. That aggregate converts to an ATAR — a rank across your whole year level, including students who didn't finish VCE.
It uses the per-subject scaling curves and the aggregate-to-ATAR table from the official 2025 VTAC scaling report — the latest published data — and converts SAC marks to study scores through the real VCAA distribution (mean 30, SD 7). Scaling drifts slightly year to year and your final scores depend on exams and moderation, so treat everything here as a realistic estimate, not a guarantee.
A raw 40 is roughly the top 9% of the cohort, which maps to an overall average around 88% — consistent A+ work. The classic myth is that 80% = a 40; in reality 80% sits closer to a 35. Percentages matter less than where they rank you.
Yes — that's the "What do I need?" tab. Pick your subjects and a target, and it converts the target to the required aggregate, then spreads it across your subjects using their real scaling curves, showing the raw study score and rough SAC average each one needs.
Yes. Already finished a 3/4 subject? Enter the study score you got. Mid-way through the year? Enter the SACs you've done so far — unscored SACs never drag your average down, so early estimates still make sense.
Scaling down doesn't mean a subject is bad or easy — it reflects the strength of the cohort competing in it. VTAC's own advice: you'll almost always score better in a subject you enjoy and work hard at than in a "high-scaling" subject you dread. Pick subjects on interest; let scaling take care of itself.
No — there's no official ATAR calculator. Atarly is an independent study app built by two Melbourne students who just finished VCE, and it isn't affiliated with VCAA or VTAC. We just refuse to do the maths sloppily.
Not yet — scaling here is VCE-specific. We're expanding to other states: join the waitlist and the first 50 in your state get early access and 15% off premium when it lands.
Atarly tracks every SAC toward a live ATAR estimate, blocks your distracting apps while you study, and keeps you accountable with your mates. Free to start.
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