Climbing Grade Converter
Convert climbing grades between YDS (American), French, UIAA, Ewbank, V-scale, and Font bouldering systems instantly. See the visual grade ladder and where your grade ranks among all climbers. Nothing uploaded.
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What the table actually lines up
The converter holds two fixed tables. The sport one has 26 rows, and each row pins four values to the same line: 5.10d sits with French 6b+, UIAA VII- and Ewbank 19.
Nothing gets calculated. Picking a grade finds its row and reads the other columns off it, so every conversion looks exact but is only as good as the row behind it. The systems being lined up were never built to measure the same thing either. YDS keys on a route's hardest single move, while French grades take more account of how sustained the whole route is.
Where the columns do not line up one to one
The UIAA column repeats two of its values. VI+ covers both 5.10b and 5.10c, and VII+ covers both 5.11b and 5.11c. Each appears twice in the UIAA dropdown, but the lookup returns the first matching row, so either VI+ option resolves to 5.10b with French 6a+ and Ewbank 17.
The Ewbank column runs from 10 to 36 and skips 16, jumping from 15 at 5.10a straight to 17 at 5.10b. Grade steps are not the same size in every system, and a gap like that is where the table absorbs the difference.
What the difficulty rank is measuring
Each row stores one fixed percentile, and the band label comes straight off that number. Under 15 reads Beginner, under 35 Novice, under 55 Intermediate, under 75 Advanced, under 90 Expert, and 90 or higher Elite.
On the sport table that makes 5.8 the first Novice row, 5.10b the first Intermediate, 5.11a the first Advanced, 5.12a the first Expert and 5.13a the first Elite. The top of the scale flattens out, since 5.14c, 5.14d and 5.15a all carry 99 and the bar stops moving before the grades do.
Bouldering runs on a second table
The Bouldering toggle swaps in a 20-row V-scale and Font table with its own percentile column, so nothing carries over from the sport side. V4 and Font 6b share the 50 mark there, the same figure 5.10d holds on the sport table, which puts each at the middle of its own list rather than making them equivalent climbs.
The numerals collide between the two tables, which is where most mistakes come from. French 6b converts to 5.10c, while Font 6b converts to V4. Check the mode toggle before reading a result.
FAQ
Why does 6b give a different answer in each mode?
French 6b maps to YDS 5.10c on the sport table, and Font 6b maps to V4 on the bouldering one. The two tables are separate and the same numeral appears in both, so the Sport/Bouldering toggle decides which answer you get.
What is the difficulty rank based on?
Each row stores one fixed percentile value, which sets the bar width and picks the band label. Nothing recalculates it from a live survey, so read it as a rough placement on this scale rather than a measured statistic.
Why did a UIAA grade convert to a YDS grade I was not expecting?
Two UIAA values cover two YDS grades each. VI+ covers 5.10b and 5.10c, VII+ covers 5.11b and 5.11c, and the lookup always returns the first of the pair. If you meant the harder one, step up one rung on the grade ladder.