Erg Score Calculator
Convert any 2k, 5k or 6k erg time into a weight-adjusted, age-graded score and see exactly where it ranks against club, university, national and international standards. Uses the Concept2 weight factor and Concept2 logbook age coefficients.
What is a weight-adjusted erg score?
A weight-adjusted erg score normalises your raw 2k, 5k or 6k time so lighter rowers are not penalised for moving less mass. Concept2 publishes the formula: adjusted time equals raw time multiplied by your weight in pounds over 270, raised to the power 0.222. A 70kg lightweight rowing 6:30 lands around 6:14 once adjusted.
Your test result
Adjusted score (weight + age)
| |
Where you rank
Compare your weight-adjusted, age-graded score (highlighted) against published Concept2 logbook standards.
| Standard | Time | Split | Watts |
|---|---|---|---|
Saved to this device
Last 5 results stored locally. Your numbers never leave your browser. Want this for your whole squad? That is what Row HQ does.
How weight and age adjustments work
The Concept2 weight-adjustment formula
Concept2 publishes the formula weight-adjusted time = actual time * (weight in lb / 270)^0.222. The reference of 270 lb sits between male openweight (around 210-220 lb) and lightweight (155-160 lb), so it normalises both directions. The 0.222 exponent comes from regression on a large sample of test scores - it reflects the fact that on a static erg, more body mass helps slightly because of stored momentum, but the effect is sub-linear.
Practical consequence: a 70 kg lightweight rowing 6:30 has a weight-adjusted score around 6:14, putting them on level terms with a 95 kg openweight rowing the same time. Without the adjustment, lighter rowers are systematically penalised on the erg even when they are racing each other in a lightweight category. Use the calculator above to see your own weight-adjusted score and compare across teammates of different weights.
Age handicap (Concept2 logbook coefficients)
The Concept2 logbook publishes age coefficients that grow above age 30, where most fast erg scores are recorded. At age 30 the coefficient is 1.000 (no adjustment). At 40 it is around 1.034. At 50 it is around 1.110. At 60 it is around 1.200. At 70 it is around 1.320. A 50-year-old rowing a 7:00 2k has an age-graded score around 6:18, which sits in the same percentile bucket as a 6:18 from a 30-year-old.
Master rowers should think of age-graded score the same way runners think of WMA grading: the raw time is what you ran, the graded score is what it would be at peak athletic age. Both numbers are useful. The graded score lets you compare across decades and build credible squad benchmarks across age groups.
Combined adjusted score
When you stack both adjustments, the order does not matter mathematically: time * weight factor * age factor = time * age factor * weight factor. The calculator shows your raw time, weight-adjusted time, age-graded time, and the combined adjusted time. The combined number is what you compare against the standards table to see which percentile band you sit in.
Where the percentile bands come from
The standards used in this calculator are aggregated from published Concept2 logbook bands, GB Rowing squad testing standards, USRowing junior identification standards and historic CRASH-B and Head of the Charles entry data. They are not perfect (real percentiles depend on the population you sampled), but they are honest about which population they describe. A 6:30 2k for a 22-year-old male openweight is genuinely top-25% across the global Concept2 logbook, and that band is robust across the data sources.
What the calculator does not do
It does not replace federation-published lightweight categories. If your federation says a lightweight is under 75 kg openweight or 72.5 kg lightweight, those rules apply for racing eligibility regardless of what the calculator says. It also does not predict on-water boat speed - water times depend on rigging, water conditions and crew coordination, and a great erg score is necessary but not sufficient for fast boats. For squad training planning use the training pace calculator to translate this score into session paces.
Calculating one score is easy. Tracking thirty across a season is the hard part.
Row HQ records weight-adjusted, age-graded scores against every athlete automatically. Coaches can pull crew lineups from current data, watch for plateaus through the admin dashboard, and stop spreadsheet-juggling at testing weeks. See how Oundle Town RC runs squad selection on real data, or read our practical guide to getting value from ergo metrics.