Overview
What is the APR?
The Archery Performance Rating is a single number representing your competitive shooting level, built from your results at sanctioned events. It doesn't matter whether you shot 70m outdoors or 18m indoors — every score is translated to a common reference and placed on the same scale. Think of it as a golf handicap that measures accuracy rather than strokes above par, except that a higher number is always better.
The scale is calibrated separately for each bow style — a 750 in Olympic Recurve and a 750 in Compound represent different absolute skill levels, because the equipment capabilities differ. Within a style, the numbers compare directly. Visually Impaired Class 1 (VI1) and Classes 2/3 (VI23) are separate pools with their own benchmarks.
Full technical explanation →Calculation
How is a rating calculated?
When a qualifying score is imported, the ASL ballistic model — a physics-based formula developed for Archery Australia — converts your score into an equivalent arrow average on the 70m/122cm reference standard. That average, multiplied by 100, is your raw APR for that event.
Your overall rating is a weighted average of your event APR results. More recent scores carry more influence than older ones, and scores from major championships carry more weight than smaller events. Early in your rating history the system works with limited data and your rating may move more between events; as your competition record grows it stabilises around your true performance level.
11-point scoring model: the X ring scores 11, not 10. This preserves the difference between a dead-centre X and a 10 at the outer edge of the gold — a distinction that matters enormously for separating elite archers who put nearly every arrow in the yellow.
Confidence over time
Your rating becomes more precise with each event
Every APR comes with a ± rating deviation (RD) — a measure of how statistically confident the system is in your rating. New archers start at ±150. As competition results accumulate the RD narrows and the rating stabilises.
Getting started
APR is a straight average of event results so far. RD is at its widest — the system is working with limited data.
Building confidence
Weighted averaging begins. Event weight and recency both influence how much each score contributes. RD starts to narrow meaningfully.
Established rating
Full weighted model active with recency decay. Scores from roughly one outdoor season ago contribute less than very recent results. The rating reflects your current level, not just your career average.
The scale
What does your number mean?
Select your bow style to see the benchmark levels for your discipline.
Ratings below ~300 use a developmental model designed for very early-stage archers where the full ASL calculation doesn't yet produce reliable results. A valid rating is still issued.
Beyond the rating
Three numbers on your profile — what they each mean
When individual arrow data is available, your profile shows two additional coaching diagnostics alongside your APR. All three measure different things and are independent of one another:
Rating deviation ±RD
How statistically confident the system is in your rating. Narrows as more competition results accumulate. Has nothing to say about how consistently you shoot within a round.
Consistency score
How closely your end-by-end arrow pattern matches what the ASL model predicts for your level. Two archers can share the same APR with very different consistency scores. Improved on the practice range.
Peak potential APR
Your rating recalculated with the weakest ~15% of arrows removed. The gap between this and your actual APR reveals how much your off-arrows are costing you — your shooting ceiling.
All World Archery and USA Archery imports include end-by-end arrow values, so consistency and peak potential are available for USAT, National, World Cup, World Championship, and Olympic events. Other sources may supply totals only.
Full explanation of each metric →Competition context
Event weighting
Scores from major championships carry more influence over your rating than smaller events, reflecting competitive pressure and field quality.
Go deeper
Want to understand the full system?
The Theory page covers the academic basis of the ASL model, how arrow scatter is modelled mathematically, how the weighted rating aggregation works, how field calibration operates, and the precise calculation behind each diagnostic. The FAQ answers specific questions about scores, ratings, comparisons, and data.