RPE calculator and chart

Enter the weight, reps and RPE of a set you've done. You get an estimated 1RM (e1RM) and the load for any other reps and RPE you want to hit. The percentages come from Mike Tuchscherer's RTS table, which is shown in full below the calculator.

Your set

kglb

If you know your 1RM, enter it as 1 rep at RPE 10.

Weight

Reps

RPE

Enter the weight you lifted to see your estimated 1RM.

Target set

The reps and RPE you want to hit.

Reps

RPE

Round to

2.5 kg1.25 kg

The load for your target shows here once you enter a weight.

The plate calculator shows which plates make up a load.

RPE to percentage chart

Rows are reps and columns are RPE, with reps in reserve (RIR) under each RPE. Each cell is the percentage of your 1RM that the set takes: 8 reps at RPE 7 is 70.7%.

Percentage of 1RM for 1 to 12 reps at RPE 10 to 6 (RTS E1RM table)
Reps	RPE 100 RIR	RPE 9.50–1 RIR	RPE 91 RIR	RPE 8.51–2 RIR	RPE 82 RIR	RPE 7.52–3 RIR	RPE 73 RIR	RPE 6.53–4 RIR	RPE 6 (derived)4 RIR
1	100.0%	97.8%	95.5%	93.9%	92.2%	90.7%	89.2%	87.8%	86.3%
2	95.5%	93.9%	92.2%	90.7%	89.2%	87.8%	86.3%	85.0%	83.7%
3	92.2%	90.7%	89.2%	87.8%	86.3%	85.0%	83.7%	82.4%	81.1%
4	89.2%	87.8%	86.3%	85.0%	83.7%	82.4%	81.1%	79.9%	78.6%
5	86.3%	85.0%	83.7%	82.4%	81.1%	79.9%	78.6%	77.4%	76.2%
6	83.7%	82.4%	81.1%	79.9%	78.6%	77.4%	76.2%	75.1%	73.9%
7	81.1%	79.9%	78.6%	77.4%	76.2%	75.1%	73.9%	72.3%	70.7%
8	78.6%	77.4%	76.2%	75.1%	73.9%	72.3%	70.7%	69.4%	68.0%
9	76.2%	75.1%	73.9%	72.3%	70.7%	69.4%	68.0%	66.7%	65.3%
10	73.9%	72.3%	70.7%	69.4%	68.0%	66.7%	65.3%	64.0%	62.6%
11	70.7%	69.4%	68.0%	66.7%	65.3%	64.0%	62.6%	61.3%	59.9%
12	68.0%	66.7%	65.3%	64.0%	62.6%	61.3%	59.9%	58.6%	57.2%

* The RTS table goes down to RPE 6.5. I derived the RPE 6 column with the table's own rule (see below), and 12 reps at RPE 6 is extrapolated. Source: Mike Tuchscherer, Beginning RTS (Reactive Training Systems, 2015).

What RPE and RIR mean

In lifting, RPE (rating of perceived exertion) rates a set by how many more reps you could have done. RPE 10 means none: the next rep would have failed. RPE 9 means one more was possible, RPE 8 two more. Half steps cover the cases in between: RPE 8.5 is one rep left and maybe a second.

Reps in reserve (RIR) is the same rating written as a count, so RIR = 10 − RPE. Mike Tuchscherer created this scale for powerlifting in 2008 (Helms et al., 2016), and Zourdos and colleagues tested it on squatters in a 2016 study. It is a different scale from the Borg RPE used for cardio and exercise testing, which runs from 6 to 20.

Where the numbers come from

The percentages are the E1RM table from Mike Tuchscherer's article Beginning RTS (Reactive Training Systems, 2015). It covers 1 to 12 reps at RPE 6.5 to 10, and every cell follows one rule: the percentage depends only on reps plus reps in reserve. Five reps at RPE 8 is 81.1%, the same as seven reps at RPE 10.

The calculator divides your weight by the percentage for your set to get the e1RM, then multiplies the e1RM by the percentage for the target. For 100 kg × 5 at RPE 8, that's 100 ÷ 0.811 = 123.3 kg. Three reps at RPE 9 is 89.2%, and 123.3 × 0.892 comes to about 110 kg.

How far to trust the numbers

The table is an average, and people differ. A 2024 meta-regression of 952 rep-to-failure tests on 7,289 people found that at 80% of 1RM, the reps people managed varied with a standard deviation of about 2.5. At 60% it was 4.4 reps. Lifts differ too: people did more reps on the leg press than on the bench press at the same percentage (Nuzzo et al., 2024).

Your RPE is an estimate as well. In a 2022 meta-analysis of 12 studies, people underestimated how many reps they had left by about one rep on average. Predictions got better closer to failure, with heavier loads and in later sets, and training experience made no clear difference (Halperin et al., 2022). So a heavy set taken close to failure gives the most dependable e1RM.

The low end of the chart is the loosest. The RIR scale lumps RPE 5 and 6 together as 4 to 6 reps left, and Tuchscherer writes that RPEs below 7 are usually for warm-up sets and restoration work. Treat the 6.5 and 6 columns as rough.

Tuchscherer also suggests fitting the chart to your own 1RM, 4RM and 8RM tests (Customizing Your RPE Chart, 2016). Use the result as a starting load, then adjust it from your own logged sets.

I build PRGRS, a free workout tracker for iPhone and iPad. Its workout log has an optional RPE column. Each set's Suggested target starts from the matching set last session and moves with the RPE you logged: RPE 7 or 8 adds one step (2.5 kg, or 1.25 kg under 40 kg), RPE 9 keeps the weight, and RPE 10 drops it by about 5%.

RPE questions

What does RPE 8 mean in lifting?

You finished the set and could have done two more reps. On the RTS table, 1 rep at RPE 8 is 92.2% of your 1RM and 5 reps at RPE 8 is 81.1%.

How do I convert RPE to a percentage of my 1RM?

Find your reps and RPE in the chart. The cell is the percentage of 1RM for that set: 3 reps at RPE 9 is 89.2%. Multiply your 1RM by it to get a load, or divide the weight of a set by it to estimate your 1RM.

How is this different from a 1RM formula like Epley?

Formulas like Epley and Brzycki assume the set went to failure. The RTS table also covers sets that stopped short of failure. At RPE 10 the numbers are close: 5 reps is 86.3% on the RTS table, 85.7% with Epley and 88.9% with Brzycki. At 12 reps they drift apart, with 68.0% on the RTS table against 71.4% with Epley.

Why is the RPE 6 column marked as derived?

The published RTS table stops at RPE 6.5. In that table the percentage depends only on reps plus reps in reserve, so 1 rep at RPE 6 is the same 86.3% as 5 reps at RPE 10. I filled in the RPE 6 column with that rule. The one cell the rule can't reach, 12 reps at RPE 6, continues the table's pattern at 57.2%.