What is my NTRP tennis rating?

NTRP stands for National Tennis Rating Program. The USTA developed it in 1978 as a classification system that describes the general characteristics of tennis-playing ability. Levels go up in half-point steps. The USTA's own guide runs from 1.5 (beginner) to 7.0 (touring pro), and its characteristics sheet also describes a 1.0 player as just starting to play.

Flobit's tennis ladder runs from 1.0 to 7.0 and uses a short line for each rung, based on those USTA descriptions. The right-hand column shows what the USTA's longer wording adds.

The USTA notes that its league programs generally cover 2.5 to 5.0, so most recreational play happens in that range. At 6.0 and above the descriptions are about national-level training, and the USTA calls 6.5 and 7.0 world-class.

Choose the description that fits how you play a normal match against regular opponents, not your best day and not a drill. The USTA is clear about this: ratings are based on matches, not on how well someone can hit their strokes or play points in a lesson.

Use these questions as signposts:

Then check the rung above and below. If the next description sounds like a stretch, stay where you are. If your current one reads like something you outgrew, move up.

Two more checks help. First, a level is a band, not a point: the USTA says a 3.5 player can fall anywhere between 3.01 and 3.50, and a typical result between the two ends of that band would be 6–0, 6–0. Two 3.5s can still be a mismatch. Second, a coach can give a general sense of your level, but the USTA says teaching pros aren't trained by the USTA to assess an exact rating, so treat their view as a guide.

If you are new to USTA League, you enter with a self-rating from the USTA questionnaire, and your results then generate a computer rating.

A 3.0 can rally at medium pace but can't yet aim, while a 3.5 can aim moderate shots but still lacks depth. That is the USTA's distinction: at 3.0 the player "lacks accuracy when trying for directional control, depth, pace or altering distance of shots", and at 3.5 the player "has achieved stroke dependability with directional control on moderate shots, but still lacks depth, variety and the ability to alter distance of shots".

A rough test for the 3.0 to 3.5 step: if a friend tells you to hit it to their backhand, can you do it most of the time at moderate pace? If so, you are showing the 3.5 trait. For the 3.5 to 4.0 step, ask whether you can change the depth of a shot on purpose, on both sides, and whether you use a lob or volley when it is the right shot instead of avoiding it.

Remember that a 3.5 is the top of a band covering 3.01 to 3.50, so some 3.5s are close to 3.0 and some are close to 4.0.

Players coming from padel can read the padel levels guide, because the two ladders share numbers but not words, and a 3.5 in one doesn't mean the same as a 3.5 in the other.

NTRP is a level you describe and a computer adjusts, while UTR and WTN are numbers calculated from your match results. They also use different scales, and WTN runs backwards.

The USTA generates NTRP ratings from play in its adult divisions, and in some sections from sanctioned tournaments and extra leagues, so it only sees what happens inside those programs. UTR, by its own description, pulls results from multiple sources. The ITF's WTN says it relies on match results and confirms that singles and doubles are calculated separately.

Is UTR free? Creating a UTR account is free. UTR Sports has two levels, Free and Power. Free users see a whole-number rating when they view other players, such as 7, while Power players see two decimals, such as 7.43. Power is the upgrade you pay for, and UTR sets its price by country.

Is there a conversion? No official one exists between NTRP, UTR and WTN. They measure different things on different scales, so any chart that promises a conversion is a guess. If an event asks for a rating, give the one it asks for. If it accepts any, use the one you have been rated on, and treat conversions as a starting point only.

Which should I use? The one your league, club or event asks for. USTA League asks for NTRP, and UTR Sports positions itself as the rating that matters for college recruiting. For friendly hits, any description of your level works as long as it is honest.

Your Flobit level is a self-declaration on the 1.0 to 7.0 ladder, and your rating is a separate number that moves with your results. Flobit's tennis wording follows the USTA's NTRP characteristics, as in the table above.

• Level. You declare a rung for tennis, and hosts can set a level range on an open match, which is shown on the listing as guidance while the host approves each request. Browsing open matches has no level filter, so read each host's range and note first.
• Rating. Flobit keeps a per-sport ELO rating from confirmed results. It starts between 900 and 1500 depending on the level you declared, or at 1000 if you didn't declare one. It moves more during your first 10 matches, it is measured against your opponents' average in doubles, and it is reversed if a result is disputed.
• Sportsmanship. A separate 1 to 5 star rating that players give the opponents they played against. It says nothing about your tennis.

Flobit's level and rating are not NTRP, UTR or WTN, and there is no conversion between them. Think of the level as how you describe yourself and the rating as how you have been playing in Flobit. A good habit is to declare the level that fits your normal match, play a few results and see whether your rating agrees.

See how ratings work for the full explanation, or find a tennis partner for how to use a level range and your approvals to get an even match. The tennis page lists everything Flobit does for tennis.

What is my NTRP rating?

What is the difference between 3.0 and 3.5 tennis?

What is the difference between UTR and NTRP?

Is UTR free?

What is the World Tennis Number (WTN)?

Is there an official conversion between NTRP, UTR and WTN?

Does Flobit use NTRP for tennis?

Is 4.0 good in tennis?