Scoring & Rules
Gymnastics uses two kinds of scoring. In USA Gymnastics' Levels 1–10 (the Development Program), Xcel and NCAA women's gymnastics, scores are built around 10.0: judges set a routine's Start Value, its starting score of up to 10.0, and take off points for mistakes. Elite gymnastics under the international FIG rules adds two separate scores instead, one for difficulty and one for execution, so the total can go well past 10.
This page shows every system side by side: the top score, how the score is built, what a fall costs and how totals are added up. Each card links to the full guides. For one long explanation, start with gymnastics scoring in the USA or FIG scoring explained.
Choose a program and a system for the short version: the top score, how it's built, what a fall costs and how totals work.
Jump to a system: Levels 1–5 · Levels 6–10 · Xcel · NCAA women · NCAA men · Elite women · Elite men · Vault
Rules as of the 2026–27 season: the FIG 2025–2028 Codes of Points, USA Gymnastics' current Development Program and Xcel rules, and the 2026–27 NCAA rules.
| System | Top score | How the score is built | A fall | Totals |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Levels 1–5 | 10.0 | Most complete routines start from 10.0; deductions come off | 0.50 | All-around: four events added |
| Levels 6–10 | 10.0, or 10.10 for an eligible Level 10 routine | Start Value from the routine's content, minus deductions | 0.50 | All-around: four events added |
| Xcel | 10.0 | Start Value from the division's rules, minus deductions | 0.50 | All-around: four events added |
| NCAA women | 10.000 | 9.20 base + up to 0.60 bonus + up to 0.20 Composition Credit, minus deductions | 0.50 | Team: six up, five count on each event |
| NCAA men | No fixed maximum | The international men's Code, with NCAA modifications | Under the men's Code | Team: four up, four count on each of six events |
| Elite women | No fixed maximum | D-score + E-score (from 10.0) − neutral deductions | 1.00 | All-around: four events added |
| Elite men | No fixed maximum | D-score + E-score (from 10.0) − neutral deductions | 1.00 | All-around: six events added |
Team formats at local USA Gymnastics and Xcel meets vary: state committees set them, and a meet might count the best three scores on each event.
Each card gives the essentials and links to the guides that explain them in full.
USA Gymnastics · compulsory
Every gymnast at a level performs the same set routine. Most complete routines start from 10.0, and judges take off points for form errors, movements that don't follow the written routine, and falls.
USA Gymnastics · optional
Coaches build the routines, so judges first work out a Start Value from the required skills and Special Requirements, plus Composition Credit from Level 8 and bonus at Levels 9–10. Deductions come off that Start Value.
Xcel · six divisions
Coaches build each routine to its division's requirements. On bars, beam and floor, Bronze through Diamond start from 10.00, and Sapphire starts from 9.60 with up to 0.40 bonus available.
College · NCAA women, 2026–27
A 10.0 system. On bars, beam and floor, a routine builds its 10.00 Start Value from a 9.20 base, up to 0.60 bonus and up to 0.20 Composition Credit; each vault has a set value in the NCAA vault chart.
College · NCAA men, 2026–27
Open-ended scores based on the international men's Code, with NCAA modifications, on six events. Every routine in a team's lineup counts.
International meets, the Olympics and U.S. elite competition use the FIG Code of Points. Judges score difficulty and execution separately, so a harder routine can win even with more deductions.
Elite · FIG Code of Points 2025–2028
The D-score adds up the routine's difficulty, from up to eight counting skills including the dismount, plus Composition Requirements, connection value and any bonuses. The E-score starts at 10.0 and loses points for execution and artistry errors.
Elite · FIG Code of Points 2025–2028
Built the same way, D-score plus E-score, but on six events, with Element Groups in place of the women's Composition Requirements and no music on floor.
Beyond scoring, elite rules also set who can compete: see the Olympic age rules.
Every program
Vault has no routine to build: each vault carries its own value. In USA Gymnastics, Xcel and NCAA that value comes from a chart and sets the Start Value; in FIG it is the vault's difficulty score. Execution deductions come off from there.
Most deductions are for execution: bent arms or knees, legs apart, extra steps on landings and falls. Neutral deductions are separate penalties for things like stepping out of bounds or going over the time limit. The same mistake can cost different amounts in different systems:
| Mistake | Levels 6–10 and Xcel | NCAA women | Elite women |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | 0.50 | 0.50 | 1.00 |
| Small or medium step | 0.10–0.15 each | 0.10–0.15 each | 0.10 each |
| Large step or jump | 0.20 each | 0.20 each | 0.30 each |
| Out of bounds (floor) | 0.10 | 0.10 | 0.10 or 0.30 |
In FIG execution, errors are small (0.10), medium (0.30) or large (0.50), and a fall is 1.00, for women and men alike. Under FIG women's rules, touching outside the floor with one foot or hand costs 0.10; both feet, both hands or another body part costs 0.30.
Our complete deductions list compares the systems in full. For single topics, see why a fall can cost more than 1.0, hops vs. steps on landings, out of bounds on floor, neutral deductions, artistry deductions and floor routine time limits.
Three terms come up again and again. A difficulty value is what one skill is worth. In elite gymnastics, the counting skills' values add up to the D-score. In the 10.0 systems, the content of a routine sets its Start Value, the most it can score. Our guide to D-score vs. Start Value vs. difficulty value sorts them out.
Gymnasts can also earn points for linking skills and for harder content: see connection value and how bonus points work in each system. A skill only counts if the judges recognize it, which our guide to how judges give skills credit explains. For the hardest routines in the world, see how high D-scores go.
An all-around score adds up a gymnast's event scores: four events for women, six for men. Team totals depend on the meet. At the World Championships, up to four gymnasts compete on each apparatus in qualification and the best three scores count; in the team final, three compete and all three count. NCAA women's teams count five of six scores on each event.
Behind every score are the officials who award it: see who judges gymnastics and how score inquiries work under FIG rules.
It depends on the program. In USA Gymnastics' Development Program, Xcel and NCAA women's gymnastics, judges set a routine's Start Value, up to 10.0, and take off deductions. In elite gymnastics, judges add a difficulty score and an execution score, then subtract any neutral deductions.
Because difficulty is scored separately and has no fixed ceiling. The E-score is out of 10.0, and the D-score is added on top, so a hard routine performed well can score 14 or more.
Yes, in the 10.0 systems: a routine with a 10.0 Start Value and no deductions scores 10.0 in the Development Program, Xcel and NCAA, and an eligible Level 10 routine can reach 10.10 with the extra bonus. Elite gymnastics has no perfect score. Our guide to the highest possible score covers each system.
A fall costs 0.50 in the Development Program, Xcel and NCAA women's gymnastics, and 1.00 under FIG rules. Other errors around a fall, such as missing a skill's requirements, can cost more.
Each event's counting scores are added, then the events are totaled. NCAA women count five of six scores on each event; FIG team finals count all three; local meets set their own format. Our team scores guide has examples.
A 9.700 can stand out at a club meet and a 9.900 is valuable in college. Elite scores only make sense compared with others on the same apparatus. Our guide to what counts as a high score gives examples by level.
Start by asking which system a score comes from. In the 10.0 systems, the routine's content sets its Start Value and mistakes come off it; in elite gymnastics, difficulty and execution are scored separately and added. The same fall, step or bent knee can cost different amounts in each.