How to Calculate Darts Averages (and What Counts as Good)
Darts stats · Averages · Updated 2026-08-04
Every televised darts graphic leads with one number: the three-dart average. It is worked out the same way at every level, from a Thursday night pub league to a World Championship final: points scored divided by darts thrown, multiplied by three. Finish a leg of 501 in 15 darts and you have averaged exactly 100.2, no matter who you are.
This guide works through the formula with two fully checked examples, explains why a match average is not the mean of your leg averages (with the arithmetic to prove it), covers first-9 averages, the one-dart PPD figure used in soft-tip, and checkout percentage, then finishes with an honest table of what counts as a good average at every level of the game.
The three-dart average formula
A darts average is always a three-dart average unless someone says otherwise. The formula: take every point you scored, divide by every dart you threw, then multiply by three. Multiplying by three converts the figure from points per dart into points per visit, because a standard visit to the oche is three darts. The result tells you, in one number, how quickly you take a leg apart.
Two details matter before we run the numbers. First, every dart you throw counts, including darts that miss the board entirely and visits that bust. Second, in a leg of 501 that you win, the points scored are exactly 501, because you finished the leg. The best single dart is treble 20 for 60 and the best visit is 180, so a perfect scoring visit pulls your average toward 180 and a scrappy one drags it down fast.
- Add up the points scored: You won the leg, so you scored the full 501. If your opponent checks out first, you count only the points you actually scored in that leg before it ended.
- Count every dart thrown: Say the leg went 180, 140, 100, 41, then a final visit of two misses before 40 out on double 20. That is five full visits: 15 darts. The finishing double counts like any other dart, and so did the two that missed it. The finishing double counts like any other dart, and so would any dart that missed it.
- Divide, then multiply by three: 501 divided by 15 is 33.4 points per dart. Multiply by three: 33.4 x 3 = 100.2. A 15-dart leg is a 100.2 average, exactly, every single time.
Now a longer leg. You grind out 501 in 24 darts, which is eight full visits. Same sum: 501 divided by 24 is 20.875 points per dart, and 20.875 multiplied by three is 62.625, which rounds to 62.63. That is a respectable pub standard, and it shows how sensitive the average is to leg length: nine extra darts knocked almost 38 points off the figure.
Why missed doubles keep averages honest
The average would be easy to inflate if you could quietly leave out your bad darts. You cannot. A dart thrown at a double counts as a dart thrown whether it lands or not. Wire double 16, bounce out, drift into the wrong bed: all of it stays in the denominator while adding nothing to the numerator. This is what makes the number honest, and it is why heavy scorers with weak finishing post modest averages. Hit 180, 180, 101 to leave 40 after nine darts and you are scoring at 153.67; if you then need three full visits to pin double 20, the leg takes 18 darts and your average for it is 83.5. The double, not the trebles, decided the number.
Leg average vs match average
A match average is not the mean of your leg averages. It is the same single formula applied across the whole match: total points scored in every leg, divided by total darts thrown in every leg, multiplied by three. The distinction matters because longer legs contain more darts, so they carry more weight in the true calculation than a simple mean gives them.
| Leg | Points scored | Darts thrown | Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Leg 1 | 501 | 15 | 100.2 |
| Leg 2 | 501 | 24 | 62.63 |
| Match | 1,002 | 39 | 77.08 |
Check the arithmetic. Total points: 501 + 501 = 1,002. Total darts: 15 + 24 = 39. Match average: 1,002 / 39 x 3 = 77.08. Taking the mean of the two leg averages instead gives (100.2 + 62.625) / 2 = 81.41, which is wrong by more than four points. The 24-dart leg holds 24 of the 39 darts, so it pulls the true figure down harder than a mean suggests. Scoring apps and TV graphics always use the total-points, total-darts method.
First-9 average: scoring power in isolation
The first-9 average applies the same formula to only the first nine darts of each leg. Those darts are almost always pure scoring: no checkout pressure, no setup shots, just throwing at treble 20 with treble 19 as cover. It answers a different question from the match average. The match average tells you how fast you win legs; the first-9 tells you how hard you hit when nothing rides on the dart. Professionals routinely post first-9 figures well above their final match average, because the finishing phase, with its single-dart setups and pressure doubles, pulls the overall number down. If your first-9 is strong but your match average sits far below it, the gap is your finishing, and that is exactly what to practise.
One-dart average (PPD) in soft-tip darts
Soft-tip leagues, common in the United States and Japan, usually quote a one-dart average, also called PPD for points per dart. It is the same calculation without the final multiplication: points scored divided by darts thrown. The 15-dart leg of 501 from earlier is 501 / 15 = 33.4 PPD. To compare a soft-tip PPD with a steel-tip three-dart average, multiply by three: 33.4 PPD is the same standard as a 100.2 three-dart average. Nothing else about the maths changes.
Checkout percentage: the other number that matters
Averages measure scoring; checkout percentage measures finishing. It is doubles hit divided by darts thrown at a double. Win three legs in a match having thrown 11 darts at doubles along the way and your checkout rate is 3 / 11 = 27.3%. Only genuine attempts at a double sit in the denominator; a setup dart at single 8 to leave double 16 is a setup dart, not a dart at a double. Read the two numbers together: a 65 average with a 40% checkout rate wins legs that an 80 average with a 12% rate keeps throwing away.
What counts as a good darts average?
An average only means something against a benchmark, so here is an honest ladder. These are match averages sustained over a session, not one hot leg.
| Level | Three-dart average | Typical 501 leg |
|---|---|---|
| Beginner | Around 40 | About 38 darts |
| Improving pub player | 50 to 60 | 25 to 30 darts |
| Strong league player | 70 to 85 | 18 to 21 darts |
| County or pro qualifier | 85 to 95 | 16 to 18 darts |
| PDC professional | 95 to 105 | 14 to 16 darts |
| Televised match record | 123.40 | Around 12 darts |
The record deserves its own sentence: Michael van Gerwen averaged 123.40 against Michael Smith in the 2016 Premier League, the highest televised match average ever recorded, a pace at which a 501 leg lasts barely 12 darts. For wider context, PDC professionals typically sit between 95 and 105 in matches, a solid pub or league player lands somewhere around 60 to 80, and a genuine beginner is around 40. If you are new to the game and averaging 45, you are ahead of the curve.
Converting an average into leg length
There is a quick conversion between an average and how many darts a typical 501 leg takes: darts = 501 / average x 3, rounded to the nearest dart. It works because the average is simply leg speed expressed per three darts. A 100 average means roughly 15 darts a leg (501 / 100 x 3 = 15.03). An 83.5 average is exactly 18 darts. A 62.63 average is 24 darts. Run it in reverse to set targets: to become an 18-dart player you need to sustain 83.5, which in practice means visits of 85 to 100 while scoring and no more than two visits on the double.
| Three-dart average | Darts per 501 leg |
|---|---|
| 123.40 | 12 |
| 100.2 | 15 |
| 83.5 | 18 |
| 71.57 | 21 |
| 62.63 | 24 |
| 55.67 | 27 |
| 50.1 | 30 |
Every formula in one place
- Three-dart average = points scored / darts thrown x 3
- Match average = total points across all legs / total darts across all legs x 3
- First-9 average = the same formula applied only to the first nine darts of each leg
- One-dart average (PPD) = points scored / darts thrown
- Checkout percentage = doubles hit / darts thrown at a double x 100
- Leg length estimate = 501 / average x 3 darts
Let the scoreboard do the maths. Darts Scorer & Dart Scoreboard by Panda Taps works out three-dart averages, first-9 averages, and checkout percentage automatically while you play X01, Cricket, and practice routines, with checkout hints appearing on every finishable score. It runs fully offline, keeps the screen awake through a match, and is launching soon for iPhone and iPad. Learn more about Darts Scorer & Dart Scoreboard.
Frequently asked questions
How do you calculate a darts average?
Divide the total points scored by the number of darts thrown, then multiply by three. A 501 leg finished in 15 darts is 501 divided by 15 times 3, which is exactly 100.2.
What is a good darts average?
Around 40 is typical for a beginner, 50 to 60 for an improving pub player, 70 to 85 for a strong league player, and 95 to 105 for PDC professionals. Michael van Gerwen holds the televised match record at 123.40.
Do missed darts at doubles count in your average?
Yes. Every dart thrown counts, including misses at a double, which is why averages dip during a scrappy finish and why the stat stays honest.
What is a first-9 average in darts?
It is the same three-dart calculation applied only to the first nine darts of each leg. It isolates pure scoring power before checkout pressure comes into play.