Dart Scoreboard How to calculate your 3 dart average and checkout percentage
3-dart average: points scored, divided by darts thrown, times 3. A busted visit still adds its darts to that total, just zero points. A running tally kept by hand in a notes app is easy to get wrong — Dart Scoreboard works it out for every match, and across all of them, automatically.
The 3-dart average formula
3-dart average = total points scored ÷ darts thrown × 3. It tells you what you score, on average, with a full visit of three darts, so players who finish in different numbers of darts can still be compared.
Two details catch people out. A bust counts its darts but scores 0, which pulls your average down. And a finish with one or two darts counts only those darts.
| Visit | Darts | Points counted |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | 100 |
| 2 | 3 | 140 |
| 3 (bust) | 3 | 0 |
| 4 | 3 | 58 |
| Total | 12 | 298 |
298 ÷ 12 × 3 = 74.5. The app shows averages to one decimal place, so this player sees 74.5.
First 9 average
The first 9 average uses only the first three visits of each leg, when you are scoring freely and not yet aiming at doubles. It shows your scoring power without the finish. In the 501 leg 100, 140, 125 the first 9 average is 365 ÷ 9 × 3, which the app shows as 121.7, well above the same leg's full average of 93.9.
Checkout percentage
Checkout percentage = finishes ÷ finish attempts × 100. Dart Scoreboard counts a visit as an attempt whenever it starts on a score that could be a finish: 170 or less with double-out, 180 or less without. Two finishes from five such visits is 40%.
This is stricter than counting darts thrown at a double. A visit on 136 where you set up 40 counts as an attempt, so the app's figure can be lower than a percentage kept by hand.
Where to find your averages in the app
- Play and finish a match. The end-of-match screen shows each player's 3-Dart Avg and Highest Visit (points, in Cricket).
- On the same screen, First-9 Avg and Checkout % are shown with Pro. Without Pro, tap Watch Ad to see them for the rest of the session, or Go Pro.
- For numbers across all matches, tap the chart icon on the home screen to open Player Stats.
- Each player gets a grid: 3-Dart Avg, Matches, Win Rate, 180s, Tons (100+), Best Visit, Best Checkout, Checkout % and Legs Won. This screen is free.
What is a good darts average?
Depends entirely on who you're playing. My own average sits nowhere near a league player's, and that's fine — the number worth watching is your own, moving up over months, not anyone else's. The stats screen does that for free, adding up every match you finish on the device.
Common mistakes when working out an average by hand
- Leaving busts out. They are part of your game and the darts count.
- Dividing by visits instead of darts, which goes wrong when a leg ends with one or two darts.
- Using quick-score buttons during a game. They record a set of darts that adds up to the total, sometimes fewer than three, so tap darts one by one if the average matters to you.
Questions and answers
What does 3 dart average mean?
Do busts count in the 3-dart average?
Is the average free in the app?
What is a ton in darts?
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