Total Arrow Weight & GPP
Add up arrow components and check grains per pound of draw weight.
How this works
Grains per pound (GPP) normalizes arrow weight against how much bow it's being shot from — a 420-grain arrow is light for an 80 lb draw weight but heavy for a 45 lb one. That's why GPP, rather than raw grain weight, is the number archery manufacturers use to describe whether an arrow setup runs light, balanced, or heavy for a given bow.
Trade-offs across the GPP range
Lighter setups (under 5 GPP) shoot flatter and faster but transfer more shock back into the bow, which most bows and shooters feel as extra noise and vibration. Heavier setups (8+ GPP) shoot quieter and typically penetrate deeper for the same draw weight, at the cost of a more curved trajectory and shorter effective range. Most hunting setups land in the 6–8 GPP range as a practical middle ground.
Frequently asked questions
What GPP should I be targeting for hunting?
Many bowhunters aim for roughly 6–8 grains per pound of draw weight as a balanced hunting setup — quieter and harder-hitting than a very light, fast setup, without swinging all the way to a very heavy, slow one.
Why does GPP matter more than raw arrow weight?
GPP normalizes weight against how much bow is actually pushing the arrow — a 420-grain arrow is light for an 80 lb bow but heavy for a 45 lb one, so the ratio is more meaningful than the raw grain number alone.
What happens if my GPP is too low?
Very light setups (under about 5 GPP) can shoot flatter and faster but transfer more shock back into the bow, which usually shows up as extra noise and vibration and can stress some bows more than they're rated for.
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