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A 400 lb total means nothing until you know the body weight.
DOTS (Dynamic Objective Team Scoring, 2019) normalizes your powerlifting total against body weight with a 4th-degree polynomial fitted to modern competition data — the system USAPL and USPA use for best-lifter awards. This calculator computes your score and classification from your squat, bench, deadlift, and body weight.
Powerlifters use it to compare against lifters in other weight classes and to pick the right weight class before a meet. Coaches track athlete progress with it when body weight is moving — the total can stall while the score quietly climbs.
Under 200 is beginner, 200–300 novice, 300–400 intermediate, 400–500 advanced, and 500+ elite. Regional meet winners typically score 350–420; national-level lifters exceed 400. Scores are only comparable within the same sex division — the coefficient sets differ.
Wilks (1994) is the classic; DOTS (2019) and IPF GL (2020) are modern replacements fitted on current competition data, and both correct Wilks' bias at extreme body weights. USAPL/USPA use DOTS for best-lifter awards; the IPF itself uses GL points. For personal tracking any of them works — consistency matters more than the system.
Usually no, unless you are near a class boundary with muscle to spare. The polynomial rewards leanness only when the total holds — cutting hard enough to lose 5% off your total while dropping a class almost always nets a lower score. Compute both scenarios here before deciding.