Height Percentile Calculator
Use this height percentile calculator to see how your height compares with US adults of your age and sex, using measured CDC survey data.
Updated October 15, 2026
Medical Disclaimer: This calculator provides a general estimate based on established research and is for educational purposes only, not a substitute for medical advice. Individual results can vary based on health conditions, so consult a qualified healthcare professional or registered dietitian before making significant changes to your diet, exercise, or health routine. Read our full Medical Disclaimer.
How Height Percentile Is Calculated
A height percentile shows how many people in a group are shorter than you. At the 60th percentile, you are taller than about 60 out of 100 people in that group. This calculator compares adults aged 20 and over with measured heights from a national US health survey, split by sex and 10-year age group.
What Height Percentile Measures
It shows where your height sits among people of the same sex and age group. It does not measure health. For anyone under 20, use the Child Growth Percentile Calculator.
The Formula
The CDC's National Center for Health Statistics prints height at nine points (the 5th, 10th, 15th, 25th, 50th, 75th, 85th, 90th and 95th percentiles) for men and women in each age group¹. Your height usually falls between two of them, so the calculator draws a straight line between the two.
Percentile = P_low + (your height - H_low) / (H_high - H_low) x (P_high - P_low)
P_low and P_high are the printed percentiles on either side of you. H_low and H_high are their printed heights.
For US men aged 30 to 39, the 50th percentile is 176.4 cm and the 75th is 180.9 cm¹. A man of 177.8 cm (5 ft 10 in) gets 50 + (1.4 / 4.5) x 25 = 57.8, shown as the 58th percentile.
How This Calculator Computes Your Result
Choose male or female, then enter your age in whole years and your height in feet and inches or centimeters. Height is converted with 1 inch = 2.54 cm (the same rules as our Height Converter) and rounded to 0.1 cm, the survey's precision¹. Your age picks the group, from 20 to 29 up to 80 and older.
You get a whole-number percentile, a plain sentence such as "You are taller than about 58 out of 100 US men aged 30 to 39," the median (middle) height for your group, and how far you are from it. Below the 5th percentile or above the highest printed one, the tool says "below" or "above" and gives no number, because the report does not print the spread needed to estimate further out. For adults 80 and older the report has no 95th percentile, so the top is the 90th¹.
What Your Result Means
Percentile | What it means |
Below 5th | Fewer than 5 in 100 in your group are shorter |
5th to 24th | Lower part of the usual range |
25th to 75th | Middle half of your group |
76th to 95th | Upper part of the usual range |
Above 95th | Fewer than 5 in 100 in your group are taller |
The 50th percentile is the median: half the group is shorter and half is taller. Near the middle, 1 cm is worth about 5 percentile points. Median heights from the survey (August 2021 to August 2023)¹:
Age group | Men | Women |
20 to 29 | 176.1 cm (5 ft 9.3 in) | 163.3 cm (5 ft 4.3 in) |
30 to 39 | 176.4 cm (5 ft 9.4 in) | 162.8 cm (5 ft 4.1 in) |
40 to 49 | 176.2 cm (5 ft 9.4 in) | 162.0 cm (5 ft 3.8 in) |
50 to 59 | 174.5 cm (5 ft 8.7 in) | 160.8 cm (5 ft 3.3 in) |
60 to 69 | 175.0 cm (5 ft 8.9 in) | 160.4 cm (5 ft 3.1 in) |
70 to 79 | 172.7 cm (5 ft 8.0 in) | 157.9 cm (5 ft 2.2 in) |
80 and older | 169.9 cm (5 ft 6.9 in) | 156.9 cm (5 ft 1.8 in) |
How to Measure Correctly
The survey used a wall-mounted stadiometer¹. At home, stand shoes off with heels, back and head against a wall, looking straight ahead. Have someone lay a flat book on your head, level against the wall, and mark the spot. Measure floor to mark.
Self-Reported Height Runs High
In US survey data from 2001 to 2006, men overstated their height by 1.22 cm on average and women by 0.68 cm, and the gap grew with age: 3.88 cm for men and 3.09 cm for women aged 80 and older². With this tool, a man aged 30 to 39 who is truly 176.6 cm but says 5 ft 10 in (177.8 cm) would see the 58th percentile instead of the 51st. A measured height gives a more useful result.
Height Changes With Age
Height loss starts around age 30. In a long-running US study, men lost about 3 cm and women about 5 cm by age 70, and about 5 cm and 8 cm by age 80³. Older groups may also be shorter because average adult height has changed across birth years in many countries⁴. Your percentile compares you with people your own age, so it allows for this. Enter your current height, not your peak.
This Calculator Is US Only
A study of 200 countries and more than 18.6 million people found the tallest and shortest populations were 19 to 20 cm apart a century ago⁴. A US percentile does not show where you would rank elsewhere.
A Note on Accuracy
This compares you with survey estimates and is not a medical test. Each group's average has a standard error of 0.3 to 0.7 cm, and about one in four people invited to the exam took part, so results can shift by a few points near group borders¹. The tables combine all US adults, yet averages differ between groups: in an earlier report, women aged 20 and over averaged 156.3 cm (non-Hispanic Asian) and 162.4 cm (non-Hispanic white)⁵.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a normal height percentile for an adult?
Anything from the 5th to the 95th percentile (the 90th for ages 80 and older) is inside the range the survey prints for its group, and the 25th to 75th is the middle half. A percentile is a comparison, not a health score.
What is the 50th percentile height for adults in the US?
For adults aged 20 and older, the median is 175.2 cm (5 ft 9.0 in) for men and 161.2 cm (5 ft 3.5 in) for women¹. Each age group differs a little, as the table above shows.
How accurate is a height percentile calculator?
It is as accurate as the survey table and your measurement. The tool draws a straight line between printed percentiles, so it gives an estimate, and a self-reported height can push it up by several points².
Does your height percentile change as you get older?
Your height changes more than your percentile does. Most people lose height after 30, but you are compared with others your age, who are losing height too³.
Sources
Anthropometric Reference Data for Children and Adults: United States, August 2021-August 2023, Fryar et al., 2025
Validity of Self-Reported Height, Weight, and Body Mass Index, Merrill and Richardson, 2009
Longitudinal Change in Height of Men and Women, Sorkin et al., 1999
A century of trends in adult human height, NCD Risk Factor Collaboration, 2016
Anthropometric Reference Data for Children and Adults: United States, 2015-2018, Fryar et al., 2021