What is a healthy weight for my height?
The healthy weight range for your height in kilograms and pounds, how it is worked out from BMI, and why it is a range rather than a single ideal number.
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Tools for this job: BMI Calculator · Weight Converter · Length Converter
There is no single ideal weight for a given height. Health guidance uses a range, based on body mass index (BMI), within which weight-related health risks are lowest for most adults. Knowing your range is more useful than chasing one number, and it is easy to work out.
Healthy weight ranges by height
These ranges correspond to a BMI of 18.5 to 24.9, the standard adult healthy range.
| Height | Kilograms | Pounds |
|---|---|---|
| 152 cm (5 ft 0) | 43–58 | 95–127 |
| 160 cm (5 ft 3) | 47–64 | 104–141 |
| 168 cm (5 ft 6) | 52–70 | 115–154 |
| 170 cm (5 ft 7) | 53–72 | 118–159 |
| 175 cm (5 ft 9) | 57–76 | 125–168 |
| 183 cm (6 ft 0) | 62–83 | 136–184 |
For your exact height, the BMI Calculator shows the healthy weight range alongside your BMI, in metric or imperial units.
How the range is calculated
BMI is weight in kilograms divided by height in metres squared. Turning that around, weight = BMI × height². For 1.70 m: 18.5 × 1.70² = 53.5 kg at the bottom of the range, and 24.9 × 1.70² = 72.0 kg at the top. The range is wide because people of the same height differ in frame, muscle and build.
Why a range, not a target
- Build: a broad-shouldered person with a heavy frame sits naturally higher in the range than a slight one.
- Muscle: muscle is denser than fat. Athletes can have a BMI above 25 with little body fat.
- Age: some research suggests slightly higher weights carry little extra risk in older adults, while being underweight carries more.
- Ethnicity: for people of South Asian, Chinese and some other backgrounds, health risks start at a lower BMI. See BMI cut-offs for Asian adults.
Better together: waist measurement
Fat around the middle is more closely linked to heart disease and diabetes than total weight. A simple check used in UK guidance is the waist-to-height ratio: your waist should be less than half your height. Measure around the middle, halfway between the bottom of the ribs and the top of the hips. At 170 cm tall, that means a waist under 85 cm.
Converting units
If your scale shows stones or pounds and the chart is in kilograms, use the Weight Converter. For heights in feet and inches, the Length Converter gives centimetres, and the guide to height in feet and centimetres has a table.
Not for children or pregnancy
Adult BMI ranges do not apply to children and teenagers, who are assessed with age- and sex-specific growth charts, or during pregnancy. For anyone with a medical condition, a health professional's advice should come before any chart. For what BMI does and does not tell you, see what your BMI means.