Waist-to-Height Ratio Calculator
Keep your waist under half your height.
Measured at the navel, breathing out normally.
Waist-to-height ratio
0.49
Slim / low risk
Under 0.5 — your waist is less than half your height, which is the target.
Waist-to-height ratio categories
| Category | Ratio |
|---|---|
| Slim / low riskYou | Below 0.5 |
| Increased risk | 0.5 – 0.6 |
| High risk | 0.6 and above |
How the Waist-to-Height Ratio Calculator works
This is the rare health metric that fits in one sentence: keep your waist under half your height. It needs no chart, works across adults of most heights and ethnicities, and in several studies has outperformed BMI at flagging cardiometabolic risk.
Not medical advice. This calculator gives a general estimate, not medical advice. It cannot account for your individual health, medical history, or medication. Talk to a qualified healthcare professional before acting on any result.
Frequently asked questions
How is waist-to-height ratio calculated?
Divide your waist circumference by your height in the same units. A 32-inch waist on a 70-inch frame is 32 ÷ 70 = 0.46. Because it is a ratio, inches and centimetres give the same answer as long as you do not mix them.
What is a healthy waist-to-height ratio?
Below 0.5 is the target for adults. 0.5 to 0.59 indicates increased risk, and 0.6 or above indicates high risk. UK NICE guidance recommends this measure alongside BMI precisely because the 0.5 threshold is so easy to remember and apply.
Why is this better than BMI?
BMI cannot tell where weight sits, and abdominal fat is the part most strongly linked to metabolic disease. Waist-to-height captures that directly, and unlike waist circumference alone it does not need different thresholds for different heights.
Does it work for children?
The 0.5 boundary has been studied in children over about age 6 and performs reasonably, but paediatric assessment normally uses age- and sex-specific BMI percentile charts. Use this as a rough check, not a diagnosis, and raise concerns with a paediatrician.