Did you know that the average height for men is 5 foot, 10 inches, or about 1.78 metres.
Interestingly the Google search for ‘average height for men’ is more common than those looking for ‘average weight’. furthermore, ‘tall men’ is more searched for than ‘short men’.
I wish I was taller
Your wish is granted.
Moose, you’ve got to stop.
Reminds me of a joke. It’s better to have loved a short girl and lost, than never to have loved a tall.
Average male height for Americans
The average American height for men is 177 cm or 69.7 inches, which is approximately 5 foot 10 inches tall. (for white males*).
A height chart for men of “White” race/ethnicity*, showing average height changes with age.
(Hint: 5 feet tall is 60 inches or 152
I don’t like charts, I don’t like arithmetic.
Good thing you are tall then.
But it’s a valid point. Easier would be better. I have some ideas for moving crosshairs.
Explanation of the average height for man chart.
As we can see from the chart, the height of man after age 20 tends to remain the same, until around age 50 years. As a man ages, a gradual decline in height occurs.
The thick red line in the middle of the chart shows the median or average height (50th percentile) of men. The median line shows that 50% of the male population have height (or stature) taller than the red line indicates.
Similarly, the lowest red line, the 5th percentile line, indicates the Height where only 5% of the male population is shorter.
The red lines show “percentiles”. The thick red line in the middle is the 50th percentile, which indicates that 50% of the population of Men have Height (or stature) taller than the line, and 50% are shorter.
Similarly, the lowest red line, the 5th percentile line, indicates the height where only 5% of the male population is shorter.
The data source for this chart is the NHANES III survey, conducted in America during 1988 to 1994.
Did you know that the tallest man on record measured in at 8 foot 11. Now, that is tall!
Yes, and the world tallest woman is 7 foot 8 inches.
You have to remember though that these height variations are often due to medical conditions.
Average height for Men compared with Weight
Finding out your height is important because then you can find your ideal weight or the most desirable body weight for you.
Even better use our very own ideal weight calculator to see how you are doing in comparison with others of the same age, race and height.
Important measurements such as Body mass Index (BMI) are based on both height and weight for man and woman.
Once you know your height percentile, you can visit the weight chart for men too and see if your body weight matches your height.
A Body Mass Index chart or calculator is basically weight for height measurement.
Perhaps you’d like to Calculate your Body Mass Index for men here, and compare it to the BMI charts for men.
Ethnicity or race and average height for Men
The height for the average man does change according to race and ethnicity. Furthermore, understand the race/ethnicity categories.
So, to see how your height compares look at the charts according to race below:-
- White
- Black
- Hispanic (Mexican-American)
- Other
That’s all great Doc, but what about us women?
I would like to know how my height compares with the average woman.
Here goes then.
Links for the Ladies
- Average height for woman Charts
- Average weight for women Chart
- Body Mass Index (BMI) for Women
- Full list of average weight and height charts
A Little History of the Charts?
I made these charts myself, with the aid statistician John Hanson, from the real raw dataset of the NHANES III study.
It was back in year 2000, when information like this was hard to get and very out-dated. Things have improved a lot since then, with lots of choices available now on the internet, but most of it is unreliable.
That’s why I’ve kept this page going. I updated the styling in 2014.
Created by Steven B. Halls, MD, FRCPC and John Hanson, MSc.
In case you missed it, the average height of men is 5 foot 10 inches.
Let’s do some Q&A… Fun!
What is the average weight for a guy who is 6 foot 2inches?
Well, a lot depends on the frame size, this is determined by adult height and wrist size. In addition, another important factor is the amount of body fat compared to muscle mass.
Examples of frame sizes and average weight for the American male:-
- Small Frame: The average weight is between 155 lbs and 168 lbs
- Medium Frame: An average weight somewhere between 165 and 178 lbs would be expected
- Large frame: The average weight would be between 172 and 197 lbs.
What is the average weight for boys ages 16+?
To check out the growth chart of the average height of boys aged between 2 and 18 years, click HERE.
From the age of 16 and above, boys continue to have a growth spurt and grow a lot more rapidly than girls do.
A 16 year old boy, on average, is around 68 inches tall (5’8″) and weighs 134 pounds.
Once a boy reaches adulthood at 18 and above, he will be, on average, between 69 and 70 inches tall (5’9″ and 5’10”) and weigh somewhere between 148 and 160 pounds.
Is it true that people have got taller over the years?
Yes, it certainly is. Human height, on average has changed significantly over the last 100 years.
The Imperial College, London found that the average British person is four inches taller than they were 100 years ago.
Why is this? Well, one of the suggestions is that human growth increases as a country or nation become richer, which in turn, leads to an improvement in the quality of life. So live well and grow tall.
What is the average weight for men’s physique Contests?
There are a few physique competitors that weight around or above 200 pounds on stage, but on average they are about 160 to 210 pounds with a body fat percentage of 6 – 8%.
As a matter of fact, if you actually knew how much the typical physique competitor and body builder weighs on stage, you would be surprised at how light most of them actually are.
They look bigger because of how lean and cut they are, but their body weight is actually pretty low, believe it or not.
What is the average weight for males in Canada?
The average weight of Canadian men is around 183 pounds. Furthermore, the average height of men in Canada is 5’10”.
If you are a guy who has packed on the pounds recently and are looking to get to your ideal body weight then here are a few recent posts that may help.
Other Posts about Body Mass Index and Weight and Height Charts
- Full Index of ALL our articles on Body Weight and Calculators
Recent Weight Loss Posts
- Index of ALL our Posts on Weight Loss
Recent Posts about Diets
- Full index of ALL our posts on Diets
- Index of Diet for Disease Posts
- Motivation for Weight Loss
- Easy Ways to Fast Weight Loss – 6 Top Tips
- 6 Reasons why weight loss is not working
- 5 Small changes to lose BIG weight
If you are short, don’t worry! Short people have the best perspective on life because they are always looking up.
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