By Tim King · Updated 15 September 2026

BMI Calculator for Men

Male BMI Chart and Healthy Range

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Height (cm)

Weight (kg)

Result

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How the BMI Calculator For Men works

This BMI calculator for men gives the BMI and the adult category. Enter your height and weight and the calculator gives your BMI, the adult category and the weight range that would put you between 18.5 and 25 at your height. Switch to imperial to type 5'11" and pounds. The formula is the same for everyone; this page covers what the result means for men, and where it misleads them.

BMI calculator for men: same formula, different body

Body mass index is weight divided by height squared, and the adult cut-offs of 18.5, 25 and 30 apply to men and women alike. The World Health Organization publishes no male-specific scale. What is specific to men is the way the index behaves on them: men carry more muscle and less fat than women at the same height and weight, so a man's BMI is more likely to be pushed up by lean mass, and more likely to overstate his body fat.

What is a good BMI for a man?

The healthy band is 18.5 to 24.9. A man in that band typically carries 15 to 20% body fat, and the same BMI of 24 can mean a lean, trained physique or a soft, sedentary one. The index correlates with health outcomes across a population of men reasonably well, but for any one man it says nothing about where the weight is, and for men the abdomen is where the risk sits.

BMI chart for men by height

The table gives the weight at each cut-off for common male heights. Find your height, then see which column your weight falls in.

Height	Under 18.5	Healthy 18.5–24.9	Overweight 25–29.9	Obese 30+
160 cm (5'3")	below 47.4 kg	47.4–64.0 kg	64.0–76.8 kg	above 76.8 kg
162 cm (5'4")	below 48.6 kg	48.6–65.6 kg	65.6–78.7 kg	above 78.7 kg
164 cm (5'5")	below 49.8 kg	49.8–67.2 kg	67.2–80.7 kg	above 80.7 kg
166 cm (5'5")	below 51.0 kg	51.0–68.9 kg	68.9–82.7 kg	above 82.7 kg
168 cm (5'6")	below 52.2 kg	52.2–70.6 kg	70.6–84.7 kg	above 84.7 kg
170 cm (5'7")	below 53.5 kg	53.5–72.2 kg	72.2–86.7 kg	above 86.7 kg
172 cm (5'8")	below 54.7 kg	54.7–74.0 kg	74.0–88.8 kg	above 88.8 kg
174 cm (5'9")	below 56.0 kg	56.0–75.7 kg	75.7–90.8 kg	above 90.8 kg
176 cm (5'9")	below 57.3 kg	57.3–77.4 kg	77.4–92.9 kg	above 92.9 kg
178 cm (5'10")	below 58.6 kg	58.6–79.2 kg	79.2–95.1 kg	above 95.1 kg
180 cm (5'11")	below 59.9 kg	59.9–81.0 kg	81.0–97.2 kg	above 97.2 kg
182 cm (6'0")	below 61.3 kg	61.3–82.8 kg	82.8–99.4 kg	above 99.4 kg
184 cm (6'0")	below 62.6 kg	62.6–84.6 kg	84.6–101.6 kg	above 101.6 kg
186 cm (6'1")	below 64.0 kg	64.0–86.5 kg	86.5–103.8 kg	above 103.8 kg
188 cm (6'2")	below 65.4 kg	65.4–88.4 kg	88.4–106.0 kg	above 106.0 kg
190 cm (6'3")	below 66.8 kg	66.8–90.2 kg	90.2–108.3 kg	above 108.3 kg
192 cm (6'4")	below 68.2 kg	68.2–92.2 kg	92.2–110.6 kg	above 110.6 kg
194 cm (6'4")	below 69.6 kg	69.6–94.1 kg	94.1–112.9 kg	above 112.9 kg
196 cm (6'5")	below 71.1 kg	71.1–96.0 kg	96.0–115.2 kg	above 115.2 kg
198 cm (6'6")	below 72.5 kg	72.5–98.0 kg	98.0–117.6 kg	above 117.6 kg
200 cm (6'7")	below 74.0 kg	74.0–100.0 kg	100.0–120.0 kg	above 120.0 kg

The muscle problem

Muscle is denser than fat, so anyone who trains with weights gains BMI faster than they gain girth. A 180 cm man at 88 kg with a 82 cm waist has a BMI of 27.2 and is classified overweight; a 180 cm man at 88 kg with a 100 cm waist has the same BMI and a very different risk profile. Rugby forwards, powerlifters and most men who train seriously sit in the overweight band while being metabolically healthy. If your waist is less than half your height, an "overweight" BMI is very likely muscle.

Waist size, the missing number

For men, waist circumference is the cheapest and most useful addition to BMI. Measured at the navel, over 94 cm (37 in) marks raised risk and over 102 cm (40 in) marks substantially raised risk regardless of the BMI. The waist-to-height ratio is even simpler: keep it under 0.5. Abdominal fat surrounds the organs and drives insulin resistance, blood pressure and lipids in a way that fat elsewhere does not, and the BMI cannot see it.

Ethnicity and age

Men of South Asian, Chinese, other Asian, Middle Eastern, Black African and African-Caribbean backgrounds see raised risk of type 2 diabetes at lower BMIs, and the WHO and NICE both suggest using 23 rather than 25 as the overweight threshold for those groups. Older men lose muscle and gain abdominal fat at a steady weight, so a BMI that has not moved in twenty years is not the reassurance it looks like.

BMI examples for men

First example. A man 185 cm tall weighing 95 kg: 95 ÷ (1.85 × 1.85) = 95 ÷ 3.4225 = 27.8, overweight.

Second example. A man 178 cm tall weighing 72 kg: 72 ÷ 3.1684 = 22.7, a healthy weight.

How many kilograms would the first man need to lose to reach 25? 25 × 3.4225 = 85.6 kg, so about 9.4 kg.

FAQ

Is BMI calculated differently for men?

No. The formula and the adult categories are the same for both sexes. The interpretation differs: men carry more muscle and less fat at a given BMI, so the index is more often pushed into the overweight band by lean mass, and waist measurement is the usual corrective.

What is a healthy BMI for a man?

18.5 to 24.9 by the WHO categories used here. The healthy weight range result gives that band in kilograms or pounds at your exact height. For a man who trains, a BMI a little above 25 with a waist under half his height is generally fine.

I lift weights and my BMI says overweight. Is that wrong?

Probably. The index cannot distinguish muscle from fat, and muscular men routinely land in the 25 to 30 band with low body fat. Check your waist-to-height ratio; if it is under 0.5, the BMI classification is describing your muscle, not a health problem.

Why does waist size matter more for men?

Men preferentially store fat around the abdomen, and that visceral fat is the kind linked to heart disease and type 2 diabetes. Over 94 cm raises risk and over 102 cm raises it substantially, whatever the BMI says. Women store more fat on hips and thighs, where it is less harmful.

Does the healthy range change with age?

The cut-offs do not, but muscle loss after about 50 means a stable BMI can hide a rising body fat percentage. Some studies find the lowest mortality in older men at BMIs of 25 to 27, so a slight rise in later life is less concerning than a growing waist.