Waist to Height Ratio Calculator
A better risk screen than BMI: keep your waist under half your height.
Enter your values
ⓘ Live results
Results
- Waist to height ratio
- 0.491
- Category
- healthy
- Healthy waist target
- under 87.5 cm
- Change needed
- none — you are inside the target
- Waist in inches
- 33.9 in
Working
- 186 / 175 = 0.491
Quick answer
Waist to height ratio divides waist by height. Below 0.5 is the healthy target for adults, and it predicts cardiometabolic risk better than BMI.
WHtR = waist / height
How to use the Waist to Height Ratio Calculator
- 1Measure your waist at the midpoint between the lowest rib and the top of the hip bone, after breathing out.
- 2Enter height in the same unit as your waist measurement.
- 3Aim to keep the ratio under 0.5 — the simplest version is keep your waist under half your height.
Worked example
Using the values the calculator loads with:
Inputs
- Waist circumference86 cm
- Height175 cm
Results
- Waist to height ratio0.491
- Categoryhealthy
- Healthy waist targetunder 87.5 cm
- Change needednone — you are inside the target
- Waist in inches33.9 in
- 86 / 175 = 0.491
Frequently asked questions
Is WHtR better than BMI?
For cardiometabolic risk, yes. It captures central fat, which BMI cannot distinguish from muscle or hip and leg mass.
Does the 0.5 boundary apply to children?
The same rule of thumb is used from age six upwards, though clinicians use age-specific charts for formal assessment.
About this calculator
- Built and reviewed by James Whitfield · How we build and test calculators
- Report an error
Results are estimates for general information. For medical, legal, structural or financial decisions, confirm with a qualified professional.