For most adults, a healthy weight for your height is any weight that puts your BMI between 18.5 and 24.9. At 5'6" that is about 115 to 154 lb; at 5'10" it is about 129 to 173 lb. Enter your height and weight below and the calculator shows your own range under the result. The range is wide on purpose: frame, muscle, age and ancestry all move where a healthy weight sits for one person.
Two checks narrow it down. Measure your waist and compare it with your height, and if you want to change your weight, choose a first goal a few percent away rather than the bottom of the chart. In ChatRPE you can log your weight and waist in a sentence, and the coach charts them against a target line so you can see how far is left.
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BMI calculator
Divide weight by height squared to get your body mass index and the screening band it falls in. Height and weight are the only inputs BMI has.
Your BMI
25.8 kg/m²
Screening band
Overweight (25.0 – 29.9)
At your height, a BMI of 18.5–24.9 spans roughly 129–174 lb.
- Underweight
- Below 18.5
- Healthy weight
- 18.5 – 24.9
- Overweight
- 25.0 – 29.9
- Obesity
- 30.0 and above
BMI is a population screening ratio, not a measure of body fat, health, or fitness. It uses only height and weight, so it cannot separate muscle from fat and routinely classifies lean, muscular people as overweight. The bands above are the standard adult classifications and are not applied to children, pregnancy, or athletes without further context. Discuss what your number means for you with a clinician rather than treating it as a diagnosis.
Healthy weight chart by height
These ranges are the whole pounds and kilograms that the calculator above classifies as BMI 18.5 to 24.9 for adults. The last column is where "overweight" starts under the lower threshold that UK guidance uses for some ancestries (explained below).
| Height | Healthy weight (lb) | Healthy weight (kg) | Overweight from, lower threshold |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4'10" (147 cm) | 89–119 lb | 40–53 kg | 110 lb |
| 5'0" (152 cm) | 95–127 lb | 43–57 kg | 118 lb |
| 5'2" (157 cm) | 101–136 lb | 46–61 kg | 126 lb |
| 5'4" (163 cm) | 108–145 lb | 50–66 kg | 134 lb |
| 5'6" (168 cm) | 115–154 lb | 53–70 kg | 143 lb |
| 5'8" (173 cm) | 122–164 lb | 56–74 kg | 151 lb |
| 5'10" (178 cm) | 129–173 lb | 59–79 kg | 160 lb |
| 6'0" (183 cm) | 137–183 lb | 62–83 kg | 170 lb |
| 6'2" (188 cm) | 144–194 lb | 66–88 kg | 179 lb |
| 6'4" (193 cm) | 152–204 lb | 69–92 kg | 189 lb |
| 6'6" (198 cm) | 160–215 lb | 73–97 kg | 199 lb |
The chart is the same for men and women because BMI uses only height and weight. Sex changes how much of that weight tends to be muscle and fat, which is one reason the waist check below matters more than where you fall inside the band.
These bands do not apply to children and teenagers, who are assessed on age- and sex-specific BMI percentiles, or during pregnancy. The BMI calculator guide explains the formula and why it reads high on muscular people.
When the chart is the wrong yardstick
UK guidance from NICE says people with a South Asian, Chinese, other Asian, Middle Eastern, Black African or African-Caribbean background tend to carry more fat around the middle, with cardiometabolic risk rising at a lower BMI. It sets overweight at a BMI of 23 to 27.4 for those groups, and obesity at 27.5 or more. That is the right-hand column in the table.
Age shifts the picture the other way. A 2014 meta-analysis of 32 studies in adults aged 65 and over found the lowest mortality was not at the bottom of the healthy band: compared with a BMI of 23 to 23.9, risk was 12% higher at 21 to 21.9, and did not start rising at the top end until a BMI above 33. NICE likewise asks clinicians to interpret BMI with caution after 65. For an older adult, unplanned weight loss is often the more worrying signal than a few extra pounds.
Muscle is the third exception. Someone who has lifted for years can sit above the band with a modest waist. If that is you, your waist and your logged lifts say more than the table does.
Check your waist against your height
The simplest second opinion costs a tape measure. NICE recommends keeping your waist to less than half your height:
| Waist-to-height ratio | NICE classification |
|---|---|
| 0.4 to 0.49 | Healthy |
| 0.5 to 0.59 | Increased health risk |
| 0.6 or more | Further increased risk |
To measure, find the bottom of your ribs and the top of your hips, wrap the tape midway between them (usually just above the belly button), and breathe out normally before reading it. Divide by your height in the same units. At 5'7", or 67 inches, a 33-inch waist is a ratio of 0.49; a 36-inch waist is 0.54.
NICE says the ratio works for adults with a BMI under 35, of either sex and any ethnicity, including people with a lot of muscle. That makes it a useful tiebreaker. A weight above the band with a ratio under 0.5 is a different situation from the same weight with a ratio of 0.58. A weight inside the band does not rule out a high ratio either.
What "ideal weight" formulas give
Search for ideal body weight and you will meet a set of formulas that each produce a single number. They start from 5 feet and add a fixed amount per inch:
| Formula | Men | Women |
|---|---|---|
| Hamwi (1964) | 106 lb + 6 lb per inch over 5 ft | 100 lb + 5 lb per inch |
| Devine (1974) | 50 kg + 2.3 kg per inch | 45.5 kg + 2.3 kg per inch |
| Robinson (1983) | 52 kg + 1.9 kg per inch | 49 kg + 1.7 kg per inch |
| Miller (1983) | 56.2 kg + 1.41 kg per inch | 53.1 kg + 1.36 kg per inch |
For a man at 5'10" they give about 155 to 166 lb. For a woman at 5'4" they give about 120 to 129 lb. Both land in the middle of the healthy band for those heights.
These numbers look precise, but they were never health targets for an individual. A review of their origins traces them to old insurance height-weight tables, and Devine's version spread because it was used to dose certain drugs. They take no account of muscle, age or frame. Treat them as one point inside a range, not the weight you should be.
How to choose a goal weight
If your weight is above the band or your waist ratio is 0.5 or more, the top of the chart can be dozens of pounds away. A nearer first goal is easier to reach and still worth having. In the Diabetes Prevention Program, adults at high risk who aimed to lose 7% of their weight through diet and activity cut their risk of developing type 2 diabetes by 58% over about three years, compared with placebo.
A workable sequence:
- Average your weight over a week or two of morning weigh-ins, so the starting point is not one high or low day.
- Set a first goal 5 to 10% below that average. From 200 lb, that is 180 to 190 lb.
- Check how long it will take. Half a percent to one percent of bodyweight a week is a common pace; the guide to how much weight you can lose in a month has the timelines, and the calorie deficit calculator turns a pace into a daily calorie target.
- When you get there, hold it for a couple of months before deciding on the next step. The weight maintenance guide covers that phase.
A practical sanity check: be wary of a goal far below the lowest weight you have held comfortably as an adult. It may still be reachable, but holding it will take more ongoing effort, and maintenance is where most weight comes back.
If you are under the band, the goal runs the other way. The guide to gaining weight covers a steady surplus. Unexplained weight loss, or a goal weight that keeps moving lower, is worth raising with a doctor. If thoughts about weight or food are taking over your day, talk to a clinician or an eating disorder helpline before setting any target.
Tracking the goal in ChatRPE
Tell ChatRPE your weight, or your waist, in an ordinary sentence ("174.6 this morning", "waist 35.5 inches") by typing or using voice. Each becomes a dated entry, and the waist is a custom metric you name once. If you tell the coach your goal, it can save it to the notes it keeps about you, so later check-ins measure against it. It is told never to save a weight target you have not stated yourself.
Then ask for the view that answers "how far is left":
- A bodyweight line with a trend line and a target line at your goal. The trend line's legend quotes the rate of change, per week when you are losing less than a unit a day.
- Your waist divided by your height, charted as a ratio with a target line at 0.5. The chart computes the ratio from each waist entry, so you never log a second number. You need a few waist entries over several weeks before it shows anything.
- Your weight and waist on one chart with separate axes, for the months when the scale stalls and the tape keeps moving.
Charts show one point per day, and a trend line describes the direction of your past entries; it is not a forecast. ChatRPE does not connect to a smart scale or Apple Health, so every reading is one you log. For weight noise from salt and water, see why your weight fluctuates.
Frequently asked questions
How much should I weigh for my height and age?
For adults under 65, the healthy range for your height in the chart above does not change with age. From 65 on, research links a BMI at the very bottom of the band with higher mortality, and NICE asks clinicians to read BMI with caution, so a weight in the middle or upper part of the range is often fine. Children and teenagers use age- and sex-specific BMI percentiles instead of this chart.
What is the ideal weight for a 5'4" woman?
A healthy weight for 5'4" is about 108 to 145 lb by BMI. The common ideal weight formulas give about 120 to 129 lb for a woman of that height, which sits in the middle of that range. If you have a South Asian, East Asian, Middle Eastern, Black African or African-Caribbean background, UK guidance treats a BMI from 23 as overweight, which at 5'4" starts at about 134 lb.
What is the ideal weight for a 5'10" man?
A healthy weight for 5'10" is about 129 to 173 lb by BMI, and the ideal weight formulas put a man of that height at about 155 to 166 lb. A man with a lot of muscle can weigh more than 173 lb with a waist under half his height, 35 inches, which is a better sign than the scale alone.
Is waist-to-height ratio better than BMI?
It answers a different question. BMI compares weight with height; waist-to-height ratio estimates how much fat sits around your middle, which is more closely linked to diabetes and heart disease. NICE now recommends measuring both for adults with a BMI under 35, and keeping your waist under half your height.
What is a realistic goal weight?
If you are above the healthy range for your height or your waist is half your height or more, a first goal 5 to 10% below your current average weight. It is far enough to improve blood pressure, blood sugar and other risk markers for many people, close enough to reach in a few months, and easier to maintain than a number from a chart. If you are already inside the range with a waist under half your height, you may not need to lose weight at all; if you are below the range, the goal is to gain. A doctor or dietitian can set a goal for your situation.
Why do different charts give me different ideal weights?
Because they come from different sources. BMI charts give a range, ideal weight formulas give single numbers derived from old insurance tables, and some charts adjust for frame size. They broadly agree on the middle and disagree at the edges. None of them can see muscle or where you carry fat, which is why a waist measurement is worth adding.