Waist to Height Ratio Calculator
Calculate waist to height ratio and its health risk band.
About Waist to Height Ratio Calculator
Waist to height ratio divides waist circumference by height, which makes it unitless - centimetres or inches both give the same answer as long as you use one unit for both entries. Because it measures your waist against your own frame rather than against a population average, it detects central fat that a normal-looking BMI can hide, and the 0.5 boundary reduces to a rule you can check with a piece of string: keep your waist under half your height. Fat carried around the organs drives cardiometabolic risk far more than total body weight, so WHtR flags people whose BMI reads normal but whose waist does not.
Formula
Waist to Height Ratio
WHtR = waist / height (both in the same unit); healthy waist limit = 0.5 x height
- WHtR
- Waist-to-height ratio. It is unitless, so centimetres or inches both work provided both inputs use the same one
- Risk band
- Below 0.4 under the healthy band, 0.40-0.49 healthy, 0.50-0.59 increased risk, 0.60 and above high risk
Worked example
With the default values below, Waist to Height Ratio Calculator returns Waist to Height Ratio of 0.486. Change any input above and every figure here is recalculated in your browser.
Inputs used
- Waist circumferenceaccepts 20–300 cm
- 85 cm
- Heightaccepts 50–260 cm
- 175 cm
Results
- Waist to Height Ratio
- 0.486
- Risk Band
- 0.40 to 0.49 - healthy
- Waist as % of Height
- 48.6 %
- Healthy Waist LimitHalf your height, the 0.5 boundary.
- 87.5 cm
- Reduction to Reach 0.5
- 0.0 cm
Step by step
- 1Values used
- 2Waist to Height Ratio
- 3Waist to Height Ratio= 0.486
- 4Risk Band= 0.40 to 0.49 - healthy
- 5Waist as % of Height= 48.6 %
- 6Healthy Waist Limit= 87.5 cm
- 7Reduction to Reach 0.5= 0.0 cm
Assumptions and limits
- The result is derived only from the 2 inputs listed above. Anything not among them is not part of the calculation.
- In particular, this calculator does not take inflation, tax, fees or charges or compounding frequency into account.
- Figures are rounded for display to 3 decimal places, so totals built from several rounded parts can differ slightly from the unrounded arithmetic.
- These are educational and reference calculations only. They are not a diagnosis, not a substitute for measurement or laboratory testing, and must not be used to start, stop, time or change any medication or treatment. Reference thresholds differ between national guidelines and do not account for your individual clinical context. Discuss any result that concerns you with a qualified healthcare professional, and seek urgent medical attention for acute symptoms rather than relying on a calculator.
- This is an estimate for general information and not professional medical advice. See the full disclaimer for the limits that apply to this kind of calculator.
How these calculators are built and tested is described on the Methodology page. If a figure looks wrong, please report it.
These are educational and reference calculations only. They are not a diagnosis, not a substitute for measurement or laboratory testing, and must not be used to start, stop, time or change any medication or treatment. Reference thresholds differ between national guidelines and do not account for your individual clinical context. Discuss any result that concerns you with a qualified healthcare professional, and seek urgent medical attention for acute symptoms rather than relying on a calculator.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is Waist to Height Ratio calculated?
WHtR = waist / height (both in the same unit); healthy waist limit = 0.5 x height Waist to height ratio divides waist circumference by height, which makes it unitless - centimetres or inches both give the same answer as long as you use one unit for both entries. Because it measures your waist against your own frame rather than against a population average, it detects central fat that a normal-looking BMI can hide, and the 0.5 boundary reduces to a rule you can check with a piece of string: keep your waist under half your height.
Why does Waist to Height Ratio matter?
Fat carried around the organs drives cardiometabolic risk far more than total body weight, so WHtR flags people whose BMI reads normal but whose waist does not.
What values do I need to enter?
This calculator takes 2 inputs: Waist circumference, Height. The pre-filled defaults are a realistic starting point — replace them with figures from your own environment for a result you can act on.