BMI Chart for Children

Your BMI is based on your height and weight, and it's one way to see if you're at a healthy weight.

The healthy bmi range for adults (18 - 65 years old) is 18.5 to 24.9. However, children are constantly growing, which makes it difficult to have set values for BMI cut-offs. Children grow, so their amount of body fat changes and so will their body mass index. BMI chart for children is interpreted differently from an adult’s, and takes into account the age and sex of the child.

BMI is calculated the same way for children as for adults, but the criteria for determining a healthy weight is different. Instead of specific BMI thresholds, a BMI percentile is used to compare to other children of the same age and gender.

The current bmi charts for children should be used as a guide to indicate when to make small lifestyle changes.

BMI-for-age chart for boys

BMI chart for boys

BMI-for-age chart for girls

BMI chart for girls

More BMI Charts

People falling in this BMI range are considered overweight and would benefit from finding healthy ways to lower their weight, such as diet and exercise.