4 Formulas Compared

Ideal Body Weight Calculator

Compare Devine, Robinson, Miller, and Hamwi formulas side by side from your height alone.

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Why There Are Multiple IBW Formulas

Ideal body weight (IBW) formulas were originally developed for medical dosing (estimating drug doses based on body size), not as fitness or aesthetic targets. Several formulas exist because different researchers built them from different population samples between 1964 and 1983.

FormulaYearOrigin
Hamwi1964Devised for quick clinical estimates
Devine1974Originally for drug dosing calculations
Robinson1983Revision of Devine using updated data
Miller1983Another Devine revision, slightly different constants

The Formulas (Men)

The Formulas (Women)

Worked Example

A man who is 180 cm tall (70.9 inches, 10.9 inches over 5 feet):

The four formulas land within about 6 kg of each other here, which is typical. None of them account for muscle mass, frame size, or body composition.

What IBW Doesn't Tell You

These formulas were never meant to be personal targets. A muscular athlete can weigh well above their "IBW" while carrying very little fat, and someone at their exact IBW number could still have an unhealthy body composition. For a more complete picture, pair this with your Lean Body Mass or Body Fat %.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which IBW formula is most accurate?

None is definitively "most accurate" since they were built for different purposes and populations. Most clinicians treat the average of a few formulas as a reasonable general reference range, not a precise target.

Should I try to weigh exactly my IBW?

Not necessarily. These formulas don't account for muscle mass or frame size. Body composition (how much of your weight is muscle vs. fat) matters more for health than hitting a specific number from a 1960s-1980s formula.

Why do the formulas only need height, not weight?

IBW formulas estimate a target weight FROM height, which is why your current weight isn't an input. They're solving for what weight should be, not evaluating the weight you already have.

Also try

Get your lean body mass instead

A body-composition-aware alternative to a height-only estimate.

Go to Lean Body Mass Calculator