Healthy waist size check

Compare your waist with the WHO sizes your GP may mention: 37 inches for men and 31.5 inches for women.

Your details

Your waist

33.0 in

Increased risk size

Increased risk fromover 31.5 in
Substantially increased fromover 34.6 in
Waist to height ratioadd your height for the check NICE now prefers

In the range the WHO links with increased risk of type 2 diabetes and heart disease. Small changes to activity and food can bring it down.

The sizes

Where the numbers come from

	Increased risk	Substantially increased
Men	over 94 cm (37 in)	over 102 cm (40 in)
Women	over 80 cm (31.5 in)	over 88 cm (34.6 in)

These come from the WHO and were the standard UK waist check for 20 years. The International Diabetes Federation uses 90 cm for South Asian men, who tend to develop type 2 diabetes at a smaller waist.

Two checks

Fixed sizes or half your height?

Fixed sizes are easy to remember but treat a 5 ft 2 in woman and a 6 ft woman the same. NICE now prefers the waist to height ratio for that reason. If the two disagree for you, go with the ratio.

Add your height

Your own waist to height line

Add your height and we work out the ratio and the waist that keeps you under half your height. A 33 in (83.8 cm) waist at 165 cm is 0.51, just into the 0.5 to 0.59 increased risk band, and half that height is 82.5 cm. NICE uses this check for adults with a BMI under 35.

Questions

Common questions

What is a healthy waist size for a woman in the UK?

Under 80 cm (31.5 in) is below the WHO increased risk size. The waist to height ratio, under half your height, is a fairer check for tall or short women.

What is a healthy waist size for a man?

Under 94 cm (37 in), or under 90 cm (35.4 in) for South Asian men.

Why do the sizes differ for men and women?

Men tend to carry more fat around the organs at the same waist size, so their cut-offs are set higher to reflect where risk starts.

Sources

Last checked 21 October 2026. Spotted something wrong? Tell us and we will fix it.

If your weight is on your mind

Talk to your GP if your weight has changed a lot without trying, or if it is worrying you. If food or your body feels hard to think about, Beat has a free helpline on 0808 801 0677 (England, weekdays 3pm to 8pm).