Waist-to-Hip Ratio Calculator (WHO cutoffs)

How it works

WHR compares the narrowest part of your torso to the widest part of your hips. Because fat stored around the abdomen is more strongly linked to heart disease and type 2 diabetes than fat on the hips and thighs, a higher ratio flags a riskier fat distribution even at the same overall weight. The WHO thresholds differ by sex — women naturally carry more hip fat, so their cutoff is lower — which is why this page asks your sex and shows the cutoff that applies to you. The units cancel, so centimetres or inches give the same ratio.

Worked example

Measure your waist at its narrowest (or at the midpoint between the lowest rib and the top of the hip bone) and your hips at their widest, then divide. A man with an 88 cm waist and 100 cm hips has WHR = 88 ÷ 100 = 0.88 — below the 0.90 cutoff, so not in the abdominal-obesity range. A woman with the same 0.88 ratio is above her 0.85 cutoff: the identical number is read differently by sex, which is the single most important thing to get right when reading a waist-to-hip ratio.

Frequently asked questions

How do I measure waist and hips correctly?

Waist at its narrowest point, or at the midpoint between the bottom of your lowest rib and the top of your hip bone; hips at the widest part of your buttocks. Keep the tape level and snug without compressing, breathe out normally, and measure over bare skin or thin clothing. Measure each the same way every time so changes are real.

What's a healthy waist-to-hip ratio?

Below the WHO cutoff for your sex: under 0.90 for men and under 0.85 for women. Lower ratios reflect proportionally less abdominal fat, which is generally lower risk. They come from WHO's 1999 working definition of metabolic syndrome, and the 2008 WHO expert consultation reproduces them in its Annex A table against "substantially increased" risk of metabolic complications — no other WHR threshold is attributed to WHO there. They're screening thresholds, not sharp lines — 0.89 and 0.91 aren't meaningfully different.

Why are the cutoffs different for men and women?

Women typically store more fat around the hips and thighs, giving a larger hip measurement and a naturally lower ratio, so the WHO sets a lower threshold (0.85 vs 0.90) to flag the same level of abdominal-fat risk. It's not that women are held to a stricter standard — the cutoffs are calibrated to comparable risk.

WHR or waist-to-height — which should I use?

They measure related but different things: waist-to-hip is about fat *distribution* (belly vs hips), waist-to-height is about the *amount* of central fat relative to your frame. Waist-to-height has a single boundary (0.5) for everyone and is what NICE now recommends; waist-to-hip needs sex-specific cutoffs. Using both, alongside BMI, gives a fuller picture than any one alone.

Does a healthy ratio mean I'm healthy?

No — it's one screening measure of fat distribution. A ratio under your cutoff is reassuring, but it says nothing about blood pressure, cholesterol, fitness, or blood sugar. Read it alongside other measures and clinical judgment rather than as a verdict on its own.

Can very muscular or very lean people be misread?

Somewhat. A very lean person with narrow hips can have a higher ratio without excess abdominal fat, and posture or measurement technique can shift it. The ratio doesn't distinguish muscle from fat. If your ratio and your other measures disagree, don't over-weight this one number.

How accurate is this, and what does it exclude?

The ratio is exact for the waist and hip you enter; accuracy depends on measuring consistently and at the right points. It's a screening tool, not a diagnosis, and it excludes overall fat, muscle, height, and every other health marker. It isn't used the same way in pregnancy or for children.