Height Calculator
Convert a height between feet and inches, centimeters, meters and total inches. Pick the unit you know, enter the height and press Convert. The calculator shows the height in all four units and how far it is above or below the average US adult man and woman. The second tab gives a rough estimate of a child's adult height from the heights of the biological parents, with its margin of error. It cannot tell you how tall a child will actually be.
How to use the Height Calculator
- Enter your numbers in the Height Calculator above.
- Press the Convert or Estimate button to see the result.
- To try other numbers, change any value and press the button again.
The height conversion
1 in = 2.54 cm · · · 1 ft = 12 in = 30.48 cm · · · 1 m = 100 cm · · · Boy: (father + mother + 5 in) / 2 · · · Girl: (father + mother − 5 in) / 2
An inch is exactly 2.54 centimeters, so the calculator converts every height through centimeters. Feet and inches become total inches (feet × 12 + inches) and then centimeters. It shows the inches part of feet and inches to 1 decimal place, total inches to 2, centimeters to 1 and meters to 3. The child's height uses the mid-parental method: add the two parents' heights, add 5 inches for a boy or take off 5 inches for a girl, and divide by 2. The margin of 4 inches up or down comes with the method.
Worked example
Enter 180 cm. The calculator shows 5′ 10.9″, 70.87 inches and 1.8 m, because 180 / 2.54 = 70.87 inches, which is 5 feet and 10.87 inches. That is 4.7 cm above the US average for men and 18.7 cm above the average for women. For a child's adult height, take a father of 5′ 10″ and a mother of 5′ 5″: a boy comes to (70 + 65 + 5) / 2 = 70 inches, shown as 5′ 10″ (177.8 cm), with a margin from 5′ 6″ to 6′ 2″. A girl comes to (70 + 65 − 5) / 2 = 65 inches, shown as 5′ 5″ (165.1 cm), with a margin from 5′ 1″ to 5′ 9″.
Frequently asked questions
How do I convert cm to feet and inches?
Divide the centimeters by 2.54 to get inches, then divide by 12. The whole number is the feet and the remainder is the inches. 170 cm / 2.54 = 66.93 inches, which is 5 feet 6.9 inches.
Where do the average heights come from?
From the CDC's anthropometric reference data for 2015 to 2018, measured in the NHANES survey. The mean height of US adults aged 20 and over was 175.3 cm (69.0 in) for men and 161.3 cm (63.5 in) for women. The calculator compares your height with those two figures.
How tall will my child be?
Nobody can say for sure. The American Academy of Pediatrics calls the mid-parental method a very rough estimate, with a margin of error of about 4 inches up or down, and says adult height cannot be predicted with complete accuracy. A child can finish outside that range. The tab uses the heights of the biological parents only.
What does this estimate leave out?
Everything except the parents' heights. The Academy lists nutrition, hormones, medications and chronic health conditions as other influences on a child's height, and the timing of puberty matters too. It says the most accurate prediction combines a child's current height with a bone age X-ray of the hand and wrist. Talk to your child's pediatrician if you are worried about their growth.