WHR is an easy, inexpensive, and accurate way to see the proportion of your body fat. It can also help predict your risk of heart disease and diabetes.
What Is the Waist-to-Hip Ratio?
The waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) calculation is one way your doctor can see if excess weight is putting your health at risk. It determines how much fat is stored on your waist, hips, and buttocks.
Unlike your body mass index (BMI), which calculates the ratio of your weight to your height, WHR measures the ratio of your waist circumference to your hip circumference.
This is important because not all excess weight is the same when it comes to your health risks.
One 2021 study showed that people who carry more of their weight around their midsection (an apple-shaped body) may be at a higher risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and premature death than people who carry more of their weight in their hips and thighs (a pear-shaped body).
Even if your BMI is within a moderate range, your risk of disease may be increased.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), a moderate WHR is:
- 0.9 or less in men
- 0.85 or less for women
In both men and women, a WHR of 1.0 or higher increases the risk of heart disease and other conditions that are linked to having overweight.
Waist-to-hip ratio chart
| Health risk | Women | Men |
|---|---|---|
| low | 0.80 or lower | 0.95 or lower |
| moderate | 0.81-0.85 | 0.96-1.0 |
| high | 0.86 or higher | 1.0 or higher |
You can figure out your WHR on your own, or your doctor can do it for you. To measure it yourself:
- Stand up straight and breathe out. Use a tape measure to check the distance around the smallest part of your waist, just above your belly button. This is your waist circumference.
- Then measure the distance around the largest part of your hips — the widest part of your buttocks. This is your hip circumference.
- Calculate your WHR by dividing your waist circumference by your hip circumference.
WHR is an easy, inexpensive, and accurate way to see the proportion of your body fat. It can also help predict your risk of heart disease and diabetes.
Research from the American Diabetes Association suggested that WHR is even more accurate than BMI for predicting the risks of cardiovascular disease and premature death.
For example, a 2015 study with more than 15,000 adults showed that a high WHR was linked to an increased risk of early death — even in people with a moderate BMI.
This isn’t the only study that predicted health concerns using WHR. Other studies include:
- A 2021 study found that WHR is an accurate tool for predicting hypertension.
- A 2015 study showed that increased WHR is a better indicator than BMI for predicting complications in trauma patients.
- A 2018 study shared that a high WHR was a significant predictor of death in women with heart failure (although researchers didn’t find a link between WHR and men with heart failure).
- A 2016 study found that a high WHR was associated with hypertension and diabetes.
Researchers have also found decreasing WHR is associated with greater health benefits. A 2020 study found that decreasing WHR by 5 percent significantly lowered risks of developing chronic kidney disease in people with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.
Another 2021 study suggested that using the WHR method to predict health outcomes could be particularly useful in certain groups of people. For example, WHR may be a better gauge of obesity in older adults whose body compositions have changed.
It’s easy to make mistakes while checking WHR, because you need to take two separate measurements. And, it can be hard to get an accurate measurement of your hips.
WHR can also be harder to interpret than waist circumference — another measurement of abdominal obesity. You might have a high WHR because you carry more weight in your abdomen. Or, you might simply have extra muscle around your hips from working out.
Certain people won’t be able to get an accurate measure using WHR, including people who are shorter than 5 feet tall and people who have a BMI of 35 or higher. WHR is also not recommended for use in children.
Waist-to-hip-ratio is a quick and easy way to check how much weight you carry around your middle. It’s just one of several measures — along with BMI — that your doctor can use to evaluate your weight and health.
Use it as a guide to talk with your doctor about managing your weight and disease risk factors.
Last medically reviewed on November 18, 2021
How we reviewed this article:
Healthline has strict sourcing guidelines and relies on peer-reviewed studies, academic research institutions, and medical associations. We avoid using tertiary references. You can learn more about how we ensure our content is accurate and current by reading our editorial policy.
- Bellal J, et al. (2015). Hips don’t lie: Waist-to-hip ratio in trauma patients.
journals.lww.com/jtrauma/Abstract/2015/12000/Hips_don_t_lie___Waist_to_hip_ratio_in_trauma.26.aspx - Chon YE, et al. (2020). Decrease in waist-to-hip ratio reduced the development of chronic kidney disease in non-obese non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.
nature.com/articles/s41598-020-65940-y - Fauziana R, et al. (2016). Body mass index, waist-hip ratio and risk of chronic medical condition in the elderly population: Results from the Well-being of the Singapore Elderly (WiSE) study.
bmcgeriatr.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12877-016-0297-z - Franek E, et al. (2021). Data on obesity and cardiovascular (CV) health: Waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) independently predicted CV outcomes.
diabetes.diabetesjournals.org/content/70/Supplement_1/376-P - Moosaie F, et al. (2021). Waist-to-height ratio is a more accurate tool for predicting hypertension than waist-to-hip circumference and BMI in patients with type 2 diabetes: A prospective study.
frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2021.726288/full - Rabiei N, et al. (2021). Comparison of anthro-metabolic indicators for predicting the risk of metabolic syndrome in the elderly population: Bushehr Elderly Health (BEH) program.
link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s40200-021-00882-4 - Sahakyan KR, et al. (2015). Normal-Weight Central Obesity: Implications for Total and Cardiovascular Mortality
acpjournals.org/doi/10.7326/m14-2525 - Streng K, et al. (2018). Waist-to-hip ratio and mortality in heart failure.
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/ejhf.1244 - Waist circumference and waist-hip ratio: Report of a WHO expert consultation. (2008).
apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/44583/9789241501491_eng.pdf
Our experts continually monitor the health and wellness space, and we update our articles when new information becomes available.
Waist-to-Hip Ratio Calculator
Work out your waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) with this calculator tool. Enter your waist and hip measurements (in either cm or inches). Your WHR number can help you determine which body shape category you fit into.
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Disclaimer: The results given by this WHR calculator should be used only as a guide and should not replace medical advice. Please bear in mind that, when interpreting the results of this waist to hip ratio calculator, other factors such as muscle structure and ethnic origin should be considered. Always speak to a Doctor or health professional for advice before making any dramatic changes to your lifestyle.
Waist-to-Hip Ratio – FAQ
What Is Waist-to-Hip Ratio?
The waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) is used as a quick and easy way to measure whether you could be at risk for future health problems and is well supported in scientific fields as an indicator for major health risks. Experts have suggested that WHR is an accurate measure because, in addition to measurements such as your BMI calculation and BMR calculation, it matters where on your body you carry any excess weight.
How do you calculate your WHR?
To calculate your WHR you simply need to measure your waist and your hips, using a tape measure (or a length of string and a ruler), and then perform a simple calculation (or use our calculator at the top of the page). In order to get an accurate figure, it is important to make sure you take your measurements in the right place. For a full explanation, see our article on waist-to-hip ratio. There’s also links to how-to lists for measuring both your waist and hips below.
- Measuring your waist: use your tape measure to measure midway between your lowest rib and the top of your hips – it should be the part just above your belly button.
- Measuring your hips: measure at the widest point around the buttocks. Again, hold the tape snugly but don’t pull it in, and make sure it’s level all the way around.
How to measure waist-to-hip measurements. Image credit: Mikael Haggstrom.
Once you have your waist and hip measurements, simply divide your waist figure by your hip figure. Let’s look at an example:
- Waist measurement: 92cm (36.22 inches)
- Hip measurement: 112cm (44 inches)
To calculate your waist-to-hip ratio: 92 / 112 = 0.82. If you need help with converting cm to/from feet for your calculation, give our cm to feet converter a try.
What does the WHR measurement mean?
| Female | Male | Health Risk |
|---|---|---|
| 0.80 or lower | 0.95 or lower | Low health risk |
| 0.81 to 0.84 | 0.96 to 1.0 | Moderate risk |
| 0.85 or higher | 1.0 or higher | High risk |
Women with a ratio of 0.8 or below, and men at 0.95 or below are pear shaped. People with pear shaped bodies are in the lower risk category for health problems such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes and some forms of cancer.
Women with a ratio of 0.85 or above, and men with a ratio of 1.0 or above are considered to have apple shaped bodies. Fat tends to gather around the middle, and apple shaped bodies face a high risk of type 2 diabetes and heart disease, and even some types of cancer.
People whose ratios fall between these apple and pear thresholds are at moderate risk of health problems, and are sometimes called avocados.
In addition to the above, the World Health Organisation has defined abdominal obesity as being a waist-hip ratio above 0.90 for males and above 0.85 for females.
If you have any questions about this calculator then please contact me.
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