Estimate your reference body weight from height and sex
💡 Why This Matters Ideal weight formulas give doctors, trainers, and dosing calculators a quick reference point based on height and sex. It's not a personal target — just a useful starting number for comparison.
The Devine formula was originally created in 1974 just to help estimate drug dosing — it was never meant to be a beauty or fitness standard, but it's the one most doctors still default to today.
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This calculator uses the Devine formula, one of the most widely used ideal body weight equations in clinical settings. It was originally developed using the metric system (kilograms), so the math below is shown in kg with the pound equivalent alongside for reference. For men, it starts at 50 kg (≈ 110.2 lbs) for the first 5 feet of height and adds 2.3 kg (≈ 5.1 lbs) for every inch over that. For women, it starts at 45.5 kg (≈ 100.3 lbs) and adds the same 2.3 kg (≈ 5.1 lbs) per inch. The result is then converted to pounds for the final display.
The number you get is a single reference weight for your height and sex — not a strict target. Doctors originally used it to estimate medication dosing, and it's since become a common quick benchmark in fitness and health contexts too.
The formula only accounts for height and sex — it ignores muscle mass, bone structure, and body frame size entirely. A muscular athlete or someone with a naturally larger frame will often weigh more than their "ideal" result while still being perfectly healthy. It's also worth noting that Devine's original formula was validated starting at 5 feet tall; for heights below that, this calculator extends the same per-inch rate as a reasonable estimate, though it wasn't part of the original clinical validation. Treat this as one data point, not a verdict.
Use this alongside other measures like BMI or body fat percentage rather than on its own. If your actual weight differs significantly from your result, that's a prompt to look at the fuller picture — not a problem to fix by itself.
Example: A man who is 5'8" (68 inches, 8 inches over 5 feet). Using the Devine formula: 50 kg (≈ 110.2 lbs) + (2.3 kg × 8) = 50 + 18.4 = 68.4 kg (≈ 150.8 lbs).
The Devine formula uses different baseline constants for men and women because average frame size and body composition differ between the sexes at the same height.
Not exactly. Ideal weight formulas give a single reference point, while healthy weight ranges from BMI charts span a wider band. Both are estimates, not individual medical targets.
No — the formula only uses height and sex. It doesn't distinguish muscle from fat, so athletes and people with larger frames may reasonably weigh more than their result.