Ideal Body Weight Calculator — Devine, Robinson, Miller & Hamwi
Ideal body weight formulas were never designed for aesthetics — Devine's equation was written in 1974 to standardise gentamicin dosing, and the rest are refinements of the same idea. They give a clinically useful single number for a given height, but they ignore muscle mass entirely, which is why they are printed alongside the WHO healthy BMI band here.
Frame adjustment applied: none (medium frame).
How the four formulas differ
All four use the same shape: a base weight at 5 feet plus a fixed increment per inch above it. Hamwi is the most generous per inch (2.7 kg for men), Miller the most conservative (1.41 kg), with Devine and Robinson between them. At 175 cm the spread between the highest and lowest result is typically 6-8 kg.
Frame size actually matters
Elbow breadth and wrist circumference correlate with skeletal mass. A wrist under 16.5 cm in a 175 cm man indicates a small frame, over 19 cm a large one. Applying a ±10% adjustment brings the formulas much closer to measured healthy weights at the extremes of build.
When to ignore the number entirely
Trained lifters, rugby forwards and sprinters routinely exceed every ideal weight formula while carrying 10% body fat. Conversely a sedentary person can sit exactly on Devine weight with 32% fat. Pair this tool with a body fat estimate before drawing conclusions.
Ideal weight by height (medium frame)
| Height | Male Devine | Male Robinson | Female Devine | Female Robinson | Healthy BMI range |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 155 cm | 52.4 kg | 53.0 kg | 47.9 kg | 50.0 kg | 44-60 kg |
| 160 cm | 57.0 kg | 56.8 kg | 52.5 kg | 53.4 kg | 47-64 kg |
| 165 cm | 61.5 kg | 60.5 kg | 57.0 kg | 56.8 kg | 50-68 kg |
| 170 cm | 66.1 kg | 64.3 kg | 61.6 kg | 60.1 kg | 53-72 kg |
| 175 cm | 70.7 kg | 68.1 kg | 66.2 kg | 63.5 kg | 57-76 kg |
| 180 cm | 75.3 kg | 71.9 kg | 70.8 kg | 66.9 kg | 60-81 kg |
| 185 cm | 79.9 kg | 75.7 kg | 75.4 kg | 70.3 kg | 63-85 kg |
People also ask
Which ideal body weight formula do hospitals use?
Devine remains the default for drug dosing and ventilator tidal-volume settings. Robinson and Miller are more common in nutrition literature because they produce lower, more realistic targets.
How do I know my frame size?
Wrap your thumb and middle finger around the opposite wrist. Overlap indicates a small frame, touching a medium frame, and a gap a large frame. Elbow breadth measured with callipers is the clinical version.
Is ideal body weight the same as a healthy weight?
No. Healthy weight is a range — the BMI 18.5-24.9 band spans 19 kg at 175 cm. Ideal body weight is a single reference point inside that range.
Three worked examples
Same engine, three different starting points — useful if you want to see how sensitive the answer is before you type your own numbers in.
Example 1: height 136.5 cm, gender "Male"
On the lower / more conservative end. Frame adjustment applied: none (medium frame).
Example 2: height 175 cm, gender "Male"
A typical middle-of-the-road setup. Frame adjustment applied: none (medium frame).
Example 3: height 220 cm, gender "Female"
On the higher / more demanding end. Frame adjustment applied: none (medium frame).
Quick answers about the Ideal Weight (Multi-Formula)
What exactly does the Ideal Weight (Multi-Formula) work out?
Ideal body weight formulas were never designed for aesthetics — Devine's equation was written in 1974 to standardise gentamicin dosing, and the rest are refinements of the same idea. You enter gender, height and frame size and the result panel updates straight away, so you can compare two or three versions of the same question in a few seconds.
What do I need before I start?
Only 3 fields: gender, height and frame size. Nothing else is needed and nothing is stored.
How the four formulas differ?
All four use the same shape: a base weight at 5 feet plus a fixed increment per inch above it. The same maths runs inside this page, so hand-checking the result on paper gives you the identical figure.
Why do two calculators give me different answers for ideal Weight (Multi-Formula)?
Elbow breadth and wrist circumference correlate with skeletal mass. Different sites pick different assumptions, so always check which method a calculator states before you trust the gap between two numbers.
What does the "Ideal weight by height (medium frame)" table on this page tell me?
It is the reference range this tool works against — 7 rows from "155 cm" (52.4 kg) up to "185 cm" (79.9 kg). Use it to sanity-check whether the number you just calculated sits where you expected it to.
Which gender should I pick?
The dropdown offers 2 choices — Male and Female. Pick the one that matches your real situation rather than the one you would like to be true; gender usually moves the final figure more than any other single input, so it is worth running it twice with the option above and below your guess.
Do I have to press a button or reload the page to see the result?
No. Ideal Weight (Multi-Formula) runs completely inside your browser, so the moment you change a value the cards recalculate — there is no submit step, no page reload and no waiting for a server round trip. That also means it keeps working on a weak or intermittent mobile connection.
Is it free, and do you keep what I type?
It is free with no sign-up, no app install and no usage limit. Nothing you enter into Ideal Weight (Multi-Formula) leaves your device — the calculation is JavaScript running locally, so there is no upload of your figures to DrHint or anyone else.
Can I use it on a phone?
Yes — the layout stacks to a single column on small screens and the number fields open the numeric keypad on both Android and iOS. Many people bookmark this page or add it to their home screen and re-open it whenever the question comes up.
Anything to be careful about with the result?
Devine remains the default for drug dosing and ventilator tidal-volume settings. Treat the output as a well-grounded estimate for planning, not as a professional, legal or medical decision on its own.
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