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Body Fat Percentage Calculator

Calculate your body fat using three methods: the US Navy circumference method, BMI-based estimation, or the 3-site Jackson-Pollock skinfold method. Get fat mass, lean mass, category, and a goal calculator.

US Navy Circumference

±3% accuracy
lbs
in
in

How to measure correctly

  • Waist: measure at the narrowest point or navel level, relaxed
  • Neck: just below the larynx, slight downward slope
  • Hip (female): at the widest point around the buttocks
  • Use a flexible tape measure; don't compress skin

BMI-Based Estimation

±5% accuracy
yrs
ft
in
lbs

Note on BMI method

Uses the Deurenberg formula (1991). Less accurate than Navy or skinfold because BMI doesn't distinguish muscle from fat. Good for a quick estimate when you only have height and weight.

3-Site Skinfold (Jackson-Pollock)

±2% accuracy
yrs
lbs

Male Sites: Chest · Abdomen · Thigh

mm

Diagonal fold between nipple and armpit

mm

Vertical fold 2cm to the right of navel

mm

Front of thigh, midway between hip and knee

Skinfold measurement tips

  • Measure on the right side of the body
  • Pinch skin firmly with thumb and index finger
  • Place caliper 1cm below the pinch
  • Read 2 seconds after applying caliper pressure
  • Take 2-3 readings and average them

Goal Calculator

How much fat to lose to reach your target body fat %?

%

Body Fat Percentage

--%

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Body Fat Scale

Essential Athletic Fitness Average Obese

Fat Mass

--

Lean Mass

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Ideal Range

--

Category

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Healthy Body Fat Ranges by Age & Gender

Category Men Women
Essential Fat 2–5% 10–13%
Athletic 6–13% 14–20%
Fitness 14–17% 21–24%
Average 18–24% 25–31%
Obese 25%+ 32%+

Source: American Council on Exercise (ACE). Essential fat is the minimum needed for basic physiological functions.

Why Body Fat % > BMI

BMI is blind to body composition. A muscular athlete and a sedentary person can have identical BMIs while having vastly different body fat percentages. BMI can classify fit individuals as "overweight."

Body fat % tells the full story. It distinguishes fat mass from lean mass (muscle, bone, water). Excess fat — especially visceral fat — is the actual health risk, not weight itself.

Skinfold

~2%

error margin

Navy

~3%

error margin

BMI

~5%

error margin

Gold standard is DEXA scan (~1% error), hydrostatic weighing, or air displacement plethysmography — none of which require a calculator.

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