acalculator

What is my Asian BMI?

Type your height and weight. The Asian BMI calculator reads your BMI against the WHO expert consultation’s action points for Asian populations, and shows the standard adult category beside it.

Your numbers

Units
Your BMI
23.49

Your BMI is 23.49. Against the Asian action points: Action point 23 reached (23 to under 27.5).

23 to 27.5

  1. Underweight
  2. Below 23
  3. 23 to 27.5
  4. 27.5 to 32.5
  5. 32.5 to 37.5
  6. 37.5 or more
Asian action point
Action point 23 reached (23 to under 27.5)
Standard adult category
Healthy weight
Weight at BMI 18.5
118.1 lb
Weight at BMI 23
146.9 lb

Your BMI: 23.49. Your BMI is 23.49. Against the Asian action points: Action point 23 reached (23 to under 27.5).

Where does my BMI fall?

This calculator gives general information only. It is not medical advice and does not replace a doctor or other health care provider. Talk with a professional about your results. Terms of use

How to calculate

Computes body mass index and reads it against the WHO expert consultation action points for Asian populations (23, 27.5, 32.5 and 37.5), with the standard adult category beside them.

Example with the default inputs (Height 5 ft 7 in, Weight 150 lb): Your BMI is 23.49. Against the Asian action points: Action point 23 reached (23 to under 27.5).

Method: BMI = weight ÷ height², with weight in kilograms and height in metres; compared with 18.5, 23, 27.5, 32.5 and 37.5.

  • The action points are from the WHO expert consultation of 2004. It kept the standard cut-offs as the international classification and added these as potential points for public health action.
  • The consultation did not set one cut-off for all Asians: the BMI at which risk rises differs between Asian populations.
  • Limits are compared on the exact BMI, not the rounded BMI on screen, so 22.996 shows as 23 but is under 23.
  • BMI is a screening measure for adults. It does not measure body fat directly and does not diagnose health.

Machine-readable copies: Markdown, JSON.

Worked examples

Each example is checked against the calculator on every build.

  1. Weight 150 lb, Height 5 ft 5 in gives Your BMI 24.96, Asian action point Action point 23 reached (23 to under 27.5), Standard adult category Healthy weight.Source: WHO Expert Consultation. Appropriate body-mass index for Asian populations and its implications for policy and intervention strategies. Lancet 2004;363(9403):157-163 (further potential public health action points at 23.0, 27.5, 32.5 and 37.5 kg/m²; erratum in Lancet 2004;363(9412):902), https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/14726171/ (retrieved 2026-11-01); Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Adult BMI Categories, https://www.cdc.gov/bmi/adult-calculator/bmi-categories.html
  2. Weight 146.5 lb, Height 5 ft 6.9 in gives Your BMI 23, Asian action point Action point 23 reached (23 to under 27.5), Weight at BMI 18.5 117.9 lb, Weight at BMI 23 146.5 lb.Source: WHO Expert Consultation. Appropriate body-mass index for Asian populations and its implications for policy and intervention strategies. Lancet 2004;363(9403):157-163 (further potential public health action points at 23.0, 27.5, 32.5 and 37.5 kg/m²; erratum in Lancet 2004;363(9412):902), https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/14726171/ (retrieved 2026-11-01)
  3. Weight 154.3 lb, Height 5 ft 8.9 in gives Your BMI 22.86, Asian action point Below the first action point (18.5 to under 23), Standard adult category Healthy weight, Weight at BMI 18.5 124.9 lb, Weight at BMI 23 155.3 lb.Source: WHO Expert Consultation. Appropriate body-mass index for Asian populations and its implications for policy and intervention strategies. Lancet 2004;363(9403):157-163 (further potential public health action points at 23.0, 27.5, 32.5 and 37.5 kg/m²; erratum in Lancet 2004;363(9412):902), https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/14726171/ (retrieved 2026-11-01)
  4. Weight 176.4 lb, Height 5 ft 6.9 in gives Your BMI 27.68, Asian action point Action point 27.5 reached (27.5 to under 32.5), Standard adult category Overweight.Source: WHO Expert Consultation. Appropriate body-mass index for Asian populations and its implications for policy and intervention strategies. Lancet 2004;363(9403):157-163 (further potential public health action points at 23.0, 27.5, 32.5 and 37.5 kg/m²; erratum in Lancet 2004;363(9412):902), https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/14726171/ (retrieved 2026-11-01); Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Adult BMI Categories, https://www.cdc.gov/bmi/adult-calculator/bmi-categories.html
  5. Weight 220.5 lb, Height 5 ft 6.9 in gives Your BMI 34.6, Asian action point Action point 32.5 reached (32.5 to under 37.5), Standard adult category Obesity.Source: WHO Expert Consultation. Appropriate body-mass index for Asian populations and its implications for policy and intervention strategies. Lancet 2004;363(9403):157-163 (further potential public health action points at 23.0, 27.5, 32.5 and 37.5 kg/m²; erratum in Lancet 2004;363(9412):902), https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/14726171/ (retrieved 2026-11-01); Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Adult BMI Categories, https://www.cdc.gov/bmi/adult-calculator/bmi-categories.html
  6. Weight 253.5 lb, Height 5 ft 6.9 in gives Your BMI 39.79, Asian action point Action point 37.5 reached (37.5 or more), Standard adult category Obesity.Source: WHO Expert Consultation. Appropriate body-mass index for Asian populations and its implications for policy and intervention strategies. Lancet 2004;363(9403):157-163 (further potential public health action points at 23.0, 27.5, 32.5 and 37.5 kg/m²; erratum in Lancet 2004;363(9412):902), https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/14726171/ (retrieved 2026-11-01); Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Adult BMI Categories, https://www.cdc.gov/bmi/adult-calculator/bmi-categories.html
  7. Weight 110.2 lb, Height 5 ft 6.9 in gives Your BMI 17.3, Asian action point Underweight (below 18.5), Standard adult category Underweight.Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Adult BMI Categories, https://www.cdc.gov/bmi/adult-calculator/bmi-categories.html

How it works

This is the BMI calculator with other limits. With weight W in kilograms and height H in metres (1 lb = 0.45359237 kg and 1 in = 0.0254 m exactly):

  • Your BMI = W ÷ H²
  • Asian action point, from the exact BMI:
    • below 18.5: Underweight (below 18.5)
    • 18.5 to under 23: Below the first action point (18.5 to under 23)
    • 23 to under 27.5: Action point 23 reached (23 to under 27.5)
    • 27.5 to under 32.5: Action point 27.5 reached (27.5 to under 32.5)
    • 32.5 to under 37.5: Action point 32.5 reached (32.5 to under 37.5)
    • 37.5 or more: Action point 37.5 reached (37.5 or more)
  • Standard adult category, from the exact BMI: Underweight below 18.5; Healthy weight from 18.5 to under 25; Overweight from 25 to under 30; Obesity from 30.
  • Weight at BMI 18.5 = 18.5 × H²; Weight at BMI 23 = 23 × H².

Rules

  • Height is above 0 and at most 3 m. Weight is above 0 and at most 700 kg. A value outside that gets the field's own message.
  • When the BMI or either weight is too large or too small to show (it would be infinite, or a non-zero value would become 0), there is no answer, with the message "This height and weight give a result too large or too small to show."
  • Every limit is compared on the exact value of the height and weight as typed, and a value at a limit belongs to the higher band. BMI shows up to 2 decimals, rounded half up, so 22.996 shows as 23 but is under 23.
  • This page differs from the BMI calculator, which reads its category from the BMI rounded to one decimal.

Worked examples by hand

150 lb at 5 ft 5 in. 68.0388555 ÷ 1.651² = 24.96: action point 23 reached; standard Healthy weight.

66.47 kg at 1.70 m. 66.47 ÷ 2.89 = 23 exactly: action point 23 reached. Weight at BMI 18.5 = 53.465 kg; weight at BMI 23 = 66.47 kg.

70 kg at 1.75 m. 70 ÷ 3.0625 = 22.86: below the first action point; healthy weight. Weights 56.66 kg and 70.44 kg.

80 kg at 1.70 m. 80 ÷ 2.89 = 27.68: action point 27.5 reached; overweight.

100 kg at 1.70 m. 34.60: action point 32.5 reached; obesity.

115 kg at 1.70 m. 39.79: action point 37.5 reached; obesity.

50 kg at 1.70 m. 17.30: underweight on both scales.

Other questions people ask

What is a healthy BMI for Asians?

A WHO expert consultation in 2004 kept the standard cut-offs as the international classification, and added further potential public health action points at 23, 27.5, 32.5 and 37.5 for Asian populations. It did not set one healthy range for all Asians.

Why are the numbers lower for Asian people?

The consultation found that the BMI at which risk appears varies between Asian populations: from 22 to 25 for observed risk, and from 26 to 31 for high risk. Those ranges start below the standard overweight cut-off of 25.

Is the formula different?

No. BMI is the same: weight in kilograms divided by height in metres squared. Only the numbers you compare it with differ.

What should I do if my BMI is above 23?

A BMI above 23 is a point for attention, not a diagnosis. BMI does not measure body fat directly, so talk with your doctor about what it means for you.

Why does the page show two results?

The consultation kept the standard categories as the international classification, so both are worth seeing. 150 lb at 5 ft 5 in has a BMI of 24.96: past the action point at 23, but still healthy weight on the standard scale.

Does this apply to children?

No. These numbers are for adults. Children and teens use BMI-for-age percentiles instead.