For children over 5 years old, please consult:
Our file on the ideal size of the child from 5 to 19 years old
Attention, if you are looking for the calculation of the BMI (Body Mass Index) to monitor the corpulence of your child(ren) then you are not on the right page, you must go to the calculation page of children’s BMI .
The ” theoretical ideal height ” of a child or baby differs from the ” theoretical ideal height ” of an adult in the sense that the World Health Organization (WHO) has established growth standards for child, which is not the case in adults.
It is therefore on the latest standards of the World Health Organization (1) that this dossier is based. It is indeed important to follow correctly the evolution of the growth of your baby, and to react in the event of abnormal evolution.
WHAT DO THE WHO CHILD GROWTH STANDARDS SAY?
The purpose of these standards is to show how the child should grow in terms of size. Many medical and public health organizations use these standards to ensure that children are healthy. These standards are in the form of a curve that you will need to use to check your child’s height.
Just as for the corpulence of children through the calculation of the BMI of children, the message of the World Health Organization is clear: ” the more we deviate from the curves, the more the existence of a health problem is obvious ”.
FROM BIRTH TO 2 YEARS
Children usually start walking around 12 months. However, doctors advise not to be alarmed before the age of 2 years. This is one of the reasons why, before the age of 2, you will need to measure your child lying down.
Depending on their sex, all you have to do is transfer the measurement, in centimeters, to one or other of the curves below (there is a curve for girls, in pink, and a curve for boys , in blue). It is preferable that you download the curves directly to your computer (using the links under the image) in order to obtain the most accurate curve possible.
The lines (2 red lines, 2 orange lines and 1 green line) within the curves are the “percentiles”. This means that if your child is below the first orange line (15), then they are statistically in the 15% of short children. For this age. If the child is between the last orange line (85) and the last red line (97), then he is statistically within 12% of tall enough children. Beyond the last red line, the child is statistically within 3% of very tall children.
Height chart for girls from birth to 2 years old
Example of reading : for a girl aged 1 year and 4 months, then measuring 78 centimeters is normal. It suffices to place the corresponding point on the curve , at the right place. On the other hand, a girl of the same age who would measure 72 centimeters would be below the red curve.
Download this curve to your computer:
- In PDF Format
- Or in image format: Very large size
Height chart for boys from birth to 2 years old
Example of reading : reading is done in the same way as for girls. It suffices to place the corresponding point on the curve , at the right place. A 6-month-old boy measuring 68 centimeters, for example, is quite normal (his point will be very close to the green line). If for the same age the child measures 63 centimeters, then he is statistically in the 3% of the smallest children. If he was 65 centimeters tall, then he would have been in the shortest 15% of boys. Do not hesitate to download the curve to see it more clearly (better resolution).
Download this curve to your computer:
- In PDF Format
- Or in image format: Very large size
FROM 2 YEARS UP TO 5 YEARS
By the age of 2 almost all children are walking. This is the reason why from the age of 2, it is possible to measure your child standing up. From 2 to 5 years, the World Health Organization has therefore made new curves available to the public (see below), which however work in exactly the same way as the previous curves. Only the way to measure your child differs (before 2 years it is necessary to measure it when it is lying down, and after 2 years it is necessary to measure it when it is standing; the size measured lying down being moreover always larger than the measured size upright).
Height chart for 2-5 year old girls
Download this curve to your computer:
- In PDF Format
- Or in image format: Very large size
Height chart for 2-5 year old boys
Download this curve to your computer:
- In PDF Format
- Or in image format: Very large size
BEYOND 5 YEARS
New standards apply, again according to the World Health Organization.
» For children over 5 years old, please consult:
Our file on the ideal size of the child from 5 to 19 years old