Ideal Weight Calculator

Estimate Devine (1974) “ideal” body weight from height and the male or female intercept. The equation was written for drug-dosing references, not as a weight you are supposed to hit. Muscle, age and frame never enter the arithmetic.

How to use

Choose metric or US units and which Devine intercept to use (male or female equation).
Enter height. It is converted to inches; 70 in on the male equation is 73 kg.
Read the single kilogram figure. There is no range and no BMI band on this page.
Open Healthy Weight if you want the WHO 18.5–24.9 kilogram span for the same height instead of Devine’s point estimate.

How it works

Devine published IBW as a linear function of height above 5 feet: 50 kg plus 2.3 kg per inch over 60 inches for the male equation, 45.5 plus the same 2.3 for the female equation. A 70-inch (178 cm) male-equation result is 50 + 2.3 × 10 = 73 kg. The two intercepts are formula history, not a statement about a person standing on a scale.

Clinicians still quote Devine when a protocol wants a standardized “ideal” mass for some dosing calculations. That origin is why the page exists, and why it is a poor personal target. It ignores lean mass, bone, age and whether someone is an endurance athlete or sedentary. A 73 kg result is not a prescription to lose or gain until you reach it.

Healthy Weight on this site rearranges BMI instead: the kilogram range whose BMI is 18.5 to 24.9 at your height. For 175 cm that band is about 56.7–76.3 kg — a span, not Devine’s single line. BMI itself is kg / m² and does not use Devine at all. Lean Body Mass is Boer, which does use current weight.

Height below the range the linear formula was meant for still runs the algebra; this page will not invent extra breakpoints. Units convert before the inches term. The output is one number to one decimal, with the fitness disclaimer attached.

Not medical advice and not a recommended weight. If a pharmacist or physician is using IBW for a dose, they use their protocol, not a website.

Formula

Male: 50 + 2.3 × (height_in − 60) kg
Female: 45.5 + 2.3 × (height_in − 60) kg

Worked examples

70-inch male equation
70 in, male equation → 73 kg

Useful notes

Height-only. Weight, age and muscle are ignored.
Not the same as the WHO BMI 18.5–24.9 healthy-weight band.
Not medical advice and not a recommended weight.

FAQ

What is the Devine formula?: A 1974 height-based estimate of “ideal” body weight, still quoted for some dosing references.
Is this the weight I should be?: No. It is one published equation. Healthy weight uses a BMI range instead.
Why does sex change the number?: Devine published two intercepts. That is a formula choice, not a verdict about a person.
Was this meant as a fitness goal?: No. The 1974 formula is widely cited for standardized dosing mass, not as a coaching target.
Does current weight change Devine IBW?: No. Only height and which intercept you pick. Boer lean mass is the page that uses scale weight.

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