To check your heart rate manually, place the tips of your index and middle fingers on the inside of your wrist or the side of your neck, count the beats you feel for 30 seconds, and multiply by two. That number is your heart rate in beats per minute (bpm). The whole process takes under a minute once you know where to press.
Where to Find Your Pulse
Two spots on your body give the clearest pulse: your wrist and your neck. Either works, but each has a slightly different technique.
Wrist (Radial Pulse)
Turn one hand so your palm faces up. Place the tips of your index and middle fingers on the inside of your opposite wrist, just below the base of your thumb. You’re feeling for the radial artery, which runs along the thumb side of the wrist. Press lightly until you feel a steady thump. If you press too hard, you’ll flatten the artery and lose the pulse. Too soft, and you won’t feel anything. Adjust until each beat is distinct.
Neck (Carotid Pulse)
Place the tips of your index and middle fingers in the soft groove next to your windpipe, on either side of your neck. The carotid artery sits close to the surface here, so you’ll usually feel it with very little pressure. One important rule: never press on both sides of your neck at the same time, as this can restrict blood flow to the brain. Also avoid this method if you’ve been told you have plaque buildup in your neck arteries.
In both cases, use your fingertips rather than your thumb. Your thumb has its own pulse, which can mix with the one you’re trying to count and throw off your number.
How to Count and Calculate
Once you have a steady pulse under your fingers, watch a clock or timer and count the number of beats you feel over 30 seconds. Multiply that number by two to get your beats per minute. For example, if you count 35 beats in 30 seconds, your heart rate is 70 bpm.
You can also count for a full 60 seconds without multiplying, which is slightly more accurate, especially if your rhythm feels uneven. A 15-second count (multiplied by four) is sometimes recommended as a shortcut, but it amplifies any miscounting error. If you’re off by one beat in 15 seconds, your final number is off by four. The 30-second method balances speed and accuracy for most people.
Getting an Accurate Resting Reading
Your resting heart rate is the most useful number to track over time, and getting a reliable one requires a little preparation. The best moment is first thing in the morning, before you get out of bed, when your body is closest to its true baseline.
If you’re measuring later in the day, sit quietly for at least five minutes before checking. Avoid measuring within one to two hours after exercise or a stressful event, since your heart rate can stay elevated long after strenuous activity ends. Wait at least an hour after drinking coffee or other caffeinated drinks, which can temporarily raise your rate. Standing or sitting in one position for a long stretch can also skew the reading, so settle into a relaxed, seated position with your feet flat on the floor before you start.
For the most useful picture, check your pulse at the same time of day, in the same position, a few days in a row. A single reading is a snapshot. Several readings over a week reveal your actual trend.
What Your Number Means
For most adults, a resting heart rate between 60 and 100 bpm is normal. People who exercise regularly often land on the lower end of that range, and well-trained athletes can have a resting heart rate as low as 40 bpm without any problems. A consistently low rate in a fit person reflects a heart that pumps efficiently and doesn’t need to beat as often to move the same amount of blood.
A resting rate consistently above 100 bpm at rest is considered fast (tachycardia), while a rate below 60 bpm in someone who isn’t particularly active may be considered slow (bradycardia). That said, population studies often use 50 bpm as a more practical cutoff for concern rather than 60, because many healthy people sit comfortably in the 50s. Context matters: a rate of 55 in someone who runs five days a week is very different from 55 in someone who is sedentary and feeling dizzy.
Tracking your resting heart rate over weeks or months can reveal useful patterns. A gradual decrease often signals improving cardiovascular fitness. A sudden or sustained increase from your personal baseline, without an obvious explanation like illness or stress, is worth paying attention to.
What to Notice Beyond the Number
When you check your pulse, pay attention to more than just how fast it beats. Notice the rhythm. A healthy pulse feels like a metronome: evenly spaced beats, one after another. Occasional skipped beats are common and usually harmless. A premature heartbeat can feel like your heart paused for a moment before catching up with a slightly stronger thump.
What’s more noteworthy is a rhythm that’s persistently irregular, with beats arriving at random intervals rather than a steady cadence. If you notice this alongside symptoms like a fluttering or pounding sensation in your chest, lightheadedness, unusual fatigue, or shortness of breath, it could signal an arrhythmia. Also note the strength of each beat. A pulse that feels unusually weak or that varies in intensity from beat to beat gives you additional information worth sharing with a healthcare provider.
Checking Your Pulse During Exercise
You can use the same technique to check your heart rate during a workout, though it requires pausing briefly. Stop your activity, immediately find your pulse at your wrist or neck, and count for 10 seconds. Multiply by six. Speed matters here because your heart rate drops quickly once you stop moving, so a longer count will underestimate your actual exercising rate.
This is useful for staying within a target heart rate zone during cardio exercise. Your maximum heart rate is roughly 220 minus your age. Moderate-intensity exercise typically falls between 50% and 70% of that number, while vigorous exercise sits between 70% and 85%. A 40-year-old, for instance, has an estimated maximum of 180 bpm, so moderate exercise would keep the heart rate between 90 and 126 bpm.