A blood pressure of 106 over 66 is a good reading. It falls squarely in the “normal” category, which the American Heart Association defines as below 120/80 mmHg. In fact, it’s not just normal but closer to optimal, sitting well below the thresholds where cardiovascular risk starts to climb.
What 106/66 Means for Your Heart
The top number (106) measures the pressure in your arteries when your heart beats. The bottom number (66) measures the pressure between beats, when your heart is resting. Both numbers are comfortably within the healthy range.
One useful detail: the gap between those two numbers, called pulse pressure, is 40 mmHg. That’s considered the textbook ideal. It suggests your blood vessels have good elasticity and your heart is pumping efficiently.
How This Reading Affects Long-Term Risk
Large observational studies involving more than one million people show that the risk of heart attack and stroke increases progressively starting from blood pressures as low as 115/75. For every 20-point rise in systolic pressure or 10-point rise in diastolic pressure, the risk of dying from heart disease or stroke doubles. At 106/66, you’re below that inflection point.
Data from the long-running Framingham Heart Study reinforce this. People with blood pressure between 130 and 139 over 85 to 89 had more than twice the cardiovascular risk compared to those under 120/80. Your reading gives you a wide margin of safety below that elevated-risk zone.
Is 106/66 Too Low?
Not by clinical standards. Hypotension, or low blood pressure, is generally defined as a reading below 90/60 mmHg. Your systolic pressure of 106 is 16 points above that threshold, and your diastolic of 66 is 6 points above it. There’s nothing borderline about this reading.
That said, blood pressure numbers alone don’t tell the full story. What matters is whether you have symptoms. If you feel fine at 106/66, there’s no concern. If you regularly experience dizziness, lightheadedness, blurred vision, fatigue, trouble concentrating, or fainting, your blood pressure could be running too low for your body, even if it’s technically in the normal range. A sudden drop of just 20 points from your usual systolic pressure can cause dizziness or fainting, regardless of where the final number lands.
Who Typically Has Readings Like This
A reading of 106/66 is common in younger adults, women, and people who exercise regularly. In endurance athletes, systolic blood pressure ranges from 88 to 145 mmHg at rest, with most readings clustering at the low-normal end. If you’re active and feeling well, this reading reflects strong cardiovascular fitness.
For older adults, the picture is slightly different. Some clinicians have debated whether aggressive blood pressure targets are safe for people over 75, particularly because of concerns about dizziness and falls. However, a 2025 review of four clinical trials involving more than 3,600 older adults found that targeting a systolic pressure below 130 reduced the risk of heart attack, stroke, and heart failure by 39%, with no increase in falls, fractures, or cognitive decline. If you’re an older adult who naturally sits at 106/66 without medication, that’s a healthy place to be. If blood pressure medication is bringing you to this level and you’re experiencing symptoms, that’s worth discussing with your doctor.
Getting an Accurate Reading
Before drawing conclusions from any single reading, make sure it’s reliable. Home blood pressure monitors vary in accuracy, and the American Medical Association maintains a validated device list at ValidateBP.org where you can check whether your monitor has been independently tested. Sit quietly for five minutes before measuring, keep your arm supported at heart level, and avoid caffeine or exercise for 30 minutes beforehand. A single reading is a snapshot. Patterns over multiple days give you a much clearer picture of where your blood pressure actually sits.
If 106/66 is your consistent resting blood pressure and you feel well, it’s one of the best numbers you could see on the monitor.