Yes, 98% blood oxygen is good. The normal range for most people is 95% to 100%, and a reading of 98% sits comfortably in the upper end of that range. If you just checked your pulse oximeter and saw 98, your blood is carrying oxygen efficiently and there’s nothing to worry about.
What the Normal Range Looks Like
A pulse oximeter measures the percentage of hemoglobin in your blood that’s carrying oxygen, displayed as “SpO2” on the device. For a healthy person at sea level, readings between 95% and 100% are normal. Most people will see numbers in the 96% to 99% range on any given reading, so 98% is typical.
Readings below 95% are considered low and may indicate your lungs or circulatory system aren’t delivering enough oxygen to your tissues. Below 90% is a medical concern that usually requires attention. Symptoms of genuinely low oxygen include shortness of breath, a fast heart rate, confusion, fatigue, and a bluish tint to the skin, lips, or fingernails.
When 98% Could Be Misleading
Pulse oximeters are useful screening tools, but they aren’t perfectly precise. Several factors can push a reading higher or lower than your actual oxygen level. Cold fingers reduce blood flow to the sensor and can give unreliable numbers. Nail polish, artificial nails, and tattoos near the sensor site also interfere with accuracy.
Skin pigmentation is a well-documented factor. Studies have shown that pulse oximeters can overestimate oxygen levels in people with darker skin, sometimes reading 3 to 4 percentage points higher than the true value. That means a reading of 98% could, in some cases, reflect an actual saturation closer to 94% or 95%. This discrepancy is most significant in the clinical range where treatment decisions are made (around 88% to 94%), but it’s worth knowing if you’re monitoring oxygen levels at home for a health condition.
How Altitude Changes What’s Normal
If you live at or are visiting a higher elevation, your “normal” will be lower than 98%. The atmosphere contains less oxygen as altitude increases, and your body’s oxygen saturation drops in a roughly linear pattern. A study measuring SpO2 at different altitudes in Nepal found average readings of about 99% near sea level, 97% at the elevation of Kathmandu (around 1,400 meters), 91% at roughly 3,000 meters, and 87% on a flight at 3,360 meters.
Your body acclimatizes over days to weeks, and readings typically improve somewhat after the initial drop. So if you’ve recently traveled to a mountain town and you’re seeing 98%, that’s an excellent reading for altitude. If you’re seeing numbers in the low 90s after arriving at high elevation, that’s expected and not automatically a sign of trouble.
The Exception: People With COPD
For most people, higher oxygen is better. But for people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), the target range is actually lower, typically 88% to 92%. This is one situation where 98% on supplemental oxygen could be a concern rather than a reassurance.
The reason is counterintuitive: excess oxygen in COPD patients disrupts how the lungs match airflow with blood flow, and it can lead to a dangerous buildup of carbon dioxide. A study published in the Emergency Medicine Journal found that COPD patients hospitalized during flare-ups had the lowest mortality when their oxygen levels stayed between 88% and 92%. Those whose levels were pushed to 97% to 100% had nearly three times the risk of death compared to the 88% to 92% group. Even the modest 93% to 96% range carried roughly double the risk.
This applies specifically to people with COPD who are receiving supplemental oxygen. If you have COPD and your pulse oximeter regularly reads 98% while on oxygen therapy, that’s worth discussing with your care team. If you don’t have COPD or a similar chronic lung condition, this exception doesn’t apply to you.
Getting an Accurate Reading at Home
If you’re using a fingertip pulse oximeter, a few small things improve accuracy. Make sure your hands are warm, since cold fingers give unreliable results. Remove nail polish or artificial nails from the finger you’re using. Sit still for a minute or two before taking a reading, and let the number stabilize for at least 10 to 15 seconds rather than grabbing the first number that appears.
Place the sensor on your index or middle finger, and avoid pressing it too tightly. If you get a reading that seems off, try a different finger. Consumer-grade pulse oximeters are generally reliable for spotting trends, but they’re less precise than hospital-grade equipment. A reading of 98% on a home device realistically means you’re somewhere in the 96% to 100% range, which is perfectly healthy.