The average height for adult men worldwide is roughly 171 cm (5 feet 7 inches), and for adult women it’s about 159 cm (5 feet 3 inches). These figures represent global means, but averages vary dramatically by country, ranging from about 160 cm to nearly 184 cm for men depending on where you live. Your own height is shaped by a mix of genetics, nutrition, and the environment you grew up in.
Average Height by Country
Global averages only tell part of the story. The tallest populations in the world are concentrated in northern Europe and the Balkans, while the shortest are found in parts of Southeast Asia and the Pacific Islands. For young adult men, the tallest countries are the Netherlands (183.8 cm, or about 6 feet), Montenegro (183.3 cm), and Estonia (182.8 cm). The shortest are Timor-Leste (160.1 cm, or about 5 feet 3 inches), Laos (162.8 cm), and the Solomon Islands (163.1 cm).
That’s a gap of nearly 24 cm (about 9.4 inches) between the tallest and shortest national averages for men. Women follow similar geographic patterns, with northern European women averaging several centimeters taller than their counterparts in South and Southeast Asia. These differences aren’t primarily genetic. They reflect decades of differences in childhood nutrition, healthcare access, and overall economic development.
How Much Taller Are We Than Our Ancestors?
Humans have gotten significantly taller over the past century. The average young adult today is about 10 cm (roughly 4 inches) taller than someone born 100 years ago. Both men and women globally gained about 8 to 9 cm during that period, though some countries saw far larger jumps.
The most dramatic increases occurred in South Korean women, who grew about 20 cm taller over the century, and Iranian men, who gained roughly 17 cm. South Korean men also saw large gains of about 15 cm. These changes happened far too quickly to be genetic. They reflect improvements in nutrition, sanitation, and disease prevention that allowed children to reach more of their biological height potential.
Genetics vs. Nutrition
About 80% of the variation in height between individuals is explained by genetics. Twin studies consistently place heritability at around 0.80 for men (ranging from 0.69 to 0.84 across different birth cohorts) and somewhat lower for women (0.53 to 0.78). In practical terms, if both your parents are tall, you’re very likely to be tall too.
The remaining 20% or so comes from environmental factors, and the most important of these is nutrition during childhood. Protein intake in infancy and early childhood is particularly significant. Higher protein intake stimulates a growth hormone called IGF-I, which drives linear growth, especially in the first two years of life. This is one reason formula-fed infants, who consume a higher protein-to-fat ratio than breastfed infants, sometimes show more rapid early growth.
Childhood illness also plays a role. Repeated infections, especially gastrointestinal diseases, can impair nutrient absorption during critical growth windows. This is why improvements in clean water and sanitation have historically been just as important as food supply in driving population-level height increases.
When You Stop Growing
Height is determined by the growth plates near the ends of your long bones. These are areas of cartilage that gradually produce new bone tissue, making bones longer. Over time, the cartilage hardens completely into bone, and once that process is finished, no further growth in height is possible.
For most males, growth plates close by around age 18. Females typically finish growing earlier, usually by age 14 to 16, because estrogen accelerates the closure of growth plates during puberty. There’s some individual variation, and a small number of people continue growing into their early 20s, but for the vast majority, adult height is set by the late teens.
Your Height Changes Throughout the Day
Here’s something most people don’t realize: you’re measurably taller in the morning than at night. The discs between your vertebrae are filled with fluid that compresses under the weight of gravity as you stand and move throughout the day. By evening, the average person has lost about 1.6 cm (a little over half an inch) compared to their morning measurement. Men lose slightly more (1.63 cm on average) than women (1.59 cm), and the maximum loss recorded in one study was 2.7 cm.
This means that if you’ve ever been measured at a doctor’s office in the afternoon and felt shorter than expected, you probably were. The fluid reabsorbs overnight while you’re lying down, restoring your full height by morning. If you want the most flattering measurement, schedule your appointment early in the day.
What Counts as “Normal”
There’s no single normal height. What’s average depends entirely on your population, your sex, and your generation. A 170 cm man would be slightly below average in the United States but above average in many parts of Asia and Latin America. A woman of the same height would be considered tall almost everywhere.
Height also follows a bell curve within any population. Most people cluster within about 7 to 10 cm of the average for their country and sex. Being outside that range doesn’t indicate a problem on its own. Unusually short or tall stature only warrants medical attention when it’s accompanied by other signs that something is affecting growth hormone production, bone development, or nutrient absorption during childhood.