How Much Do Kids Grow Per Year? Inches by Age, 1–18

After age 2, most children grow about 2 to 3 inches (5–8 cm) a year until puberty (AAFP 2015). The rate slows gradually through childhood to a low point of about 2 inches (5–5.5 cm) a year just before puberty. Then the puberty growth spurt brings 3–5 inches (8–12 cm) in a year for girls, peaking around age 11½, and 4–6 inches (10–14 cm) for boys, peaking around 13½ (AAFP; MedlinePlus).

These are typical rates, not targets. A child who keeps growing along their own percentile line is growing normally, whichever line that is. Below: the rate at each age, the CDC median height at every birthday so you can see each year's gain, what puberty does to the picture, how to measure at home, and when slow growth is worth a call to your pediatrician.

Normal growth rate by age

Growth is fastest in the first year and slows in steps after that. Pediatricians use these figures as the yardstick for "normal growth velocity":

Sources: AAFP 2008 (first and second year, fourth year, low point, puberty peak); AAFP 2015 (2 to 3 years, 3 to 5 years, 5 years to puberty).

For babies, who are measured lying down until age 2, the WHO median boy goes from 49.9 cm (19.6 in) at birth to 75.7 cm (29.8 in) at 1 and 87.8 cm (34.6 in) at 2 (WHO). Month-by-month figures are in average baby height by month.

Average height at each birthday, ages 2 to 18

US pediatricians switch from the WHO charts to the CDC growth charts at age 2 (CDC). This table gives the CDC median (50th percentile) and the 5th–95th percentile range at every birthday. The difference between two rows is how much the median child grows that year. To get your own child's yearly rate, compare two dated height measurements.

Stature-for-age percentiles, boys and girls, 2 years to 18 years (CDC Growth Charts)

Age	Boys: median	Boys: 5th–95th	Girls: median	Girls: 5th–95th
2 years	86.5 cm34.0 in	80.7 cm – 92.2 cm31.8 in – 36.3 in	85.0 cm33.5 in	79.3 cm – 90.7 cm31.2 in – 35.7 in
3 years	95.0 cm37.4 in	88.9 cm – 101.6 cm35.0 in – 40.0 in	93.9 cm37.0 in	87.5 cm – 100.5 cm34.5 in – 39.6 in
4 years	102.2 cm40.2 in	95.3 cm – 109.2 cm37.5 in – 43.0 in	100.8 cm39.7 in	93.8 cm – 108.1 cm36.9 in – 42.6 in
5 years	108.9 cm42.9 in	101.2 cm – 116.5 cm39.8 in – 45.8 in	107.7 cm42.4 in	100.1 cm – 115.8 cm39.4 in – 45.6 in
6 years	115.4 cm45.4 in	107.1 cm – 123.6 cm42.2 in – 48.7 in	114.7 cm45.2 in	106.6 cm – 123.6 cm42.0 in – 48.7 in
7 years	121.8 cm47.9 in	113.0 cm – 130.7 cm44.5 in – 51.5 in	121.5 cm47.8 in	112.8 cm – 131.0 cm44.4 in – 51.6 in
8 years	127.9 cm50.3 in	118.6 cm – 137.6 cm46.7 in – 54.2 in	127.6 cm50.2 in	118.3 cm – 137.6 cm46.6 in – 54.2 in
9 years	133.5 cm52.6 in	123.6 cm – 143.9 cm48.7 in – 56.6 in	132.9 cm52.3 in	123.0 cm – 143.5 cm48.4 in – 56.5 in
10 years	138.6 cm54.6 in	128.0 cm – 149.7 cm50.4 in – 58.9 in	138.0 cm54.3 in	127.3 cm – 149.3 cm50.1 in – 58.8 in
11 years	143.5 cm56.5 in	132.2 cm – 155.3 cm52.1 in – 61.1 in	144.0 cm56.7 in	132.2 cm – 156.1 cm52.0 in – 61.4 in
12 years	149.1 cm58.7 in	137.1 cm – 161.6 cm54.0 in – 63.6 in	151.2 cm59.5 in	138.9 cm – 163.2 cm54.7 in – 64.2 in
13 years	156.1 cm61.5 in	143.3 cm – 169.1 cm56.4 in – 66.6 in	157.2 cm61.9 in	145.7 cm – 168.4 cm57.3 in – 66.3 in
14 years	163.8 cm64.5 in	150.3 cm – 176.7 cm59.2 in – 69.6 in	160.4 cm63.1 in	149.6 cm – 171.2 cm58.9 in – 67.4 in
15 years	169.9 cm66.9 in	156.4 cm – 182.3 cm61.6 in – 71.8 in	161.9 cm63.7 in	151.2 cm – 172.6 cm59.5 in – 67.9 in
16 years	173.5 cm68.3 in	160.6 cm – 185.4 cm63.2 in – 73.0 in	162.5 cm64.0 in	151.9 cm – 173.2 cm59.8 in – 68.2 in
17 years	175.3 cm69.0 in	163.0 cm – 187.0 cm64.2 in – 73.6 in	162.9 cm64.1 in	152.3 cm – 173.6 cm59.9 in – 68.3 in
18 years	176.2 cm69.4 in	164.2 cm – 187.8 cm64.6 in – 73.9 in	163.1 cm64.2 in	152.5 cm – 173.8 cm60.0 in – 68.4 in

Reading down the median columns shows the same pattern as the velocity table:

• Ages 2 to 5. The median boy goes from 86.5 cm (34.0 in) at 2 to 95.0 cm (37.4 in) at 3, close to the 8 cm (3 in) typical for that year, and reaches 108.9 cm (42.9 in) by 5. Weights for the same ages are in our toddler height and weight chart.
• Age 5 to puberty. Growth is steady. The median girl is 114.7 cm (45.2 in) at 6, 121.5 cm (47.8 in) at 7 and 127.6 cm (50.2 in) at 8: roughly 2½ inches a year.
• The slowest stretch. The median boy grows from 138.6 cm (54.6 in) at 10 to 143.5 cm (56.5 in) at 11, about 2 inches, which is the prepubertal low point.
• The teens. Girls' gains shrink first: 160.4 cm (63.1 in) at 14, 161.9 cm (63.7 in) at 15. Boys keep going longer: 173.5 cm (68.3 in) at 16, 176.2 cm (69.4 in) at 18.

The puberty growth spurt in girls and boys

Girls usually start puberty between 8 and 13 (HealthyChildren.org) and boys between 9 and 14 (MedlinePlus). The spurt sits at a different point in puberty for each sex:

• Girls spurt early in puberty. Their fastest growth usually comes between the first breast buds and about six months before the first period. Most girls grow another 1–2 inches after their first period (HealthyChildren.org).
• Boys spurt late in puberty, with the peak "during the later stages of sexual maturation" (HealthyChildren.org).

That two-year gap is why a 12-year-old girl is often taller than the boys in her class. At 12, the median girl is 151.2 cm (59.5 in) and the median boy 149.1 cm (58.7 in). For the timing details, see growth spurt age for boys and girls.

Here is what a typical spurt looks like on the chart, using an example boy with average puberty timing, measured on each birthday from 4 to 18.

Stature-for-age, boys, 4 years to 18 years

He grows 6.5 cm a year from 4 to 6, slows to about 5 cm a year from 10 to 12, then spurts: 7.4 cm between 12 and 13 and 10 cm (about 4 in) between 13 and 14, his peak year. After that his gains shrink to 6, 3, 1.5 and 0.5 cm. He starts at the 53rd percentile, rises to the 60th during the spurt and finishes at the 54th.

His peak year is bigger than any single year of the CDC median, which rises only from 156.1 cm (61.5 in) at 13 to 163.8 cm (64.5 in) at 14. That's not a mistake in either number. The CDC charts are built from national surveys that each measured many different children once (CDC), and those children reached their spurts at different ages, so the average curve smooths the spurt out. Charts built by following the same children for years give separate curves for early, middle and late maturers (Tanner and Davies 1985).

The practical upshot: during puberty a child can move up or down the chart for a while just because their spurt comes earlier or later than average. Late bloomers often drift down, start puberty late, and still reach a normal adult height (AAFP 2015).

When do kids stop growing?

Growth slows soon after the spurt peaks and then stops over the next few years.

• Girls usually stop growing, or very nearly, around 14 to 15. By the time periods start, growth is already slowing, and most girls grow only another 1–2 inches (HealthyChildren.org). More in when do girls stop growing.
• Boys usually stop between about 16 and 18. Their spurt slows around 18 (MedlinePlus), and boys who start puberty late can keep growing slowly a little longer. More in when do boys stop growing.

The CDC medians show the same thing. After 15, the median girl gains less than half an inch a year: she is 161.9 cm (63.7 in) at 15 and 163.1 cm (64.2 in) at 18. The median boy slows the same way after 17. To estimate where your child will end up, see how to predict your child's adult height.

How to measure your child's height at home

The CDC's method for home measurement (CDC):

1. Take off shoes, bulky clothing, hats and hair ornaments, and undo any hairstyle that gets in the way.
2. Use a firm floor (not carpet) and a flat wall without molding.
3. Have your child stand with feet flat and together against the wall, legs straight, arms at the sides, shoulders level, looking straight ahead. Ideally the head, shoulders, buttocks and heels touch the wall.
4. Lower a flat, rigid ruler or book, held at a right angle to the wall, until it rests firmly on the top of the head. With your eyes level with it, lightly mark the wall.
5. Measure from the floor to the mark with a metal tape and write it down to the nearest ⅛ inch or 0.1 cm.

Two habits make home numbers much more comparable. Measure at about the same time of day. In a study of schoolchildren, height dropped by about 5 mm between 9 am and 1 pm, with little further change after that (Voss and Bailey 1997). And use the same wall, tape and method each time. Even trained staff with a proper height measure had a repeat-measurement error of about 3 mm in that study.

If you log heights in GrowthKit, the iPhone app we make, each one is plotted on the WHO height chart alongside a height velocity chart, so you can see the rate between measurements over time.

Why you need 6 to 12 months between measurements

Children don't grow at a smooth daily rate. Growth comes in steps, with stops and starts, and it varies with the seasons, speeding up in spring and summer (AAFP 2008). Doctors therefore want two measurements at least three to six months apart, and preferably six to 12 months apart, before judging a growth rate (AAFP 2015).

Short intervals also magnify measuring errors. A 0.5 cm (about 3/16 in) error over a full year changes the yearly rate by 0.5 cm. Over 3 months, the same error is multiplied by four when you convert it to a yearly rate: 2 cm (¾ in) a year, enough to make normal growth look slow or fast.

A worked example. A girl measures 116.0 cm (45⅝ in) at 6 years 3 months and 122.5 cm (48¼ in) at 7 years 3 months. She grew 6.5 cm (2½ in) in a year, a normal rate for her age. On the CDC chart she goes from the 47th to the 46th percentile, and the median girl grows from 116.5 cm (45.8 in) to 123.1 cm (48.5 in) over the same year. She is growing right along her line.

Free tool

Child Growth Rate Calculator

Enter two heights with dates to see inches per year, the CDC percentile at each, and how the rate compares with normal for your child's age.

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When is slow growth a reason to see the pediatrician?

Most children who seem small or slow-growing are healthy: they have short parents or are late bloomers. Only about 5% of children referred for short stature turn out to have a medical cause (AAFP 2015). After age 2, though, most children grow along the same percentile until puberty, so a change in pattern is worth a look (AAFP 2008). If you're wondering about sports, see whether exercise can stunt growth.

Sources: AAFP 2008 (below the 3rd percentile, crossing percentiles after 24 months); AAFP 2015 (growth velocity under 5 cm a year, symptoms of chronic disease); AAP 2016 (early puberty); HealthyChildren.org and MedlinePlus (late puberty).

At the visit, your pediatrician will measure your child, look at every past height on the growth chart, and compare your child with a target based on both parents' heights. A hand X-ray for bone age is sometimes added. Bring every height you have, with dates. The short stature guide explains how doctors tell short parents and late bloomers from medical causes.