Child Weight Percentile Calculator (Ages 5–19)

The 5th to 85th percentile is generally considered the healthy weight range for school-age children and teens. Below the 5th percentile may indicate underweight; 85th–95th is overweight; above the 95th percentile is classified as obese by CDC criteria. However, percentile alone does not define health — context matters.

The WHO growth charts are best for children under 5 — they represent optimal growth in healthy conditions worldwide. For children aged 5–19, the CDC recommends using the CDC 2000 reference charts, which are based on a large nationally representative US sample. This calculator follows that recommendation.

A large upward shift in weight percentile — especially without a corresponding shift in height percentile — can be an early sign of excess weight gain. Crossing two major percentile bands upward (e.g., 50th to 85th) in a short period is worth discussing with your pediatrician, who can look at BMI trend and lifestyle factors.

Not necessarily. Many healthy children are naturally smaller-framed and consistently track near the lower percentiles. What matters more is the trend over time. A child stable at the 10th percentile is typically healthy. A child who has dropped from the 60th to the 10th over 6 months needs evaluation.

Weight percentile compares your child's weight to others of the same age and sex, but doesn't account for height. BMI percentile (weight divided by height squared, compared to peers) better reflects body composition relative to size. Pediatricians typically monitor both, but BMI percentile is more commonly used to assess overweight and underweight in children over 2 years.

The AAP recommends measuring height and weight at every annual well-child visit (ages 5, 6, 8, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18 years). Plotting on a growth chart at each visit allows the clinician to identify trends early.