What is the average BMI in China?

24.3 for men and 23.6 for women, with standard deviations of 4.3 and 4.5. Averaged across the sexes that is 24.0, against a global figure of 24.6.

What share of adults in China are overweight or obese?

Our estimate from the mean and SD: 44% of men have a BMI of 25 or more, and 9% are at 30 or more. For women it is 38% and 8%. These assume a normal curve, so the true obesity shares are likely a few points higher.

Is a BMI of 25 high in China?

A BMI of 25 is the WHO line between healthy weight and overweight. In China it is higher than about 56% of men and 62% of women. For men here that is roughly the median.

How does China compare with Ghana?

Men in Ghana average 22.6 against 24.3 in China; women 25.4 against 23.6. Ghana ranks 140th, China 141st.

Average BMI in China

Men in China have an average BMI of 24.3, women 23.6. Both means fall in the WHO healthy weight band for men and healthy weight for women. That puts China 141st of 186 countries in our data, ranked from highest BMI to lowest.

Key numbers

Men

24.3

Healthy weight

Women

23.6

Healthy weight

SD, men / women

4.3 / 4.5

vs global mean

-0.2

women -1.2

Rank

141 of 186

1 = highest BMI

Est. obese

9% / 8%

men / women, BMI 30+

Estimated share in each WHO category

Estimated from mean and SD with a normal curve, not surveyed shares
Category	BMI	Men	Women
Underweight	under 18.5	9%	13%
Healthy weight	18.5 to 25	48%	49%
Overweight	25 to 30	34%	30%
Obese	30 and over	9%	8%

Columns may not sum to 100 because of rounding. Real BMI distributions have a longer right tail than a normal curve, so the obese share here is probably a few points low.

China among its neighbours

Ranking neighbours (three above and below) plus every Asia country in our data
#	Country	Men	Women	Both	Region
5	Kuwait	29.2	30.7	29.9	Asia
9	Qatar	28.9	30.4	29.6	Asia
10	Jordan	28.5	30.1	29.3	Asia
12	Palestine	28.3	30.0	29.1	Asia
14	Iraq	28.0	29.9	28.9	Asia
15	United Arab Emirates	28.2	29.6	28.9	Asia
16	Saudi Arabia	28.1	29.5	28.8	Asia
18	Syria	27.6	29.5	28.6	Asia
29	Lebanon	28.1	27.6	27.9	Asia
31	Georgia	27.7	27.9	27.8	Asia
39	Israel	27.8	27.1	27.5	Asia
44	Brunei	27.3	27.3	27.3	Asia
50	Azerbaijan	26.2	28.2	27.2	Asia
54	Uzbekistan	26.5	27.7	27.1	Asia
71	Kyrgyzstan	26.1	27.4	26.8	Asia
74	Turkmenistan	26.7	26.8	26.8	Asia
83	Kazakhstan	26.5	26.7	26.6	Asia
87	Oman	26.5	26.5	26.5	Asia
89	Mongolia	26.1	26.8	26.5	Asia
91	Armenia	25.7	27.2	26.4	Asia
94	Iran	25.4	27.3	26.4	Asia
99	Tajikistan	26.0	26.5	26.3	Asia
105	Malaysia	25.4	26.3	25.9	Asia
110	Maldives	24.8	26.6	25.7	Asia
123	Bahrain	24.9	24.8	24.9	Asia
127	Thailand	24.0	25.1	24.6	Asia
129	Taiwan	25.1	23.8	24.5	Asia
132	Hong Kong	24.6	23.9	24.3	Asia
133	North Korea	24.4	24.1	24.3	Asia
138	Bhutan	23.6	24.6	24.1	Asia
139	Pakistan	23.4	24.8	24.1	Asia
140	Ghana	22.6	25.4	24.0	Africa
141	China	24.3	23.6	24.0	Asia
142	Yemen	23.7	24.2	23.9	Asia
143	Côte d'Ivoire	23.5	24.2	23.9	Africa
144	South Korea	24.5	23.2	23.9	Asia
146	Singapore	24.4	23.1	23.8	Asia
150	Afghanistan	22.7	24.2	23.4	Asia
156	Indonesia	22.6	23.9	23.3	Asia
157	Philippines	22.9	23.6	23.3	Asia
159	Sri Lanka	22.6	23.8	23.2	Asia
162	Laos	22.8	23.2	23.0	Asia
167	Japan	23.7	21.8	22.8	Asia
168	Myanmar	22.3	23.2	22.8	Asia
171	Nepal	22.6	22.5	22.6	Asia
173	Cambodia	22.2	22.4	22.3	Asia
179	Vietnam	22.0	21.9	21.9	Asia
180	India	21.8	22.0	21.9	Asia
181	Bangladesh	21.4	22.1	21.8	Asia
183	Timor-Leste	21.4	21.4	21.4	Asia

What a given BMI means in China

Share of adults with a lower BMI than each value, estimated from mean and SD
BMI	WHO band	Lower, men	Lower, women
20.0	Healthy weight	16%	21%
22.5	Healthy weight	34%	40%
25.0	Overweight	56%	62%
27.5	Overweight	77%	81%
30.0	Obese	91%	92%
32.5	Obese	97%	98%
35.0	Obese	99%	99%

Read it as: a man with BMI 30 in China has a higher BMI than 91% of men. Values under 1% or over 99% are shown as <1 and >99.

In plain language

The standard deviation for men in China is 4.3. About two thirds of men have a BMI between 20.0 and 28.6; for women the middle two thirds run from 19.1 to 28.1. Compared with the global mean, men here are 0.2 points lower and women 1.2 points lower.

BMI does not distinguish muscle from fat, and the WHO bands were set on European populations. For South and East Asian populations the same BMI carries more health risk, which is why several countries there use 23 and 27.5 as their own cut-offs.

Questions

What is the average BMI in China?: 24.3 for men and 23.6 for women, with standard deviations of 4.3 and 4.5. Averaged across the sexes that is 24.0, against a global figure of 24.6.
What share of adults in China are overweight or obese?: Our estimate from the mean and SD: 44% of men have a BMI of 25 or more, and 9% are at 30 or more. For women it is 38% and 8%. These assume a normal curve, so the true obesity shares are likely a few points higher.
Is a BMI of 25 high in China?: A BMI of 25 is the WHO line between healthy weight and overweight. In China it is higher than about 56% of men and 62% of women. For men here that is roughly the median.
How does China compare with Ghana?: Men in Ghana average 22.6 against 24.3 in China; women 25.4 against 23.6. Ghana ranks 140th, China 141st.

Source: NCD Risk Factor Collaboration, Lancet 2017, age-standardised mean BMI for 2016. Percentiles on this page are our estimate from a normal distribution with the stated mean and SD.

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🇨🇳Average BMI in China