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Average BMI in Haiti

Men in Haiti have an average BMI of 26.6, women 24.3. Both means fall in the WHO overweight band for men and healthy weight for women. That puts Haiti 115th of 186 countries in our data, ranked from highest BMI to lowest.

Key numbers

Men
26.6
Overweight
Women
24.3
Healthy weight
SD, men / women
5.5 / 6.2
global SD
vs global mean
+2.1
women -0.5
Rank
115 of 186
1 = highest BMI
Est. obese
27% / 18%
men / women, BMI 30+

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Estimated share in each WHO category

Estimated from mean and SD with a normal curve, not surveyed shares
CategoryBMIMenWomen
Underweightunder 18.57%17%
Healthy weight18.5 to 2532%37%
Overweight25 to 3035%28%
Obese30 and over27%18%

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.

Haiti among its neighbours

Ranking neighbours (three above and below) plus every Americas country in our data
#CountryMenWomenBothRegion
4Saint Lucia29.830.630.2Americas
11Belize27.630.829.2Americas
13United States29.029.129.1Americas
17Puerto Rico28.528.728.6Americas
20Bahamas27.329.128.2Americas
22Chile28.028.328.1Americas
23Mexico27.628.628.1Americas
25Barbados26.529.427.9Americas
26Jamaica26.029.927.9Americas
27Argentina28.027.827.9Americas
30Trinidad and Tobago26.828.927.9Americas
32El Salvador27.028.527.8Americas
35Uruguay27.527.627.6Americas
37Costa Rica26.928.127.5Americas
38Ecuador26.828.127.5Americas
40Nicaragua26.728.127.4Americas
41Saint Vincent and the Grenadines26.428.427.4Americas
51Canada27.526.827.1Americas
52Grenada25.329.027.1Americas
55Panama26.327.827.1Americas
57Honduras26.027.926.9Americas
61Paraguay26.727.126.9Americas
66Peru26.427.326.9Americas
67Venezuela26.726.926.8Americas
68Brazil26.527.026.8Americas
76Suriname25.527.926.7Americas
77Bolivia25.427.926.6Americas
78Dominican Republic25.727.626.6Americas
79Guatemala25.827.526.6Americas
82Guyana25.228.026.6Americas
92Colombia26.026.826.4Americas
107Cuba25.426.225.8Americas
112Austria26.724.725.7Europe
113Papua New Guinea25.426.025.7Oceania
114Denmark26.324.625.5Europe
115Haiti26.624.325.5Americas
116Gabon24.126.725.4Africa
117Mauritius24.726.125.4Africa
118Switzerland26.823.825.3Europe

What a given BMI means in Haiti

Share of adults with a lower BMI than each value, estimated from mean and SD
BMIWHO bandLower, menLower, women
20.0Healthy weight12%24%
22.5Healthy weight23%39%
25.0Overweight39%54%
27.5Overweight56%70%
30.0Obese73%82%
32.5Obese86%91%
35.0Obese94%96%

Read it as: a man with BMI 30 in Haiti has a higher BMI than 73% of men. Values under 1% or over 99% are shown as <1 and >99.

In plain language

The standard deviation for men in Haiti is 5.5. About two thirds of men have a BMI between 21.1 and 32.1; for women the middle two thirds run from 18.1 to 30.5. Compared with the global mean, men here are 2.1 points higher and women 0.5 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 Haiti?
26.6 for men and 24.3 for women, with standard deviations of 5.5 and 6.2. Averaged across the sexes that is 25.5, against a global figure of 24.6.
What share of adults in Haiti are overweight or obese?
Our estimate from the mean and SD: 61% of men have a BMI of 25 or more, and 27% are at 30 or more. For women it is 46% and 18%. These assume a normal curve, so the true obesity shares are likely a few points higher.
Is a BMI of 25 high in Haiti?
A BMI of 25 is the WHO line between healthy weight and overweight. In Haiti it is higher than about 39% of men and 54% of women. So for men here it is below the middle of the pack.
How does Haiti compare with Denmark?
Men in Denmark average 26.3 against 26.6 in Haiti; women 24.6 against 24.3. Denmark ranks 114th, Haiti 115th.

NCD-RisC does not publish standard deviations. SD for countries added in 2026-10 uses the global SD. Haiti is one of them, so the SD, the category shares and the percentiles above use the global spread rather than one measured here.

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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