Body Fat Calculator (Navy Method)

The U.S. Navy Body Fat Method

The U.S. Department of Defense developed the Navy Method as a rapid, tape-measure-based algorithm to reliably estimate an individual's body fat percentage without requiring expensive clinical tools like DEXA scans or water displacement tanks.

How Accuracy is Maintained

By measuring the circumference of the neck and the waist (and hips for biological females), the equation calculates a mathematical ratio against total body height. This isolates the distribution of adipose tissue versus lean skeletal mass.

While calipers are highly subject to human error, the Navy tape measure method relies strictly on repeatable geometric circumference formulas.