How to Estimate Height

PDF download Download Article
PDF download Download Article

Estimating height can be difficult. You may want to estimate how tall your baby will be or someone’s height who’s standing near you. You may also want to estimate the height of tall objects, like trees or buildings. While it’s difficult to get a perfect estimate, there are few good ways to estimate height. You can use the parents’ heights to estimate a child’s adult height. For objects, you can guess the height by comparing them to other nearby objects or using different stick methods.

Method 1
Method 1 of 3:

Predicting a Child’s Adult Height

PDF download Download Article
  1. One way you can make a guess about how tall a child will be when they are fully grown is by using the heights of the parents. Add both the mother and the father’s heights together. For boys, add five inches (13 cm) to the height, and for girls, subtract five inches (13 cm) from the height. [1]
    • Divide that total by two. That total is an estimated height for the child.
    • Remember that children grow at different rates and genetics may make a child taller or shorter than their parents.
  2. You can also predict a child’s full height by assessing the child’s height around age two. Just double their height around that age for an estimated height. [2]
    • For your boy, take his height at 24 months. Double this number. This is the predicted height.
    • For girls, double the height around 18 months of age for an estimation.
    Advertisement
  3. Many parenting websites offer a child height calculator that estimates the child’s adult height. You will need to input the child’s sex, age, current height, and parent heights. [3]
    4. Advertisement
Method 2
Method 2 of 3:

Using Proportional Height Estimation

PDF download Download Article
  1. You need another person for this method to work. Ask a person whose height you know to stand by the object. This gives you a base height to use to calculate the height of the taller object.
  2. Move far enough away from the object so that you can see the top and bottom of it easily. Hold something straight and vertical, like a pencil, stick, or piece of paper, in front of you. Position the pencil at a place where the top and bottom align exactly with the other person. This is your measurement for the rest of the object. [4]
  3. Place your finger at the top of the other person’s head and move the stick up. Place the bottom of the stick at the person’s head, where your finger is. Next, move your finger to the top of the stick to hold your place. Move the stick up again, placing the bottom of the stick where your finger is.
    • Do this as many times as needed to climb up the object.
  4. Determine the number of times you moved the stick up the tree. Multiply this number by the other person’s height to calculate the estimated height of the tall object.
    • For example, if your friend is 65 inches (165 cm) tall, and you moved the stick up four times, you would multiply 65 in (165 cm) by four.
    • If the last measurement doesn’t use the stick completely, estimate the amount of the stick, such as one third, one half, or three-fourths.
    5. Advertisement
Method 3
Method 3 of 3:

Trying Other Methods

PDF download Download Article
  1. Find an object near the object you want to measure that you know the height of. Based on that measurement, you can determine if the other object is two, three, or ten times taller than the object.
    • For example, if a person is standing near a building, you can assume the person is around 65 inches (165 cm) to 72 inches (183 cm). You can base the height of the taller or shorter object on that.
    • If two people are standing side by side, you can compare the heights. If you know that person A is 66 inches (168 cm) and the person beside them only comes to their shoulder, you can estimate that they are four to six inches (10 to 15 cm) shorter.
  2. Another way you can estimate height is to look at the things surrounding the object you want to measure. Compare different large and small objects and place them in order from shortest to tallest. Use this to estimate how tall you think things are.
    • If you don’t know how tall anything is, you may look at a building, a light post, and a car. You know a car is shorter than most people, a light post is around twice the size of a person, so you can estimate that the car is 48 inches (122 cm) and the light post is 120 inches (305 cm). Based on that, the building must be much taller.
  3. A simple and classic method to estimate height is with a stick. Find a stick or other vertical object that is the same length of your arm. If the object is longer than your arm, just hold it at the spot where what is sticking up is equal to the length of your arm. [5]
    • Hold it completely vertical and walk until the top of the object is at the same spot as the top of the stick.
    • Mark where you are standing. The distance between you and the object is the estimated height of the object.
    4. Advertisement

Community Q&A

Search
Add New Question
  • Question
    I'm 11, and I have a step-cousin about my age, and she's either slightly taller than me or I'm slightly taller than her, and I can't figure this out. What should I do?
    Community Answer
    Stand back to back and ask an adult to judge. It will give you a more accurate answer.
    Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
    Thank you for your feedback.
    If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow
    Yes No
    Not Helpful 4 Helpful 7
Ask a Question
200 characters left
Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered.
Submit
      Advertisement

      Tips

      Submit a Tip
      All tip submissions are carefully reviewed before being published
      Name
      Please provide your name and last initial
      Submit
      Thanks for submitting a tip for review!

      You Might Also Like

      How to
      Give a Spanking
      How to
      Answer Where Do Babies Come From
      How to
      Stop Your Child From Masturbating in Public
      How to
      Carry a Toddler
      What Makes Someone a Dad vs. Father?
      How to
      Determine if a Child is Transgender
      How to
      Get Your Adult Children to Move Out
      How to
      Deal With a Spoiled Brat
      Glass Child Syndrome: What It Is & How to Improve Your Family Dynamic
      How to
      Be a Good Parent to your Child
      How to
      Deal with Toxic Stepchildren: What “Toxic” Really Means & How to Gain Their Respect
      What's a "Boy Mom?" Meaning, Origin & Why It's So Cringey
      How to
      Be a Good Father
      What to Do When Your Grown Children Are Distant From You
      Advertisement

      References

      1. ↑ https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/childrens-health/expert-answers/child-growth/faq-20057990
      2. ↑ https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/childrens-health/expert-answers/child-growth/faq-20057990
      3. ↑ https://www.babycenter.com/child-height-predictor
      4. ↑ https://www.artofmanliness.com/2016/10/26/estimate-heights-widths-objects-field/
      5. ↑ https://bigtrees.forestry.ubc.ca/measuring-trees/height-measurements/

      About This Article

      In other languages
      Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 58,735 times.

      Did this article help you?

      Advertisement