Military body composition 2026: waist-to-height by service

The four standards at a glance

How each service measures

Army (EXORD 182-26, Annex A). Height is rounded to the nearest half inch. The waist is measured at the navel three times, and each reading is recorded down to the half inch. The ratio is carried to three decimal places and the rest is dropped: the order’s own example records 0.549888 as 0.549, which meets the standard, while 0.550 does not. The Army announced the change on July 7, 2026, replacing the height and weight tables and the tape test; Soldiers are measured at least twice a year.

Air Force (AFMAN 36-2905, paragraph 3.15). The waist is measured on bare skin at the midpoint between the lowest rib and the top of the hip bone, at the end of a normal breath out, three times; each reading and the average are rounded down to the half inch. Height goes to the nearest half inch. The ratio is cut to two decimals — the manual’s example is 39.5 ÷ 72 = 0.5486, recorded as 0.54.

Navy (PRP Guide-4, June 2026). Height is rounded up to the nearest half inch. The waist is measured at the belly button twice and rounded down to the half inch (a third reading if the two differ by more than an inch). The ratio is rounded down to the fourth decimal.

Marine Corps (MARADMIN 066/26; MARADMIN 073/26 set the line at 0.52 or lower, where the first message had “<0.52”). The waist is measured at the navel twice; the lower reading is kept and rounded down to the half inch. Height is rounded down to the half inch. The message states no rounding for the ratio itself; its table of maximum waists follows directly from the rounded measurements (at 72 inches, the most is 37.0 inches).

So a person measured at 69.3 inches would be recorded at 69.5 by the Navy and 69.0 by the Marine Corps. Small, but it moves the ratio.

The Air Force point scale

The Air Force doesn’t pass or fail the ratio by itself; it scores it as 20 of the 100 points in its Physical Fitness Readiness Assessment (PFRA), the same for every age and sex (charts effective March 1, 2026):

≤ 0.49: 20.0 · 0.50: 19.0 · 0.51: 18.0 · 0.52: 17.0 · 0.53: 16.0 · 0.54: 15.0 · 0.55: 12.5 · 0.56: 10.0 · 0.57: 7.5 · 0.58: 5.0 · 0.59: 2.5 · ≥ 0.60: 0

There is no minimum for this component, so it can’t fail the test by itself. More on the rest of the test in the Air Force PFRA 2026 guide.

Same measurements, four answers

The table runs recorded waist and height through each service’s rule, using the same engine as our waist-to-height calculator:

Three rows are worth a closer look:

• 36 / 65.5 = 0.5496. The Army cuts it to 0.549 and it meets; the Army’s own screening table lists 36 inches as the largest waist at 65.5 inches. The Navy’s 0.5496 also meets.
• 33 / 60 = exactly 0.550. The Army standard is less than 0.55, so this fails; for the Navy 0.5500 sends you to step 2; the Air Force gives 12.5 points.
• 37.5 / 72 = 0.5208. The Air Force cuts this to 0.52 and gives 17.0 points, but the Marine Corps compares the ratio itself, and 0.5208 is above 0.52.

At 72 inches tall, the largest recorded waist that meets each line is 39.5 inches for the Army (0.548) and the Navy (0.5486) and 37.0 inches for the Marine Corps; full Air Force points stop at 35.5 inches (0.4931, cut to 0.49).

If you’re over the line

• Army: a ratio of 0.55 or more is checked again by a different team the same duty day. If it stands, you’re flagged and enrolled in the Army Body Composition Program. The Army says no one will be separated for failing the ratio during its initial 180-day assessment.
• Air Force: the points drop. If your ratio is 0.55 or more and you don’t meet the overall PFRA standard, you take a body fat assessment, on an InBody scale or, without one, by a two- or three-site tape method.
• Navy: step 2 estimates body fat from waist, height and weight; the limits are 26% for men and 36% for women. A Sailor over the limit who scores overall Outstanding-Low or higher on the Physical Readiness Test (PRT), with every event at Excellent-Medium or higher, still passes the PFA, though the body composition result is recorded as not within standards (Guide-1). How an in-between average maps to “Outstanding” isn’t spelled out; see our Navy PRT and Marine PFT/CFT guide.
• Marine Corps: the ratio is the first step of the body composition evaluation. Marines who score 285 or more on both the PFT and the CFT (see the score chart for what each event takes) are allowed up to 26% body fat (men) or 36% (women); 250 or more on both still adds 1 percentage point to the regular limit, never above those same 26% and 36% caps.

This is general information, not legal, tax, financial or medical advice. Your command’s measurement, taken by trained staff under your service’s procedure, is the one that counts.

Next step

Enter your waist and height in the waist-to-height calculator. It shows the ratio, the Army, Navy and Marine Corps results and your Air Force points side by side, each with its own rounding.