68.9 inches is about 5 feet 9 inches
The official mean is 68.9 inches for U.S. men ages 20 and older. Converting units does not make it exactly 5′9″; 68.9 inches is one tenth of an inch below that shorthand.
HEIGHT FACT / MEASURED BY CDC← Main calculator
Average height for men in the U.S.
68.9 inches, measured.
CDC examination data—not self-reported profile heights—puts the measured mean for U.S. men ages 20 and older at 68.9 inches. Here is the exact definition and how that differs from being six feet tall.
RUN THE CALCULATOR↓68.9″5′8.9″
measured mean height for U.S. men ages 20 and older
National CDC/NCHS examination data collected August 2021–August 2023.
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THE SHORT ANSWER
What the number can—and cannot—say.
Average and median are not interchangeable
The CDC reports a measured mean of 68.9 inches. The age-specific percentile tables used by our calculator contain medians and other percentiles, so a six-foot share answers a different question from the national average.
The dating calculator uses age-specific curves
The headline includes all adults ages 20 and older. The calculator narrows to ages 20–69 and applies decade-specific CDC height distributions, because the expected share above a cutoff changes with the selected age range.
COMMON FOLLOW-UPS
What is the average male height in America?
The CDC reports a measured average of 68.9 inches for U.S. men ages 20 and older, based on August 2021–August 2023 examination data.
Is 5 feet 9 inches average for a man?
It is a close plain-language shorthand. The official CDC mean is 68.9 inches, or 5 feet 8.9 inches.
Are the CDC heights self-reported?
No. The source is anthropometric examination data in which height was measured, which avoids relying on what respondents say their height is.
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