Check a hand dynamometer reading in pounds or kilograms against norms for your age, sex and hand, with the distance from the mean, a percentile and the low-strength cut-offs.
Average grip strength for a 30-year-old female
Check a hand dynamometer reading in pounds or kilograms against norms for your age, sex and hand, with the distance from the mean, a percentile and the low-strength cut-offs.
In the reference table this calculator uses, women aged 30-39 average 68.3 lb (31 kg) with the right hand and 63.9 lb (29 kg) with the left, and about two thirds of them fall between 54 and 82 lb on the right. The figures come from 2,678 Australian adults measured on a Jamar dynamometer, seated, as the mean of three squeezes; the authors note their norms are among the lowest published. In U.S. data from the NIH Toolbox, group means run from 49.7 kg (men 25-29, dominant hand) down to 18.7 kg (women 75-79, nondominant). Below 35.3 lb (16 kg) counts as low strength for women in both the European and the U.S. sarcopenia criteria. The calculator below is set to a female aged 30; choose the hand, enter your reading in lb or kg and press Calculate.
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Problem: a dynamometer number with nothing to compare it to
The display says 80. If that is pounds, it is 36.3 kg, and for a man of 35 testing his right hand it sits 1.10 SD below the mean of his age group, around the 13th percentile. For a man of 72 the same 80 lb is 0.42 SD above his group's mean. If the display was in kilograms, the man of 35 is 3.40 SD above the mean. One number, three verdicts. This calculator fixes the reference: it converts the reading, picks the published norm for your age, sex and hand, and tells you where you stand and whether the reading falls under the cut-offs used to flag low strength.
Solution: one reading, set against the right row
- Sex - men's and women's norms are kept apart; the gap is large at every age.
- Age - whole years from 20 to 100, in ten-year groups with one group for 70 and over.
- Hand tested - right or left. Test each hand separately and run each reading on its own.
- Dynamometer reading - the mean of three squeezes with that hand, sitting, elbow bent at a right angle at your side. Decimals are fine, for example 72.5.
- Unit - pounds or kilograms, as printed on the device.
- Read the result - the reading in lb and kg, its distance from the group mean in standard deviations, an approximate percentile, the typical range of the group and a note when the reading is under a low-strength cut-off.
Which line your reading is measured against
Four published figures appear in the result, and each answers a different question.
| Figure | Men | Women | What it answers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Group mean and SD, Massy-Westropp | by age, see below | by age, see below | How you compare with adults of your age, sex and hand |
| Low strength, EWGSOP2 | under 59.5 lb (27 kg) | under 35.3 lb (16 kg) | Whether a doctor screening for sarcopenia would look further |
| Weakness, FNIH Sarcopenia Project | under 57.3 lb (26 kg) | under 35.3 lb (16 kg) | The U.S. research cut-point, set on older adults |
| Highest U.S. mean, NIH Toolbox | 109.6 lb (49.7 kg) | - | How U.S. norms compare: dominant hand, men aged 25-29 |
The age norms come from the North West Adelaide Health Study: 1,366 men and 1,312 women after people with hand pain or arthritis were excluded. Its authors point out that their values are among the lowest of the published norms, which is worth remembering when a fit 30-year-old lands well above the mean. The two cut-offs were built for older people: the FNIH pooled sample averaged 75 years for men and 79 for women.
Five readings, and what the calculator said
Right-hand grip strength by age, in pounds and kilograms
Group means and the typical range, one standard deviation either side, which holds about two thirds of a group. Left-hand means run 0 to 2 kg lower and are used by the calculator when you choose the left hand.
| Age | Men, mean | Men, typical | Women, mean | Women, typical |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20-29 | 103.6 lb (47 kg) | 83-125 lb | 66.1 lb (30 kg) | 51-82 lb |
| 30-39 | 103.6 lb (47 kg) | 82-125 lb | 68.3 lb (31 kg) | 54-82 lb |
| 40-49 | 103.6 lb (47 kg) | 83-125 lb | 63.9 lb (29 kg) | 51-77 lb |
| 50-59 | 99.2 lb (45 kg) | 81-118 lb | 61.7 lb (28 kg) | 48-76 lb |
| 60-69 | 88.2 lb (40 kg) | 70-106 lb | 52.9 lb (24 kg) | 41-65 lb |
| 70+ | 72.8 lb (33 kg) | 56-90 lb | 44.1 lb (20 kg) | 31-57 lb |
What people ask about grip strength
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See also
Calculator verified by the LiczGrupa.pl team
Content, formulas and results have been reviewed for accuracy and relevance by our team of specialists.
Reviewed by: Natalia Skrzek