Navy Body Fat Calculator2026 Navy BCA: Waist-to-Height Check, Max Waist & Step 2 Guide
The 2026 Navy BCA divides your waist at the navel by your height: 0.5499 or less passes; above that, body fat is read from Guide-4 tables using height minus waist and weight, and must be 26% or less for men or 36% or less for women. Enter your measurements to see your official-style ratio with the Navy’s rounding, your maximum waist, and exactly where to look in step 2. A second tab gives the classic Navy tape-formula estimate.
Follows the Navy’s Physical Readiness Program Guide-4, Body Composition Assessment (Dec 2025), including its rounding rules.
What to do next
How the Navy Body Composition Assessment works in 2026
The Navy BCA now has two steps. Step 1 divides your waist (at the navel) by your height: 0.5499 or less passes and you are done. At 0.5500 or more, step 2 subtracts your waist from your height and reads your body fat from Guide-4 Table-2 (men) or Table-3 (women) at your weight; 26% or less for men and 36% or less for women is within standards.
This replaced the old height and weight screen and the neck-waist-hip tape test. The rules are in Physical Readiness Program Guide-4, Body Composition Assessment (December 2025), which follows the Secretary of War’s December 2025 fitness memo. The limits are the same at every age.
How each number is rounded
If two waist readings differ by more than an inch, a third is taken and the two closest are averaged. Guide-4 does not allow BIA, skinfolds, BMI or other substitute methods, and there are no BCA retests once the cycle starts.
Navy maximum waist for height (step 1 screening)
Because the waist is read in half inches and must stay under 0.55, this is the largest waist that passes step 1 at each height. It reproduces the logic of Guide-4 Table-1; if the printed table ever differs, the printed table wins.
| Height | Max waist | Ratio |
|---|---|---|
| 58″ | 31.5″ | 0.5431 |
| 59″ | 32.0″ | 0.5423 |
| 60″ | 32.5″ | 0.5416 |
| 61″ | 33.5″ | 0.5491 |
| 62″ | 34.0″ | 0.5483 |
| 63″ | 34.5″ | 0.5476 |
| 64″ | 35.0″ | 0.5468 |
| 65″ | 35.5″ | 0.5461 |
| 66″ | 36.0″ | 0.5454 |
| 67″ | 36.5″ | 0.5447 |
| 68″ | 37.0″ | 0.5441 |
| 69″ | 37.5″ | 0.5434 |
| Height | Max waist | Ratio |
|---|---|---|
| 70″ | 38.0″ | 0.5428 |
| 71″ | 39.0″ | 0.5492 |
| 72″ | 39.5″ | 0.5486 |
| 73″ | 40.0″ | 0.5479 |
| 74″ | 40.5″ | 0.5472 |
| 75″ | 41.0″ | 0.5466 |
| 76″ | 41.5″ | 0.5460 |
| 77″ | 42.0″ | 0.5454 |
| 78″ | 42.5″ | 0.5448 |
| 79″ | 43.0″ | 0.5443 |
| 80″ | 43.5″ | 0.5437 |
Step 2: reading Table-2 and Table-3
Find the row for your height-waist difference (height minus waist, in half-inch steps) and the column for your rounded weight. Lower differences mean a larger waist for your height, so body fat goes up as the difference goes down, and it creeps up with weight. For example, a man 67 inches tall with a 38-inch waist (ratio 0.5672) has a difference of 29; at 210 pounds Table-2 gives 25%, which is within the 26% limit.
We show your difference and weight so you can read the official table yourself, rather than guessing at a number the Navy prints. If your values fall off the table, the CFL enters the raw measurements in PRIMS, which calculates the official body fat.
What about the classic “Navy body fat formula”?
Most online “Navy body fat” calculators use the neck, waist and hip circumference equations the Navy used until 2025 (Hodgdon and Beckett). The Navy no longer uses them for the BCA, but they remain a useful general body fat estimate, so the second tab of this calculator gives you that number too, clearly labeled.
How the Navy compares with the other services
| Service | Waist-to-height line | Step 2 body fat limit |
|---|---|---|
| Navy | Below 0.55 (0.5499 passes) | 26% men · 36% women |
| Marine Corps | 0.52 or less | 18–21% men · 26–29% women, by age |
| Army | Below 0.55 | No body fat step (WHtR only) |
| Air Force & Space Force | Below 0.55 | 26% men · 36% women |
Mistakes that fail Sailors
The BCA waist is at the navel, often an inch or two bigger than where your belt sits.
Height rounds up and waist rounds down, both to the half inch. Both favor you, so record them correctly.
Guide-4 reads the ratio to four decimals: 0.5499 passes, 0.5500 goes to step 2.
The official BCA must be within 45 days before, and at least 24 hours before, your PRT.
Related military calculators
Every pay, retirement, VA, PT test, ASVAB and time tool in one place, filtered by who you are.
Our general body fat percentage calculator for non-military use.
Navy body fat FAQ
With a two-step BCA from Guide-4. Step 1 is waist at the navel divided by height; 0.5499 or less passes. At 0.5500 or more, step 2 reads body fat from Table-2 (men) or Table-3 (women) using height minus waist and your weight.
26% for men and 36% for women, at every age. These only matter if you fail step 1.
Below 0.55. Guide-4 reads the ratio to four decimal places, so 0.5499 passes and 0.5500 goes to step 2.
Roughly 55% of your height, rounded down to the half inch and kept under 0.55. At 70 inches it is 38.0 inches; at 65 inches, 35.5 inches. The full chart is on this page.
No. Since the December 2025 Guide-4, the Navy uses waist-to-height and the height-minus-waist tables. Neck and hip measurements are no longer part of the BCA.
Height is rounded up to the nearest half inch and waist rounded down to the nearest half inch. Weight is rounded to the nearest pound.
No. Guide-4 says BCA retests are not authorized, and the official BCA must be done within 45 days before and at least 24 hours before the PRT.
You are not within standards, which makes the PFA a failure unless you qualify for the High-Performance BCA Exemption in Guide-1. You still take the PRT once medically cleared.
Men: 86.010 × log10(waist − neck) − 70.041 × log10(height) + 36.76. Women: 163.205 × log10(waist + hips − neck) − 97.684 × log10(height) − 78.387. It is a good general estimate but no longer the Navy’s official BCA method.
No. The Marine Corps uses a stricter 0.52 waist-to-height line and age-based body fat limits.
People also search for:
Manzoor Ahmad
Calculator developer & web designer · 13+ years in web development and SEO
Last reviewed: October 30, 2026I am a pharmacist turned tech geek, and I design, code and test every calculator on DexoCalc myself. I have not served in the military, so this tool does not run on opinion: step 1 applies Guide-4’s own rounding (height up, waist down, ratio to four decimals), the maximum-waist chart is generated by the same code, and for step 2 I point you to the exact row and column of the official table rather than inventing a number the Navy prints.
Spot a result that does not match an official source? Tell me and I will re-check it.
Sources
- Navy PRP Guide-4: Body Composition Assessment (Dec 2025)
- Military.com: Waist-to-height ratio now central to military body composition standards
- MyNavy HR: Physical Readiness Program
Disclaimer: DexoCalc is independent and not affiliated with the U.S. Navy or the Department of War. Your official BCA is conducted by a certified CFL and recorded in PRIMS; standards can change, so confirm with the current Guide-4.
Keep this tool one tap away
Add DexoCalc to your Google Preferred Sources or bookmark this page so it is there the next time you need it.