Mean BMI (kg/m²) in China
China: Mean BMI (kg/m²) was 23.8 in 2016. ▲ Rising
Latest (2016)
23.8
Change on year
up 0.4%
World rank
144th
of 189 countries
All-time high
23.8
in 2016
All-time low
21
in 1975
Years of data
42
1975–2016
Mean BMI (kg/m²) in China, 1975–2016
Source: World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory.
Analysis
The most recent figure for mean bmi (kg/m²) in China is 23.8, measured in 2016. That is the highest value across all 42 years on record.
The figure is up 0.4% on the previous year and up 4.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, mean bmi (kg/m²) in China peaked at 23.8 in 2016 and was at its lowest, 21, in 1975.
That places China 144th out of 189 countries with data for 2016, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 42 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 21.12 | 21 | 21.2 | 5 |
| 1980s | 21.57 | 21.3 | 21.8 | 10 |
| 1990s | 22.11 | 21.9 | 22.4 | 10 |
| 2000s | 22.73 | 22.4 | 23.1 | 10 |
| 2010s | 23.5 | 23.2 | 23.8 | 7 |
Countries ranked near China
More health data for China
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates 2,029 (2090)
- Un projection of annual infant deaths 4,642 (2100)
- Deaths in armed conflicts by country 0 (2026)
- Deaths in armed conflicts by region 0 (2026)
- Age population, age 25, male, interpolated 8.74 million (2025)
- Age population, age 25, female, interpolated 7.51 million (2025)
- Age population, age 24, male, interpolated 8.70 million (2025)
- Age population, age 24, female, interpolated 7.46 million (2025)
- Age population, age 23, male, interpolated 8.44 million (2025)
- Age population, age 23, female, interpolated 7.21 million (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is mean bmi (kg/m²) in China?
- Mean bmi (kg/m²) in China was 23.8 in 2016, according to World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory.
- What is the highest mean bmi (kg/m²) recorded in China?
- The highest recorded value was 23.8 in 2016.
- What is the lowest mean bmi (kg/m²) recorded in China?
- The lowest recorded value was 21 in 1975.
- How does China rank for mean bmi (kg/m²)?
- China ranks 144th out of 189 countries with data for 2016.
- Is mean bmi (kg/m²) rising or falling in China?
- Over the last ten years it is up 4.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this China data come from?
- The figures come from World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory, published as part of Mean BMI (kg/m²) (age-standardized estimate). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 42 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO (WHO).