is 4'9" tall for a woman?
it depends on your age and where you grew up. here's the actual percentile.
bottom 0.50%
no: 4'9" (144.8 cm) is very short for a woman in the us, taller than 0.50% of women aged 21–24. the typical american woman that age is 5'4" (163 cm), so 4'9" is 7 inches below the middle.
4'9" by age
the same height reads differently at 16 than at 30, because the middle moves as people finish growing.
| age | 4'9" is taller than | typical woman |
|---|---|---|
| 13–15 | 2% | 5'2" (159 cm) |
| 16–17 | 0.41% | 5'4" (162 cm) |
| 18–20 | 0.45% | 5'4" (163 cm) |
| 21–24 | 0.50% | 5'4" (163 cm) |
| 25–29 | 0.57% | 5'4" (163 cm) |
| 30–35 | 0.62% | 5'4" (163 cm) |
4'9" in other countries
4'9" is average in the Philippines (taller than 6%) and short in the Netherlands (taller than 0.0094%). young women aged 21–24:
| country | 4'9" is | typical woman, 21–24 |
|---|---|---|
| Philippines | taller than 6% | 5'1" (155 cm) |
| India | taller than 4% | 5'1" (156 cm) |
| Nigeria | taller than 2% | 5'2" (158 cm) |
| Mexico | taller than 2% | 5'2" (158 cm) |
| Japan | taller than 2% | 5'2" (159 cm) |
| United States | taller than 0.50% | 5'4" (163 cm) |
| Spain | taller than 0.43% | 5'4" (162 cm) |
| Italy | taller than 0.43% | 5'4" (162 cm) |
| Brazil | taller than 0.29% | 5'4" (163 cm) |
| South Korea | taller than 0.19% | 5'5" (164 cm) |
| United Kingdom | taller than 0.17% | 5'5" (164 cm) |
| France | taller than 0.14% | 5'5" (165 cm) |
| China | taller than 0.14% | 5'5" (165 cm) |
| Australia | taller than 0.13% | 5'5" (165 cm) |
| Canada | taller than 0.12% | 5'5" (165 cm) |
| Germany | taller than 0.069% | 5'5" (166 cm) |
| Netherlands | taller than 0.0094% | 5'7" (170 cm) |
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nearby heights
how this is worked out
us: United States, ages 21-24: normal, mean 162.9 cm, sd 7.0, chosen to match the published centre and spread in the sources; breakpoints are the world curve's own (every wheel edge). other countries: national means from ncd-risc with the who's spread. people overstate their height by 1–3 cm on average. 4'9" = 57 inches = 144.8 cm = 1.45 m.
- Anthropometric Reference Data for Children and Adults: United States, 2015–2018 · CDC National Center for Health Statistics (NHSR 160), 2021
- Height and BMI trajectories of school-aged children and adolescents, 1985-2019, 200 countries (NCD-RisC), Lancet 396:1511-1524 · NCD Risk Factor Collaboration, 2020
- WHO growth reference 5-19 years: height-for-age · World Health Organization, 2007
questions people ask
- Is 4'9" tall for a woman?
- In the US, 4'9" is taller than about 0.50% of women aged 21–24, so it is very short.
- How tall is the typical American woman?
- About 5'4" (162.9 cm) for women aged 21–24; half are taller and half are shorter.
- Is 4'9" short anywhere?
- It depends on the country: 4'9" is taller than 6% of women in the Philippines but 0.0094% in the Netherlands.
- How many centimetres is 4'9"?
- 4'9" is 57 inches, which is 144.8 cm or 1.45 m.
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