Elbow Breadth Frame Size Calculator

About this calculator

Elbow breadth — the distance across the two bony prominences (epicondyles) of the elbow, measured with a caliper while the arm is bent at 90 degrees — is a simple anthropometric measurement used to classify body frame as small, medium, or large. Reference tables, most notably those derived from the Frisancho anthropometric standards and widely-cited Metropolitan Life Insurance frame-size tables, give elbow breadth cutoffs specific to height and sex to determine which frame category a person falls into.

Frame size matters clinically and practically because the same body-mass-index or 'ideal weight' number can be healthy for a large-framed person and too low or too high for a small-framed one; the original Metropolitan Life height-weight tables from the mid-20th century built frame size directly into their ideal weight ranges for exactly this reason. Dietitians, trainers, and researchers still reference frame size as a quick way to adjust generic weight or body-composition targets for individual skeletal build.

This calculator takes your height, elbow breadth, and sex, then returns your frame size category by comparing your measurement against the standard reference cutoffs, so you can put weight and BMI numbers in better context.