Estimate body fat % using the Navy body measurement method
Built & maintained by Pappu Venkata Subbi Reddy, founder of Clacify · Formulas verified against official Indian government sources
Clacify's Body Fat Calculator uses the US Navy circumference method to estimate body fat percentage — one of the most accessible non-invasive methods, requiring only a measuring tape. Men need waist, neck, and height measurements; women need waist, hips, neck, and height. The formula correlates these measurements with body density. Results show your estimated body fat % and the corresponding category (essential fat, athlete, fitness, average, or obese) based on American Council on Exercise (ACE) guidelines.
For Indian men: 10–20% body fat is considered fit/healthy; 20–25% is acceptable; above 25% is obese. For Indian women: 18–28% is healthy; 28–33% is acceptable; above 33% is obese. Indians tend to carry more visceral (abdominal) fat at lower overall body fat percentages, so these ranges may be slightly lower than Western guidelines.
The Navy tape-measure method has an accuracy of ±3–4% compared to DEXA scanning (the gold standard). It is more accurate than BMI for estimating body composition but less accurate than underwater weighing or DEXA. It is free, requires only a measuring tape, and gives a reasonable estimate for tracking progress over time.