If journalists, bloggers, clubs or health organisations need a quick set of current England figures about men's weight and central adiposity, this page is designed to be easy to cite and easy to trace back to the official dataset.
What the official data says
The Health Survey for England 2024 reported that 66% of adults were overweight or living with obesity, with the prevalence higher among men at 70% than women at 62%. The same report recorded a mean measured weight of 86.2kg among men.
Central adiposity is also important. Mean male waist circumference was 98.4cm and the mean waist-to-height ratio among men was 0.56. Seventy-four per cent of men had a waist-to-height ratio above 0.5.
Why waist-to-height ratio is included
BMI does not distinguish muscle from fat or describe fat distribution. NHS and NICE guidance therefore use waist-to-height ratio as an additional measure for many adults, with the simple message of trying to keep waist size below half of height where the measure is appropriate.
You are welcome to quote the headline figures above with attribution to the original Health Survey for England 2024. If you also reference Shift Some Timber's summary, please link to this page so readers can follow the source trail.
Shift Some Timber, “UK Men's Weight & Waist Statistics: 2024 Health Survey”, updated 7 August 2026.Primary source
- NHS England Digital — Health Survey for England 2024: adult overweight and obesity
- NHS — Waist-to-height ratio calculator
- NICE — Overweight and obesity management (NG246)
Media enquiries
For factual questions about this resource or future original Shift Some Timber research, email [email protected].