The Average Black Female Height in America

We hear a lot of talk about how a black man’s height matters but what about the average black female height. There’s not a lot of conversation about how tall a woman needs to be. In reality, I don’t think most men care all that much. In fact, men seem to care more about proportions than they do about height.

However, this post is about how tall the average black woman is in America. The data gives us the first glimpse into average proportions. We’ll talk about weight in another post.

The truth of the matter is that social media would have us believe that black women, physically, are on a downhill slide. But, is this really true? Furthermore, what is the realistic average height of a black woman anyway? In any case, it only makes sense to hash that out (for those who are interested) and include that data here.

We covered the average height of a black man in America in this post.

So, just how tall is the average black woman? I thought it would be interesting to lay it out. After a little research on the topic. Here’s what I found.

Average Black Female Height Statistics

As in some other posts involving black physical characteristics and health, I obtained data from a National Health Statistics Report at the CDC.gov website. Again, analysts gather that information in National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (NHANES). Among other things, the reports show height information across racial demographics. In addition, you will find additional data on other physical statistics. The report, at this time, covered 9 NHANES 2-year cycles beginning in 1999 and ending in 2016.

The table below shows data for the Non-Hispanic Black Female Population only.

Mean Height of Black Women (Non-Hispanic) 1999-2016

Years	Heigh in Centimeters	Height in Inches	Height in Feet and Inches	Change (in Inches)
1999-2000	163.0	64.2	5 feet, 4.2 inches	n/a
2001-2002	162.8	64.1	5 feet, 4.1 inches	Decreased 0.1 inches
2003-2004	162.7	64.1	5 feet, 4.1 inches	No Change
2005-2006	162.5	64.0	5 feet, 4.0 inches	Decreased 0.1 Inches
2007-2008	163.2	64.3	5 feet, 4.3 inches	Increased 0.3 Inches
2009-2010	162.6	64.0	5 feet, 4.0 inches	Decreased 0.3 Inches
2011-2012	163.0	64.2	5 feet, 4.2 inches	Increased 0.2 Inches
2013-2014	162.8	64.1	5 feet, 4.1 inches	Decreased 0.1 Inches
2015-2016	162.6	64.0	5 feet, 4.0 inches	Decreased 0.1 Inches

This table shows mean height for Black women aged 20 and over
from 1999–2000 through 2015–2016.

National Health Statistics Reports

As mentioned, the National Health Statistics Surveys produce some useful data. That data helps us to understand the overall health of the American population. It also gives us the ability to spot trends and long term changes in physicality. With a clear picture, we can begin to look into the things that may have contributed to the changes like diet, exercise, etc. We can all benefit from having as much information available to us as possible.

Objectives

The NHSR shows us the trends in mean height over time. We also find a ton of data on weight, waist circumference, and body mass index (BMI). It includes data for adults in the United States from 1999–2000 through 2015–2016.

Methods

Actual physical examinations provided the data for the surveys. The sample was designed to represent adults aged 20 and over throughout the nation. Surveyors gathered the data in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys during the years 1999 through 2016. For clarification, they present the data separately for men and women. Surveyors also present information by age group, and by race. In additionally, they separate Hispanic origin for each 2-year survey period. In the end, the evaluators were able to use linear regression to evaluate changes in the body measures over time.

Non-Hispanic Black Females

A Non-Hispanic black person is one having origins in any of the black racial groups of Africa. Furthermore, those in this category have no Hispanic origin. A lot of it depends on how a woman self-identifies herself. Also, race and Hispanic origin are two separate concepts in the federal statistical system. Believe it or not, people who are Hispanic may be of any race. So, women in each race group may be either Hispanic or Not Hispanic. Therefore, each woman has two attributes. One attribute is her race (or races). And, another attribute is whether or not she is Hispanic.

Average Black Female Height Compared to Other Races

So, back to something that I mentioned at the beginning. Most men don’t seem to be too restricted when it comes to the height of their significant. This is, of course, provided she isn’t taller than him. As I talked about in this video, some men don’t have a problem with taller women. In any case, height does play a major role in a woman’s proportions or body type. We’ve all heard the conversations about whether and why men prefer a certain demographic of woman. We should also remember that average is just that, the average. At some point, we’ll take a look at the spread as far as female height goes.

Survey results show that white men in America actually average a taller height. In fact, this was true in every year of the survey. If that surprises you, you’re not alone. It was a surprise to me too. I was sure that black men were taller on average.

As I did with black men, I added the heights for every year in the black and white categories. Then, I divided by 9 because there were 9 years in the survey. Here’s what I found regarding women;

• Non-Hispanic Black – 64.111 Inches (5 Feet, 4.11 Inches)
• Non-Hispanic White – 64.288 Inches (5 Feet, 4.29 Inches)

So as we see, according to NHANES data, averaged across all of the survey years in the report, the average height of a black woman in America is 5′ 4.11″. Of course this is just an average. And, as with anything else, there will always be large variances.

Also, just as with males, there isn’t much difference. But, again, on average, the white group averaged taller.

For some reason, I wasn’t really surprised when it came to the females. Don’t ask me why because I couldn’t tell you. How did you think that would turn out?

In any case, I learned something new. i hope you did too.

Peace and Blessings!