Blood pressure chart by age and gender
Most charts online show a different "normal" for every age. Under the current guideline, the healthy range for adults is the same at 25 as at 75. Here's the chart doctors use, and how blood pressure really changes with age and sex.
The blood pressure chart for adults
This chart, from the American Heart Association and American College of Cardiology, applies to everyone aged 18 and over:
| Category | Systolic (top) | Diastolic (bottom) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Normal | Under 120 | and | Under 80 |
| Elevated | 120–129 | and | Under 80 |
| Stage 1 hypertension | 130–139 | or | 80–89 |
| Stage 2 hypertension | 140 or higher | or | 90 or higher |
| Severe | Higher than 180 | and/or | Higher than 120 |
If your two numbers fall in different rows, go by the higher one. To check a specific reading, use our blood pressure reading checker.
Normal blood pressure by age
Here's the part many charts get wrong. There's a difference between what's common at an age and what's healthy. Blood pressure tends to rise as arteries stiffen, so the average 70-year-old has a higher reading than the average 30-year-old. But higher blood pressure still raises the risk of stroke, heart attack and kidney disease at any age. That's why the guideline uses one healthy range for all adults.
| Age | Healthy (normal) | High blood pressure starts at |
|---|---|---|
| 18–39 | Under 120/80 | 130/80 |
| 40–59 | Under 120/80 | 130/80 |
| 60–79 | Under 120/80 | 130/80 |
| 80 and over | Under 120/80 | 130/80; treatment goals are set individually |
So what does change with age?
- Systolic (top number) tends to rise steadily through adulthood as large arteries become less elastic.
- Diastolic (bottom number) tends to rise until middle age and then level off or fall. That's why many older adults have a high top number with a normal or low bottom number, called isolated systolic hypertension.
- High blood pressure becomes more common with every decade. Most adults over 65 have it.
Women and men
The chart and the healthy range are the same for women and men. The patterns over a lifetime differ:
- Before about 50, men on average have higher blood pressure than women.
- After menopause, women's blood pressure tends to rise faster, and by older age high blood pressure is at least as common in women as in men.
- Pregnancy, some contraceptive pills and conditions like polycystic ovary syndrome can affect blood pressure, so women have specific moments when checking matters more.
A "normal blood pressure for a woman of 50" is therefore the same as for anyone: under 120/80.
Older adults
For people in their 70s and 80s, the healthy range is the same, but decisions about treatment are more individual. Doctors weigh things like frailty, falls, other medications and dizziness on standing. If you're logging for an older parent, note any light-headedness when they get up; it's useful information for their doctor.
Readings in older adults also vary more from day to day, which makes a week of home readings more informative than any single clinic reading.
Children, teens and pregnancy
Children under 13 don't use the adult chart. Their blood pressure is compared with other children of the same age, sex and height using percentile tables, so ask your child's doctor how to read their numbers.
Teens 13 and older use thresholds close to the adult ones.
During pregnancy, blood pressure is monitored closely because conditions like preeclampsia need quick attention. Your midwife or obstetrician will tell you which numbers to act on. If a reading is high and you have a severe headache, vision changes or pain under the ribs, seek care immediately.
Sources
- American Heart Association: Understanding blood pressure readings
- American Heart Association: Top things to know: 2025 high blood pressure guideline
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: About high blood pressure