Free printable blood pressure log (PDF)
Two free sheets you can print today: a 7-day log built for the morning and evening protocol doctors ask for, and a monthly log for everyday tracking. Both include pulse and notes.
Download the PDF (2 pages) How to fill it in
No sign-up and no email. The PDF prints on US Letter and A4 paper. Print as many copies as you like, and share them with a parent or patient.
What's in the PDF
Page 1: the 7-day home monitoring log
This is the sheet to use when your doctor, nurse or pharmacist asks you to "check your blood pressure at home for a week", or after an Apple Watch hypertension notification. It follows the protocol in the 2025 AHA/ACC guideline:
- 7 days, each with a morning and an evening row
- Space for two readings each time, taken about a minute apart
- Columns for systolic (top number), diastolic (bottom number) and pulse
- A notes column for things like missed medication, a bad night's sleep or a headache
- A box at the bottom to write your 7-day average
Page 2: the monthly blood pressure and pulse log
A simple log with 31 rows for everyday tracking: date, time, systolic, diastolic, pulse, which arm, and notes. Use it if you've been asked to keep an eye on your numbers between appointments, or if you're tracking how a new medication is working.
How to fill it in
- Write in the dates first. Start the 7-day log on a day when you'll be home in the morning and evening.
- Morning: measure within an hour of waking, after using the bathroom, before breakfast, coffee and any blood pressure medication.
- Evening: measure before dinner or before bed, at roughly the same time each day.
- Sit quietly for 5 minutes first, back supported, feet flat, arm resting at heart level, cuff on bare skin. Our step-by-step guide covers the details that change your numbers.
- Take two readings a minute apart and write down both, exactly as the monitor shows them. Don't round, and don't skip a reading because it looks high.
- Use the notes column for anything unusual. Your doctor would rather know that a high reading came after a stressful phone call.
Working out your 7-day average
Home monitoring is about the average, not any single reading. The guideline approach is:
- Cross out day 1. First-day readings tend to run high while you get used to measuring.
- Add up all the systolic numbers from days 2 to 7 and divide by how many readings you added. Do the same for diastolic.
- Write the result as systolic/diastolic, for example 132/82.
With two readings morning and evening for six days, that's up to 24 readings for each number. A home average of 130/80 or higher is the level the 2025 guideline uses for high blood pressure. Take the sheet to your appointment either way; your clinician will interpret it alongside everything else they know about you.
When not to wait for the average. If a reading is above 180/120, rest for a minute and measure again. If it's still that high and you have chest pain, shortness of breath, back pain, numbness or weakness, a change in vision or trouble speaking, call 911 or your local emergency number. If you feel fine, contact your doctor the same day.
What the numbers mean
| 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, the higher category applies. Want to check a specific reading? Try the blood pressure reading checker.
Paper or app?
Paper works. It's free, it never runs out of battery, and many clinics are happy to take a sheet. Its weak spots are the maths at the end of the week, readings that get forgotten, and logs that stay on the fridge when you leave for your appointment.
An app fixes those three: reminders for the morning and evening readings, the average calculated for you, and a report on your phone. Whichever you choose, the most useful log is the one you'll actually keep for all seven days.
Sources
- American Heart Association: Understanding blood pressure readings
- American Heart Association: Home blood pressure measurement instructions (PDF)
- American Heart Association: Top things to know: 2025 high blood pressure guideline