Average Height
Average Height in Papua New Guinea
Men: 163.6 cm·Women: 154.9 cm
Men · 1996
163.6 cm
Women · 1996
154.9 cm
Men · 1896 baseline
159.3 cm
Women · 1896 baseline
149.9 cm
Men world rank:#178Women world rank:#161
Height trend across birth cohorts
Insights
Between 1896 and 1996, the mean adult male height in Papua New Guinea rose from 159.3 cm to 163.6 cm — a gain of 4.3 cm over 100 years.
- The 8.7 cm gap between men and women is below the typical range.
- Height gains have plateaued since 1976.
All cohorts, 1896–1996
| Cohort | Men (cm) | Women (cm) | Gap (cm) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1896 | 159.3 | 149.9 | 9.4 |
| 1897 | 159.3 | 150.1 | 9.2 |
| 1898 | 159.3 | 150.2 | 9.1 |
| 1899 | 159.4 | 150.4 | 9.0 |
| 1900 | 159.4 | 150.5 | 8.9 |
| 1901 | 159.4 | 150.6 | 8.8 |
| 1902 | 159.5 | 150.8 | 8.7 |
| 1903 | 159.5 | 150.9 | 8.6 |
| 1904 | 159.5 | 151.1 | 8.4 |
| 1905 | 159.6 | 151.2 | 8.4 |
| 1906 | 159.6 | 151.3 | 8.3 |
| 1907 | 159.6 | 151.5 | 8.1 |
| 1908 | 159.7 | 151.6 | 8.1 |
| 1909 | 159.7 | 151.7 | 8.0 |
| 1910 | 159.8 | 151.9 | 7.9 |
| 1911 | 159.8 | 152.0 | 7.8 |
| 1912 | 159.8 | 152.1 | 7.7 |
| 1913 | 159.9 | 152.2 | 7.7 |
| 1914 | 160.0 | 152.3 | 7.7 |
| 1915 | 160.0 | 152.4 | 7.6 |
| 1916 | 160.1 | 152.6 | 7.5 |
| 1917 | 160.1 | 152.7 | 7.4 |
| 1918 | 160.2 | 152.8 | 7.4 |
| 1919 | 160.2 | 152.9 | 7.3 |
| 1920 | 160.3 | 153.0 | 7.3 |
| 1921 | 160.4 | 153.1 | 7.3 |
| 1922 | 160.4 | 153.2 | 7.2 |
| 1923 | 160.5 | 153.3 | 7.2 |
| 1924 | 160.5 | 153.4 | 7.1 |
| 1925 | 160.6 | 153.5 | 7.1 |
| 1926 | 160.6 | 153.6 | 7.0 |
| 1927 | 160.7 | 153.7 | 7.0 |
| 1928 | 160.7 | 153.8 | 6.9 |
| 1929 | 160.8 | 153.9 | 6.9 |
| 1930 | 160.8 | 154.0 | 6.8 |
| 1931 | 160.9 | 154.1 | 6.8 |
| 1932 | 160.9 | 154.2 | 6.7 |
| 1933 | 161.0 | 154.2 | 6.8 |
| 1934 | 161.0 | 154.3 | 6.7 |
| 1935 | 161.1 | 154.4 | 6.7 |
| 1936 | 161.2 | 154.5 | 6.7 |
| 1937 | 161.2 | 154.6 | 6.6 |
| 1938 | 161.3 | 154.6 | 6.7 |
| 1939 | 161.4 | 154.7 | 6.7 |
| 1940 | 161.4 | 154.8 | 6.6 |
| 1941 | 161.5 | 154.9 | 6.6 |
| 1942 | 161.6 | 155.0 | 6.6 |
| 1943 | 161.7 | 155.1 | 6.6 |
| 1944 | 161.8 | 155.1 | 6.7 |
| 1945 | 161.9 | 155.2 | 6.7 |
| 1946 | 162.0 | 155.3 | 6.7 |
| 1947 | 162.1 | 155.4 | 6.7 |
| 1948 | 162.3 | 155.5 | 6.8 |
| 1949 | 162.4 | 155.6 | 6.8 |
| 1950 | 162.5 | 155.6 | 6.9 |
| 1951 | 162.6 | 155.7 | 6.9 |
| 1952 | 162.8 | 155.8 | 7.0 |
| 1953 | 162.9 | 155.9 | 7.0 |
| 1954 | 163.0 | 155.9 | 7.1 |
| 1955 | 163.1 | 156.0 | 7.1 |
| 1956 | 163.3 | 156.1 | 7.2 |
| 1957 | 163.4 | 156.1 | 7.3 |
| 1958 | 163.5 | 156.2 | 7.3 |
| 1959 | 163.6 | 156.3 | 7.3 |
| 1960 | 163.7 | 156.3 | 7.4 |
| 1961 | 163.8 | 156.4 | 7.4 |
| 1962 | 163.9 | 156.4 | 7.5 |
| 1963 | 164.0 | 156.5 | 7.5 |
| 1964 | 164.1 | 156.5 | 7.6 |
| 1965 | 164.1 | 156.6 | 7.5 |
| 1966 | 164.2 | 156.6 | 7.6 |
| 1967 | 164.3 | 156.6 | 7.7 |
| 1968 | 164.3 | 156.6 | 7.7 |
| 1969 | 164.3 | 156.6 | 7.7 |
| 1970 | 164.4 | 156.6 | 7.8 |
| 1971 | 164.4 | 156.6 | 7.8 |
| 1972 | 164.4 | 156.6 | 7.8 |
| 1973 | 164.5 | 156.6 | 7.9 |
| 1974 | 164.5 | 156.5 | 8.0 |
| 1975 | 164.5 | 156.5 | 8.0 |
| 1976 | 164.5 | 156.5 | 8.0 |
| 1977 | 164.5 | 156.4 | 8.1 |
| 1978 | 164.5 | 156.3 | 8.2 |
| 1979 | 164.5 | 156.3 | 8.2 |
| 1980 | 164.5 | 156.2 | 8.3 |
| 1981 | 164.5 | 156.1 | 8.4 |
| 1982 | 164.4 | 156.1 | 8.3 |
| 1983 | 164.4 | 156.0 | 8.4 |
| 1984 | 164.3 | 155.9 | 8.4 |
| 1985 | 164.3 | 155.8 | 8.5 |
| 1986 | 164.2 | 155.7 | 8.5 |
| 1987 | 164.2 | 155.7 | 8.5 |
| 1988 | 164.1 | 155.6 | 8.5 |
| 1989 | 164.1 | 155.5 | 8.6 |
| 1990 | 164.0 | 155.4 | 8.6 |
| 1991 | 163.9 | 155.3 | 8.6 |
| 1992 | 163.8 | 155.2 | 8.6 |
| 1993 | 163.8 | 155.1 | 8.7 |
| 1994 | 163.7 | 155.0 | 8.7 |
| 1995 | 163.6 | 155.0 | 8.6 |
| 1996 | 163.6 | 154.9 | 8.7 |
Explore by sex and age
Sources & methodology
Mean adult height by birth cohort, ages 20+. Figures are modelled from pooled population-representative surveys and measurement studies compiled by the NCD Risk Factor Collaboration (NCD-RisC) and published via Our World in Data.
Cohorts are labelled by birth year, not by survey year. Reported heights reflect the adult height those cohorts reached, typically measured in their 20s or 30s.
License: CC BY 4.0. Last updated: 2026-04-21.