Average Height
Average Height in Rwanda
Men: 162.7 cm·Women: 154.8 cm
Men · 1996
162.7 cm
Women · 1996
154.8 cm
Men · 1896 baseline
159.9 cm
Women · 1896 baseline
152.3 cm
Men world rank:#185Women world rank:#162
Height trend across birth cohorts
Insights
Between 1896 and 1996, the mean adult male height in Rwanda rose from 159.9 cm to 162.7 cm — a gain of 2.8 cm over 100 years.
- Men in Rwanda were among the ten shortest populations in the 1996 birth cohort.
- The 7.9 cm gap between men and women is below the typical range.
- Height gains have plateaued since 1976.
- Mean height has declined in recent birth cohorts.
All cohorts, 1896–1996
| Cohort | Men (cm) | Women (cm) | Gap (cm) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1896 | 159.9 | 152.3 | 7.6 |
| 1897 | 160.1 | 152.4 | 7.7 |
| 1898 | 160.2 | 152.5 | 7.7 |
| 1899 | 160.3 | 152.6 | 7.7 |
| 1900 | 160.4 | 152.8 | 7.6 |
| 1901 | 160.6 | 152.9 | 7.7 |
| 1902 | 160.7 | 153.0 | 7.7 |
| 1903 | 160.8 | 153.1 | 7.7 |
| 1904 | 160.9 | 153.2 | 7.7 |
| 1905 | 161.1 | 153.4 | 7.7 |
| 1906 | 161.2 | 153.5 | 7.7 |
| 1907 | 161.3 | 153.6 | 7.7 |
| 1908 | 161.4 | 153.7 | 7.7 |
| 1909 | 161.6 | 153.8 | 7.8 |
| 1910 | 161.7 | 153.9 | 7.8 |
| 1911 | 161.8 | 154.1 | 7.7 |
| 1912 | 162.0 | 154.2 | 7.8 |
| 1913 | 162.1 | 154.3 | 7.8 |
| 1914 | 162.2 | 154.4 | 7.8 |
| 1915 | 162.4 | 154.5 | 7.9 |
| 1916 | 162.5 | 154.6 | 7.9 |
| 1917 | 162.6 | 154.7 | 7.9 |
| 1918 | 162.8 | 154.9 | 7.9 |
| 1919 | 162.9 | 155.0 | 7.9 |
| 1920 | 163.0 | 155.1 | 7.9 |
| 1921 | 163.2 | 155.2 | 8.0 |
| 1922 | 163.3 | 155.3 | 8.0 |
| 1923 | 163.4 | 155.4 | 8.0 |
| 1924 | 163.6 | 155.6 | 8.0 |
| 1925 | 163.7 | 155.7 | 8.0 |
| 1926 | 163.8 | 155.8 | 8.0 |
| 1927 | 164.0 | 155.9 | 8.1 |
| 1928 | 164.1 | 156.0 | 8.1 |
| 1929 | 164.2 | 156.1 | 8.1 |
| 1930 | 164.4 | 156.2 | 8.2 |
| 1931 | 164.5 | 156.3 | 8.2 |
| 1932 | 164.7 | 156.4 | 8.3 |
| 1933 | 164.8 | 156.5 | 8.3 |
| 1934 | 165.0 | 156.7 | 8.3 |
| 1935 | 165.1 | 156.8 | 8.3 |
| 1936 | 165.2 | 156.9 | 8.3 |
| 1937 | 165.4 | 157.0 | 8.4 |
| 1938 | 165.5 | 157.1 | 8.4 |
| 1939 | 165.6 | 157.2 | 8.4 |
| 1940 | 165.7 | 157.3 | 8.4 |
| 1941 | 165.9 | 157.4 | 8.5 |
| 1942 | 166.0 | 157.5 | 8.5 |
| 1943 | 166.1 | 157.6 | 8.5 |
| 1944 | 166.2 | 157.7 | 8.5 |
| 1945 | 166.3 | 157.8 | 8.5 |
| 1946 | 166.4 | 157.9 | 8.5 |
| 1947 | 166.5 | 157.9 | 8.6 |
| 1948 | 166.6 | 158.0 | 8.6 |
| 1949 | 166.7 | 158.1 | 8.6 |
| 1950 | 166.8 | 158.2 | 8.6 |
| 1951 | 166.8 | 158.2 | 8.6 |
| 1952 | 166.9 | 158.3 | 8.6 |
| 1953 | 167.0 | 158.4 | 8.6 |
| 1954 | 167.0 | 158.4 | 8.6 |
| 1955 | 167.1 | 158.5 | 8.6 |
| 1956 | 167.1 | 158.5 | 8.6 |
| 1957 | 167.1 | 158.5 | 8.6 |
| 1958 | 167.2 | 158.5 | 8.7 |
| 1959 | 167.2 | 158.5 | 8.7 |
| 1960 | 167.2 | 158.5 | 8.7 |
| 1961 | 167.2 | 158.5 | 8.7 |
| 1962 | 167.2 | 158.5 | 8.7 |
| 1963 | 167.2 | 158.5 | 8.7 |
| 1964 | 167.2 | 158.4 | 8.8 |
| 1965 | 167.2 | 158.4 | 8.8 |
| 1966 | 167.1 | 158.3 | 8.8 |
| 1967 | 167.1 | 158.3 | 8.8 |
| 1968 | 167.1 | 158.2 | 8.9 |
| 1969 | 167.0 | 158.1 | 8.9 |
| 1970 | 166.9 | 158.0 | 8.9 |
| 1971 | 166.9 | 157.9 | 9.0 |
| 1972 | 166.8 | 157.8 | 9.0 |
| 1973 | 166.8 | 157.7 | 9.1 |
| 1974 | 166.7 | 157.5 | 9.2 |
| 1975 | 166.6 | 157.4 | 9.2 |
| 1976 | 166.6 | 157.3 | 9.3 |
| 1977 | 166.5 | 157.1 | 9.4 |
| 1978 | 166.4 | 157.0 | 9.4 |
| 1979 | 166.3 | 156.9 | 9.4 |
| 1980 | 166.1 | 156.7 | 9.4 |
| 1981 | 166.0 | 156.6 | 9.4 |
| 1982 | 165.9 | 156.5 | 9.4 |
| 1983 | 165.7 | 156.3 | 9.4 |
| 1984 | 165.5 | 156.2 | 9.3 |
| 1985 | 165.3 | 156.1 | 9.2 |
| 1986 | 165.1 | 156.0 | 9.1 |
| 1987 | 164.9 | 155.9 | 9.0 |
| 1988 | 164.7 | 155.7 | 9.0 |
| 1989 | 164.5 | 155.6 | 8.9 |
| 1990 | 164.2 | 155.5 | 8.7 |
| 1991 | 164.0 | 155.4 | 8.6 |
| 1992 | 163.7 | 155.3 | 8.4 |
| 1993 | 163.4 | 155.1 | 8.3 |
| 1994 | 163.2 | 155.0 | 8.2 |
| 1995 | 162.9 | 154.9 | 8.0 |
| 1996 | 162.7 | 154.8 | 7.9 |
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.