Average Height
Average Height in Tanzania
Men: 164.8 cm·Women: 155.9 cm
Men · 1996
164.8 cm
Women · 1996
155.9 cm
Men · 1896 baseline
160.8 cm
Women · 1896 baseline
151.0 cm
Men world rank:#170Women world rank:#151
Height trend across birth cohorts
Insights
Between 1896 and 1996, the mean adult male height in Tanzania rose from 160.8 cm to 164.8 cm — a gain of 4.0 cm over 100 years.
- The 8.9 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 | 160.8 | 151.0 | 9.8 |
| 1897 | 160.9 | 151.1 | 9.8 |
| 1898 | 161.0 | 151.2 | 9.8 |
| 1899 | 161.1 | 151.3 | 9.8 |
| 1900 | 161.2 | 151.4 | 9.8 |
| 1901 | 161.4 | 151.5 | 9.9 |
| 1902 | 161.5 | 151.6 | 9.9 |
| 1903 | 161.6 | 151.7 | 9.9 |
| 1904 | 161.7 | 151.8 | 9.9 |
| 1905 | 161.8 | 151.9 | 9.9 |
| 1906 | 161.9 | 152.0 | 9.9 |
| 1907 | 162.1 | 152.1 | 10.0 |
| 1908 | 162.2 | 152.2 | 10.0 |
| 1909 | 162.3 | 152.3 | 10.0 |
| 1910 | 162.4 | 152.4 | 10.0 |
| 1911 | 162.5 | 152.5 | 10.0 |
| 1912 | 162.6 | 152.6 | 10.0 |
| 1913 | 162.8 | 152.7 | 10.1 |
| 1914 | 162.9 | 152.8 | 10.1 |
| 1915 | 163.0 | 152.9 | 10.1 |
| 1916 | 163.2 | 153.0 | 10.2 |
| 1917 | 163.3 | 153.1 | 10.2 |
| 1918 | 163.4 | 153.2 | 10.2 |
| 1919 | 163.5 | 153.3 | 10.2 |
| 1920 | 163.7 | 153.4 | 10.3 |
| 1921 | 163.8 | 153.5 | 10.3 |
| 1922 | 163.9 | 153.6 | 10.3 |
| 1923 | 164.0 | 153.7 | 10.3 |
| 1924 | 164.2 | 153.8 | 10.4 |
| 1925 | 164.3 | 153.9 | 10.4 |
| 1926 | 164.4 | 154.0 | 10.4 |
| 1927 | 164.5 | 154.1 | 10.4 |
| 1928 | 164.7 | 154.2 | 10.5 |
| 1929 | 164.8 | 154.3 | 10.5 |
| 1930 | 164.9 | 154.4 | 10.5 |
| 1931 | 165.1 | 154.5 | 10.6 |
| 1932 | 165.2 | 154.6 | 10.6 |
| 1933 | 165.4 | 154.7 | 10.7 |
| 1934 | 165.5 | 154.8 | 10.7 |
| 1935 | 165.6 | 154.9 | 10.7 |
| 1936 | 165.8 | 155.0 | 10.8 |
| 1937 | 165.9 | 155.1 | 10.8 |
| 1938 | 166.0 | 155.3 | 10.7 |
| 1939 | 166.1 | 155.4 | 10.7 |
| 1940 | 166.2 | 155.5 | 10.7 |
| 1941 | 166.4 | 155.6 | 10.8 |
| 1942 | 166.5 | 155.7 | 10.8 |
| 1943 | 166.6 | 155.8 | 10.8 |
| 1944 | 166.7 | 155.9 | 10.8 |
| 1945 | 166.8 | 156.0 | 10.8 |
| 1946 | 166.9 | 156.0 | 10.9 |
| 1947 | 167.0 | 156.1 | 10.9 |
| 1948 | 167.0 | 156.2 | 10.8 |
| 1949 | 167.1 | 156.3 | 10.8 |
| 1950 | 167.2 | 156.4 | 10.8 |
| 1951 | 167.3 | 156.5 | 10.8 |
| 1952 | 167.4 | 156.6 | 10.8 |
| 1953 | 167.4 | 156.7 | 10.7 |
| 1954 | 167.5 | 156.8 | 10.7 |
| 1955 | 167.5 | 156.8 | 10.7 |
| 1956 | 167.6 | 156.9 | 10.7 |
| 1957 | 167.6 | 157.0 | 10.6 |
| 1958 | 167.6 | 157.0 | 10.6 |
| 1959 | 167.7 | 157.1 | 10.6 |
| 1960 | 167.7 | 157.1 | 10.6 |
| 1961 | 167.7 | 157.2 | 10.5 |
| 1962 | 167.7 | 157.2 | 10.5 |
| 1963 | 167.7 | 157.2 | 10.5 |
| 1964 | 167.7 | 157.2 | 10.5 |
| 1965 | 167.7 | 157.2 | 10.5 |
| 1966 | 167.7 | 157.2 | 10.5 |
| 1967 | 167.7 | 157.2 | 10.5 |
| 1968 | 167.7 | 157.2 | 10.5 |
| 1969 | 167.6 | 157.2 | 10.4 |
| 1970 | 167.6 | 157.1 | 10.5 |
| 1971 | 167.5 | 157.1 | 10.4 |
| 1972 | 167.5 | 157.0 | 10.5 |
| 1973 | 167.5 | 157.0 | 10.5 |
| 1974 | 167.4 | 156.9 | 10.5 |
| 1975 | 167.4 | 156.9 | 10.5 |
| 1976 | 167.4 | 156.8 | 10.6 |
| 1977 | 167.3 | 156.8 | 10.5 |
| 1978 | 167.3 | 156.7 | 10.6 |
| 1979 | 167.2 | 156.7 | 10.5 |
| 1980 | 167.2 | 156.6 | 10.6 |
| 1981 | 167.1 | 156.6 | 10.5 |
| 1982 | 167.0 | 156.5 | 10.5 |
| 1983 | 166.9 | 156.5 | 10.4 |
| 1984 | 166.8 | 156.4 | 10.4 |
| 1985 | 166.7 | 156.4 | 10.3 |
| 1986 | 166.5 | 156.3 | 10.2 |
| 1987 | 166.4 | 156.3 | 10.1 |
| 1988 | 166.2 | 156.2 | 10.0 |
| 1989 | 166.0 | 156.2 | 9.8 |
| 1990 | 165.9 | 156.1 | 9.8 |
| 1991 | 165.7 | 156.1 | 9.6 |
| 1992 | 165.5 | 156.0 | 9.5 |
| 1993 | 165.3 | 156.0 | 9.3 |
| 1994 | 165.2 | 156.0 | 9.2 |
| 1995 | 165.0 | 155.9 | 9.1 |
| 1996 | 164.8 | 155.9 | 8.9 |
Explore by sex and age
Notable people from Tanzania with known heights
Yussuf Poulsen
193 cm · 6'4"
b. 1994
Hasheem Thabeet
221 cm · 7'3"
b. 1987
Mbwana Samatta
183 cm · 6'0"
b. 1992
Filbert Bayi
183 cm · 6'0"
b. 1953
Heights from Wikidata (property P2048). Shown for published persons sorted by priority score.
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.