Navy Body Fat Calculator 2026: BCA Step 1 and Step 2
This Navy body fat calculator follows the two-step BCA in Navy PRP Guide-4 (JUN 2026): Step 1 is the waist-to-height ratio, where 0.5499 or less is within standards and ends the assessment, and Step 2 reads a body fat percent from the Guide-4 tables and compares it with the 26% limit for men or the 36% limit for women. The standards page prints the maximum waist for each height and the full body fat tables.
Maintained by Archie Chang · Reviewed November 1, 2026 · Methodology & sources
Navy BCA calculator
Your measurements
Enter the measurements as taken; the calculator applies the Guide-4 rounding and shows the rounded values. For the waist, enter the value recorded after the guide's two-measurement procedure. The starting numbers are an example, not a goal.
Step 1, Step 2 and the result
Rounded as Guide-4 says: height 70 in, waist 40 in, weight 190 lb.
Step 1: waist-to-height ratio 40 ÷ 70, rounded down to four decimals, is 0.5714.
Step 1 is 0.5500 or more, so Step 2 is required.
Step 2: height-waist difference 70 − 40 = 30 in; weight 190 lb.
24% body fat
Within standards: 24% is at or under the 26% limit for men.
Cell used: Table-2 (men), Guide-4 page 15, the page for 181-200 lb; weight column 190 lb; Height-Waist Difference row 30.
| Row 30 in, lb → | 181 | 182 | 183 | 184 | 185 | 186 | 187 | 188 | 189 | 190 | 191 | 192 | 193 | 194 | 195 | 196 | 197 | 198 | 199 | 200 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Body fat % | 23 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 |
How the two steps work
“The updated BCA procedures will consist of a two-step BCA process.”
“BCA procedures have been revised and now consist of a two-step process.”
“A total of three measurements will be collected and recorded for each Sailor during the official BCA. The measurements are height (inches), waist (umbilicus/bellybutton, inches), and weight (lbs).”
Step 1, from Guide-4 Section 3:
“The WHtR will be rounded down to the fourth decimal place (i.e. 0.5499).”
“If the Sailor’s WHtR is equal to or less than 0.5499 for the rounded waist and rounded height measurements, the Sailor is within BCA standards for Step-1, and Step-2 is not required.”
A ratio of 0.5500 or more goes to Step 2. Step 2 uses the height-waist difference and the weight:
“Calculate the height-waist difference by subtracting the rounded waist measurement from the rounded height measurement.”
“To determine BF%, locate the column which matches the Sailor’s weight (rounded to the nearest pound) and the appropriate row in the table which matches the Sailor’s calculated height-waist difference.”
“The maximum allowable body fat limits are 26% for males and 36% for females.”
“Sailors who are within their sex-specific body fat percentages are Within Standards (WS) for the BCA.”
The tables print whole percentages. Under Guide-4, a body fat percent over the limit is Not Within Standards (NWS), so the calculator treats a result equal to 26% (men) or 36% (women) as within standards and one point more as not within. A Sailor who meets the High-Performance BCA Exemption in Guide-1 can receive an overall PFA PASS, but the BCA result is still recorded as NWS.
How the calculator rounds your measurements
“Height measurements will be rounded up to nearest ½ inch.”
“All measurements are to be taken two times and rounded down to the nearest half inch.”
“Weight measurements will be rounded to the nearest pound.”
“If the weight fraction is less than a ½ pound, round down to the nearest pound.”
Under Guide-4, a weight fraction of a half pound or more rounds up, and the calculator does the same. The ratio is computed from the rounded waist and rounded height with whole numbers, so a ratio such as 0.54996 is read as 0.5499 and passes, and 0.5500 does not. The calculator takes one waist value. For the waist, Guide-4 also says:
“If the measurements differ by more than one inch, take an additional measurement and compute a mathematical average of the two closest measurements, rounded down to the nearest half inch, and record the average value.”
The calculator does not average waist measurements; enter the value recorded after that procedure.
Worked example from the tables
A man with a height of 70 in, a waist of 40 in and a weight of 190 lb. These are the calculator's starting numbers, and every figure below is read from the Guide-4 tables.
Rounded as Guide-4 says: height 70 in, waist 40 in, weight 190 lb.
Step 1: waist-to-height ratio 40 ÷ 70, rounded down to four decimals, is 0.5714.
Step 1 is 0.5500 or more, so Step 2 is required.
Step 2: height-waist difference 70 − 40 = 30 in; weight 190 lb.
24% body fat
Within standards: 24% is at or under the 26% limit for men.
Cell used: Table-2 (men), Guide-4 page 15, the page for 181-200 lb; weight column 190 lb; Height-Waist Difference row 30.
| Row 30 in, lb → | 181 | 182 | 183 | 184 | 185 | 186 | 187 | 188 | 189 | 190 | 191 | 192 | 193 | 194 | 195 | 196 | 197 | 198 | 199 | 200 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Body fat % | 23 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 |
When your numbers are outside the tables
“For values that exceed the limits in Table-2 or Table-3, record the raw measurements in inches on the official BCA score sheet (NAVPERS 6110/10).”
“The official BF% will be calculated once the raw measurements are entered into PRIMS.”
The calculator shows no body fat percent for a height-waist difference or a weight that the Guide-4 page does not print, and says which one is outside. Table-2 prints weights from 101 to 380 lb and Table-3 from 61 to 300 lb, and each weight page prints only a band of height-waist differences.
High-Performance BCA exemption
Guide-4 points to Guide-1 for this exemption. Guide-1 (AUG 2026) says:
“It is important to note that this exemption does not apply to units who elect to DEP/OP the PRT.”
“Sailors who do not meet official Navy BCA standards by exceeding the maximum allowed body fat percentage but achieve an overall Outstanding-Low or higher with all three PRT modalities scored no lower than an Excellent-Medium, will be granted an overall PFA PASS.”
“However, the BCA result will still be recorded as not within standards (NWS).”
“These Sailors are still required to participate in the FEP.”
“To qualify for this exemption, Sailors must actively participate in and successfully pass all three PRT modalities: push-ups, forearm plank, and the 1.5-mile run (or an authorized alternate cardio option).”
“Not eligible if a Sailor is medically waived from ANY modality.”
This calculator does not evaluate the exemption, which depends on PRT results.
If a Sailor is not within standards
“Sailors who are not within standards for both Step-1 and Step-2 are still required to participate in the PRT/CFT. However, they must obtain medical clearance prior to participating in the PRT/CFT.”
“The official BCA is the first and only BCA authorized once the command PFA cycle has begun. BCA retests are not authorized.”
“No substitute methods (e.g., underwater weighing, skin fold calipers, body mass index, bio-impedance, etc.) of assessment are permitted.”
Frequently asked questions
How does the Navy BCA work in 2026?
The Navy's Guide-4 says: "The updated BCA procedures will consist of a two-step BCA process." Step 1 is the waist-to-height ratio: "If the Sailor’s WHtR is equal to or less than 0.5499 for the rounded waist and rounded height measurements, the Sailor is within BCA standards for Step-1, and Step-2 is not required." Under Guide-4, a Sailor who does not pass Step 1 goes to Step 2, a body fat estimate from Table-2 (men) or Table-3 (women) using the height-waist difference and the weight. NAVADMIN 264/25 says: "BCA procedures have been revised and now consist of a two-step process."
What is the Navy body fat limit?
Guide-4 says: "The maximum allowable body fat limits are 26% for males and 36% for females." It also says: "Sailors who are within their sex-specific body fat percentages are Within Standards (WS) for the BCA." The tables print whole percentages, so 26% for men and 36% for women are within the limit and one point more is over it.
How is the Navy waist-to-height ratio rounded?
Guide-4 says: "Height measurements will be rounded up to nearest ½ inch." It says: "All measurements are to be taken two times and rounded down to the nearest half inch." For the ratio itself it says: "The WHtR will be rounded down to the fourth decimal place (i.e. 0.5499)." This calculator rounds a height up and a waist down to the half inch, then rounds the ratio down to four decimals, so a ratio of 0.54996 counts as 0.5499 and 0.5500 does not pass.
What waist passes Step 1 at my height?
Guide-4's Table-1 lists the maximum waist for each height from 48 to 83.5 inches, for example 38 inches at 70 inches and 36 inches at 66 inches. The Navy standards page prints the whole table.
What if my height-waist difference or weight is not in the Navy tables?
Guide-4 says: "For values that exceed the limits in Table-2 or Table-3, record the raw measurements in inches on the official BCA score sheet (NAVPERS 6110/10)." "The official BF% will be calculated once the raw measurements are entered into PRIMS." The calculator gives no body fat percent in that case and says so.
What is the Navy High-Performance BCA exemption?
Guide-1 (AUG 2026) says: "It is important to note that this exemption does not apply to units who elect to DEP/OP the PRT." "Sailors who do not meet official Navy BCA standards by exceeding the maximum allowed body fat percentage but achieve an overall Outstanding-Low or higher with all three PRT modalities scored no lower than an Excellent-Medium, will be granted an overall PFA PASS." "However, the BCA result will still be recorded as not within standards (NWS)." "These Sailors are still required to participate in the FEP." "To qualify for this exemption, Sailors must actively participate in and successfully pass all three PRT modalities: push-ups, forearm plank, and the 1.5-mile run (or an authorized alternate cardio option)." "Not eligible if a Sailor is medically waived from ANY modality." Guide-4 points to Guide-1 for the details, so check Guide-1 and your command.
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Sources
Reviewed November 1, 2026. Every number and quotation on this page comes from these Navy sources.