220-minus-age, Tanaka, Nes, Gulati, and Oakland Nonlinear can each give you a different number for the exact same age. Enter yours once and see all 5, plus which one to actually use.
Recommended For You
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Recommended Max HR
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Max heart rate by formula
The highlighted row is the formula recommended for you. All 5 are estimates. A directly measured peak heart rate always beats any formula.
★ Zone 2
Your Karvonen training zones, built from Tanaka
These zones use your resting heart rate through the full Karvonen calculator, not a flat percentage of max HR.
Add your resting heart rate above to also see your Karvonen training zones, built from the recommended formula instead of the 220-minus-age default.
Which Formula Should You Actually Use?
The recommendation above follows a short rule of thumb, not a rigid rule. Here's the reasoning behind it:
Most adults Tanaka (208 − 0.7 × age) over 220-minus-age. Built from a larger, more recent research sample.
Women Gulati (206 − 0.88 × age), derived specifically from 5,437 female subjects rather than majority-male data.
Over 65 or training seriously Whichever formula you land on, feed it into Karvonen using your resting heart rate. It changes your zones more than switching formulas does.
On beta-blockers Skip formula-based estimates and talk to a doctor. These medications change max heart rate in ways no age-based formula accounts for.
Want a real number A supervised maximal effort test or a hard race beats any formula on this page.
This is a condensed version. The full formula comparison guide covers where each formula came from, a 30-minute field test alternative, and the complete research citations.
Max Heart Rate by Age and Formula
Age
220−Age
Tanaka
Nes
Gulati
Oakland
25
195
191
195
184
187
35
185
184
189
175
183
45
175
177
182
166
177
55
165
170
176
158
170
65
155
163
169
149
162
75
145
156
163
140
152
All values in bpm, rounded to the nearest whole number. Notice the spread widens with age, and 220-minus-age runs lowest past 45 while Nes runs highest throughout.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about comparing and choosing a max heart rate formula.
220-minus-age and Tanaka both estimate max heart rate. Karvonen is different, it turns a max heart rate estimate into training zones using your resting heart rate. For most adults, start with Tanaka for a more accurate max heart rate than 220-minus-age, then run that number through Karvonen for zones that reflect your actual fitness, not just your age. Women often get a more accurate max heart rate from the Gulati formula instead.
Each formula was built from a different research population using different statistical methods. 220-minus-age (1970) was a rough approximation, never rigorously validated. Tanaka (2001) came from a meta-analysis of 18,712 subjects. Nes (2013) came from the HUNT Fitness Study of 3,320 Norwegian adults. Gulati (2010) was derived specifically from 5,437 women. Oakland Nonlinear (2007) models the decline as accelerating with age rather than a straight line. None of them are wrong, they're answering the question with different data.
Tanaka and Nes generally outperform 220-minus-age for most adults, especially over 40, because they're built from larger and more representative research samples. No formula is precise for any one individual though. All of them carry a margin of error of roughly 7 to 15 bpm, so a formula estimate is a starting point, not a guaranteed number.
Yes, and it produces more accurate training zones than either one alone. Calculate your max heart rate with Tanaka, Nes, or another formula first, then enter that number into the Max HR field on a Karvonen calculator instead of leaving it at the 220-minus-age default. This tool does that automatically: enter your resting heart rate along with your age and it builds your Karvonen zones from the recommended formula's estimate.
The Gulati formula (206 minus 0.88 times age), derived from a study of 5,437 women, tends to be more accurate for female physiology than 220-minus-age, Tanaka, or Nes, which were all built from majority-male or mixed samples. It generally produces a lower, more conservative max heart rate estimate than the other formulas at the same age.
No. Every formula here estimates max heart rate from age alone, and individual max heart rate can vary by 20 or more beats per minute from any formula's prediction. A supervised maximal effort test, a hard race, or a lab-based assessment is the only way to know your true max heart rate. Formulas are a reasonable starting point when a real test isn't available.
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Want the Full Zone Breakdown?
This tool builds your Karvonen zones from the recommended formula automatically. For deeper customization, including a custom Max HR override, use the full Karvonen calculator.
