Maximum Heart Rate Calculator

About this calculator

Maximum heart rate can't be measured safely without a supervised stress test, so it's usually estimated with an age-based formula, and several competing ones exist because they were derived from different study populations: the classic Fox formula (220 − age) is the oldest and simplest but tends to overestimate max HR in older adults; the Tanaka formula (208 − 0.7 × age), derived from a large meta-analysis, is generally considered more accurate across a broad age range; and the Gulati formula (206 − 0.88 × age) was developed specifically from a study of women and tends to fit female physiology better than the other two.

Max heart rate is the foundation that heart-rate training zones are built on — trainers, cardiac rehab programs and fitness apps all calculate zones (like 60–70% for fat-burning, 80–90% for VO2max intervals) as percentages of estimated max HR, so choosing the right formula for your age and sex meaningfully changes where those zone boundaries fall. It's an estimate, not a measurement — individual variation of ±10–12 beats from any formula's prediction is common — but it's the standard starting point used across the fitness industry when a real stress test isn't available.

This calculator estimates your maximum heart rate using the Fox, Tanaka or Gulati formula based on your age (and sex, for Gulati), giving you a training ceiling to build your heart-rate zones around.