Average dominant-hand grip strength peaks at about 49 kg (109 lb) for men in their late twenties and about 30 kg (67 lb) for women in their early forties, then declines with age.
By 80 to 85, the median falls to roughly 30 kg for men and 20 kg for women.
But an average only tells you the middle of the pack. It cannot tell you whether you are strong, weak, or somewhere in between. The percentile charts below can.
All values are dominant-hand measurements from Wang et al., published in the Journal of Orthopaedic & Sports Physical Therapy in 2018, drawn from the US NIH Toolbox normative database of 1,232 adults aged 18 to 85, tested on a calibrated Jamar dynamometer in the standard seated position.
Grip Strength Percentile Chart for Men
Dominant hand, kilograms
| Age | 10th | 25th | 50th | 75th | 90th |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18–24 | 36.2 | 41.4 | 47.8 | 51.2 | 57.9 |
| 25–29 | 33.7 | 43.3 | 49.3 | 59.4 | 66.2 |
| 30–34 | 31.2 | 36.4 | 46.1 | 56.4 | 63.1 |
| 35–39 | 30.3 | 39.7 | 50.1 | 54.3 | 60.8 |
| 40–44 | 34.3 | 39.9 | 45.9 | 54.4 | 63.1 |
| 45–49 | 31.1 | 35.8 | 40.7 | 48.2 | 59.2 |
| 50–54 | 30.4 | 39.0 | 44.8 | 52.3 | 56.7 |
| 55–59 | 28.2 | 32.4 | 38.7 | 47.8 | 56.3 |
| 60–64 | 23.3 | 30.4 | 40.3 | 44.9 | 52.5 |
| 65–69 | 17.8 | 31.5 | 36.6 | 45.8 | 50.1 |
| 70–74 | 16.7 | 29.3 | 36.3 | 41.2 | 45.6 |
| 75–79 | 18.4 | 25.9 | 33.5 | 36.6 | 43.5 |
| 80–85 | 15.6 | 21.5 | 29.5 | 34.6 | 38.2 |
Dominant hand, pounds
| Age | 10th | 25th | 50th | 75th | 90th |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18–24 | 80 | 91 | 105 | 113 | 128 |
| 25–29 | 74 | 95 | 109 | 131 | 146 |
| 30–34 | 69 | 80 | 102 | 124 | 139 |
| 35–39 | 67 | 88 | 110 | 120 | 134 |
| 40–44 | 76 | 88 | 101 | 120 | 139 |
| 45–49 | 69 | 79 | 90 | 106 | 131 |
| 50–54 | 67 | 86 | 99 | 115 | 125 |
| 55–59 | 62 | 71 | 85 | 105 | 124 |
| 60–64 | 51 | 67 | 89 | 99 | 116 |
| 65–69 | 39 | 69 | 81 | 101 | 110 |
| 70–74 | 37 | 65 | 80 | 91 | 101 |
| 75–79 | 41 | 57 | 74 | 81 | 96 |
| 80–85 | 34 | 47 | 65 | 76 | 84 |
Grip Strength Percentile Chart for Women
Dominant hand, kilograms
| Age | 10th | 25th | 50th | 75th | 90th |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18–24 | 17.6 | 22.4 | 28.4 | 33.8 | 38.0 |
| 25–29 | 20.2 | 25.4 | 29.6 | 33.6 | 39.7 |
| 30–34 | 20.5 | 23.9 | 29.8 | 33.0 | 37.1 |
| 35–39 | 20.0 | 24.5 | 30.3 | 33.0 | 38.0 |
| 40–44 | 22.8 | 26.5 | 30.4 | 33.8 | 37.4 |
| 45–49 | 17.7 | 25.2 | 28.7 | 34.4 | 37.6 |
| 50–54 | 19.7 | 24.6 | 28.2 | 32.7 | 35.2 |
| 55–59 | 16.9 | 20.7 | 24.1 | 30.2 | 32.2 |
| 60–64 | 15.9 | 19.2 | 24.4 | 28.1 | 31.8 |
| 65–69 | 11.7 | 19.3 | 22.2 | 25.0 | 31.2 |
| 70–74 | 15.2 | 19.5 | 22.5 | 23.9 | 27.5 |
| 75–79 | 12.6 | 15.7 | 18.2 | 22.4 | 27.8 |
| 80–85 | 14.5 | 16.6 | 19.5 | 21.8 | 27.0 |
Dominant hand, pounds
| Age | 10th | 25th | 50th | 75th | 90th |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18–24 | 39 | 49 | 63 | 75 | 84 |
| 25–29 | 45 | 56 | 65 | 74 | 88 |
| 30–34 | 45 | 53 | 66 | 73 | 82 |
| 35–39 | 44 | 54 | 67 | 73 | 84 |
| 40–44 | 50 | 58 | 67 | 75 | 82 |
| 45–49 | 39 | 56 | 63 | 76 | 83 |
| 50–54 | 43 | 54 | 62 | 72 | 78 |
| 55–59 | 37 | 46 | 53 | 67 | 71 |
| 60–64 | 35 | 42 | 54 | 62 | 70 |
| 65–69 | 26 | 43 | 49 | 55 | 69 |
| 70–74 | 34 | 43 | 50 | 53 | 61 |
| 75–79 | 28 | 35 | 40 | 49 | 61 |
| 80–85 | 32 | 37 | 43 | 48 | 60 |
How to Read Your Percentile
Find your age band and sex, then locate where your number falls.
- Below the 10th percentile. Significantly below average for your age. Worth investigating.
- 10th to 25th. Below average. Training will produce noticeable gains quickly from here.
- 25th to 75th. Within the normal range. The 50th is the median.
- 75th to 90th. Strong for your age group.
- Above the 90th. Top 10 percent. Typical of trained athletes and manual workers.
A worked example. A 47-year-old man testing at 42 kg sits between the 50th percentile (40.7) and the 75th (48.2), so he is slightly above average for his age.
That same 42 kg reading from a 27-year-old man would place him between the 10th and 25th percentile, which is well below average.
Same number, opposite conclusion. That is why the age band matters more than the raw figure.
Adjusting for Height and Body Size
The charts above are not adjusted for height, and height has a real effect. Research has found roughly a 2 to 4 kg increase in grip strength per 10 cm of height.
Practically, that means a 6'4" man reading at the 50th percentile is performing below what his frame would predict, while a 5'6" man at the same number is doing better than the chart suggests. Read your result with your build in mind rather than treating the percentile as absolute.
Wang and colleagues also published regression equations that account for age, height and weight, which is what clinicians use when body size needs to be factored in.
Dominant vs Non-Dominant Hand
These charts are dominant-hand values. Your non-dominant hand will typically test up to 10 percent weaker, which is normal.
A gap significantly larger than 10 percent is worth noting. It can indicate an old injury, a nerve issue, or an imbalance from sport or occupation.
When Grip Strength Peaks, and When It Starts Falling
The peak arrives at different ages for men and women, which most charts get wrong.
- Men peak in their late twenties, with the median reaching 49.3 kg at ages 25 to 29. Strength holds broadly steady through the thirties and early forties before the decline becomes consistent from the mid-forties onward.
- Women peak considerably later, with the median topping out at 30.4 kg at ages 40 to 44. Values stay remarkably stable from the late twenties through the early fifties, then drop more sharply after 55.
The NHANES 2011-2012 data places the peak decade slightly differently, at 30 to 39 for both sexes, which reflects differences in sampling and testing protocol between the two datasets.
Either way, both agree the decline is gradual until the sixties and steeper after.
What Counts as a Weak Grip
This is the number that actually matters. Clinicians use fixed cutoffs to flag probable sarcopenia, the age-related muscle loss that predicts falls and loss of independence:
- Men: below 27 kg (about 60 lbs)
- Women: below 16 kg (about 35 lbs)
These come from the updated European consensus on sarcopenia (EWGSOP2). Testing below your age range is worth noting. Testing below these cutoffs is worth a conversation with your doctor, at any age.
If stiffness or joint pain is what's limiting your squeeze rather than muscle weakness, start with our gentler exercises for arthritis in hands before chasing the numbers on this chart.
How to Test Your Grip Strength
The clinical standard is a hand dynamometer test (which is the best way to test your grip strength)
- Sit with your elbow bent at 90 degrees, wrist neutral
- Squeeze as hard as you can for 3 to 5 seconds
- Take three trials per hand and record the average
- Use the same device and position every time you retest
No dynamometer?
Two decent at-home proxies: the dead hang (hanging from a pull-up bar, under 30 seconds suggests below-average grip for most adults) and the timed towel hold.
Neither gives you a number for the chart, but both track progress if you retest monthly.
Your wrist position affects your score more than most people realize. If your wrist collapses or aches during testing, work through these wrist mobility exercises first.
Why Grip Strength Declines With Age
Three drivers. Sarcopenia gradually shrinks muscle fibers, starting as early as your 30s and accelerating after 60.
Your nervous system fires motor units less efficiently with disuse. And modern life simply stops asking your hands to work hard.
That last one is the lever you control. The decline is normal, but the rate is negotiable.
We cover the full breakdown, including safe training for older adults, in our guide to grip strength exercises for elderly adults.
Grip Strength and Longevity
This is why doctors care about a squeeze test.
In the PURE study, which tracked around 142,000 people across 17 countries, every 5 kg decrease in grip strength was linked to a meaningful rise in all-cause mortality and cardiovascular events. Grip strength predicted death better than systolic blood pressure did.
A separate body of research calls grip strength an indispensable biomarker for older adults, tied to bone density, cognition, and recovery outcomes.
Your grip is not just hand strength. It is a proxy for total-body muscle mass and how well your body is aging.
How to Improve Your Grip Strength at Any Age
The encouraging part: grip responds fast to training, even past 65. Clinical programs have shown measurable strength gains in older adults within 8 to 12 weeks.
Here is the simple version:
· Train crushing strength 3 times per week. Adjustable hand grippers are the most direct tool. Start light, do 2 sets of 8 to 12 squeezes per hand, and progress resistance as handles start touching easily.
· Add rotation and extension work. Grip is more than squeezing. The Gripzilla Tornado trains the hand and forearm through rotation, and the Dynamo builds the wrist and forearm muscles that support every grip test you'll ever take.
· For a zero-equipment option that physical therapists have used for decades, the rice bucket forearm workout builds hand endurance with nothing but a container of rice.
· Retest monthly. Same device, same position. Watching your number climb back up the chart is the best adherence tool there is.
For full routines by level, see our complete guide to grip strength workouts.
FAQs About Average Grip Strength by Age
What is a good grip strength for a 40-year-old man?
The median for men aged 40 to 44 is 45.9 kg (101 lb). Anything above 54.4 kg (120 lb) puts you in the top quarter for your age.
Is 100 lb of grip strength good?
For a man it is around the 50th percentile through most of middle age, so solidly average. For a woman it is exceptional, well above the 90th percentile at every age.
At what age does grip strength peak?
Men peak in their late twenties. Women peak considerably later, in their early forties, and hold strength more steadily through midlife.
How can I measure grip strength without a dynamometer?
Use a dead hang or timed towel hold and track your time monthly. For an actual number, many physical therapy clinics and gyms will test you on a dynamometer for free or for a small fee.
Why is my left hand weaker than my right?
Up to 10 percent weaker on the non-dominant side is normal. A larger gap may reflect an old injury or an imbalance worth investigating.
Does height affect grip strength?
Yes. Roughly 2 to 4 kg per 10 cm of height, so taller people score higher on average and should read the chart accordingly.
