Max Heart Rate Calculator — Fox, Tanaka & Gellish Formulas
Enter your age to estimate maximum heart rate with three validated formulas and see all five training zones in beats per minute.
years
Sex
Tanaka 2001: 208 − 0.7 × age — more validated than Fox for adults
- 1
0.7 × age
0.7 × 35 = 24.5 - 2
Max HR (Tanaka) = 208 − 0.7 × age
208 − 24.5 = 184Tanaka 2001 formula, more accurate than Fox (220 − age) for adults over 40.
How does this calculator work?
Estimate maximum heart rate (MHR) from age: Fox = 220 − age; Tanaka (more accurate for adults) = 208 − 0.7 × age; Gulati for women = 206 − 0.88 × age. All formulas carry ±10–12 bpm uncertainty. Training zones 1–5 are 50–60%, 60–70%, 70–80%, 80–90%, and 90–100% of MHR.
Formula
How this is calculated
Maximum heart rate (MHR) is the highest number of beats per minute your heart can achieve under maximum exertion. Measuring it directly requires a supervised clinical stress test, so exercise physiologists have derived age-based prediction equations from large population studies.
The Fox 1971 formula (220 − age) is the most widely cited and simplest: a 35-year-old gets 185 bpm. Despite its ubiquity it was not derived from a rigorously controlled study and tends to overestimate MHR in younger adults while underestimating it in older ones. The Tanaka 2001 formula (208 − 0.7 × age) was derived from a meta-analysis of 351 studies covering 18,712 subjects and is generally considered more accurate for healthy adults, especially over 40. The near-identical Gellish 2007 formula (207 − 0.7 × age) came from an independent dataset with similar results. For women, the Gulati 2010 formula (206 − 0.88 × age), from a study of 5,437 asymptomatic women, uses a steeper age slope that better matches female physiology.
All four formulas carry a standard deviation of roughly ±10–12 bpm, so individual MHR can easily differ from the estimate by more than 10 beats. The five training zones shown are percentage bands of the Tanaka MHR: Zone 1 (50–60%) is very light recovery; Zone 2 (60–70%) builds aerobic base; Zone 3 (70–80%) is moderate aerobic work; Zone 4 (80–90%) is hard anaerobic effort; Zone 5 (90–100%) is near-maximum sprint intensity.
Frequently asked questions
No age-based formula is accurate for every individual — all carry a standard deviation of ±10–12 bpm. For adults over 40, Tanaka (208 − 0.7 × age) and Gellish (207 − 0.7 × age) are more accurate than Fox. For women, Gulati (206 − 0.88 × age) is specifically recommended. A laboratory stress test gives the most precise figure.
No — MHR is largely genetically determined and declines with age regardless of fitness. Endurance training does not raise MHR; it improves stroke volume so your heart can pump more blood per beat, which is why fit people have a lower resting heart rate, not a higher maximum.
Zone 2 (60–70% of MHR) burns a higher proportion of calories from fat and is popular for aerobic base and long steady-state training. Higher zones burn more total calories per minute, so both zones support fat loss, just through different mechanisms.
TG we-Calculate Editorial Team. (2026). Max Heart Rate Calculator — Fox, Tanaka & Gellish Formulas [Online calculator]. TG we-Calculate. https://we-calculate.com/calculator/max-heart-rate-calculator
TG we-Calculate Editorial Team. "Max Heart Rate Calculator — Fox, Tanaka & Gellish Formulas." TG we-Calculate. 2026. https://we-calculate.com/calculator/max-heart-rate-calculator.
TG we-Calculate Editorial Team, "Max Heart Rate Calculator — Fox, Tanaka & Gellish Formulas," TG we-Calculate, 2026. [Online]. Available: https://we-calculate.com/calculator/max-heart-rate-calculator
@misc{wecalculate_max_heart_rate_calculator, title = {Max Heart Rate Calculator — Fox, Tanaka & Gellish Formulas}, author = {{TG we-Calculate Editorial Team}}, howpublished = {\url{https://we-calculate.com/calculator/max-heart-rate-calculator}}, year = {2026}, note = {TG we-Calculate} }
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