A normal resting heart rate for adults falls between 60 and 100 beats per minute (bpm). That range applies when you’re sitting quietly, not after exercise or a stressful moment. Children and infants have naturally faster heart rates, and highly trained athletes often fall below 60 bpm without any cause for concern.
Normal Resting Heart Rate by Age
Heart rate slows steadily from infancy through adolescence. National data from over 35,000 people examined between 1999 and 2008 show clear patterns across age groups:
- Under 1 year: average of 129 bpm, with a typical range of 103 to 156
- 1 year: average of 118 bpm
- 2 to 3 years: average of 107 bpm
- 4 to 5 years: average of 96 bpm
- 6 to 8 years: average of 87 bpm
- 9 to 11 years: average of 83 bpm
- 12 to 15 years: average of 78 bpm
- 16 to 19 years: average of 75 bpm
Girls tend to have slightly higher resting heart rates than boys at every age. By the teen years, the gap is noticeable: girls aged 16 to 19 average about 79 bpm, while boys the same age average around 72. By adulthood, the 60 to 100 bpm range applies to everyone, though most healthy adults sit somewhere in the 60s to 80s.
Why Athletes Have Lower Heart Rates
Endurance training makes the heart muscle stronger and more efficient. With each beat, a well-conditioned heart pumps more blood, so it doesn’t need to beat as often to deliver the same amount of oxygen. That’s why competitive athletes and regular endurance exercisers often have resting rates in the 40s or 50s. A resting heart rate below 60 bpm in someone who exercises regularly is generally a sign of cardiovascular fitness, not a problem. If you’re not physically active and your heart rate regularly sits below 60, that’s worth mentioning to a doctor.
What Pushes Your Heart Rate Up or Down
Your resting heart rate isn’t a fixed number. It shifts throughout the day based on what your body is dealing with. Exercise and stress are the most obvious causes of a temporary increase, but plenty of other factors play a role: fever, caffeine, nicotine, dehydration, alcohol (and alcohol withdrawal), certain medications including some cold and cough remedies, and changes in minerals like potassium or magnesium.
Some medical conditions also raise resting heart rate over longer periods. An overactive thyroid speeds up your metabolism, which forces your heart to work harder. Anemia, where you have fewer red blood cells carrying oxygen, has the same effect. High or low blood pressure can contribute as well. A resting heart rate that’s consistently above 100 bpm, called tachycardia, is worth getting checked out, especially if it comes with dizziness, chest discomfort, or shortness of breath.
Heart Rate During Exercise
When you’re working out, your heart rate should be significantly higher than at rest. The general guideline is to aim for 50% to 70% of your maximum heart rate during moderate exercise (like brisk walking) and 70% to 85% during vigorous exercise (like running or cycling hard).
The simplest way to estimate your maximum heart rate is to subtract your age from 220. A 40-year-old would have an estimated max of 180 bpm, making their moderate-intensity zone roughly 90 to 126 bpm and their vigorous zone 126 to 153 bpm. This formula can be off by 10 to 12 beats per minute in either direction. A slightly more accurate alternative: multiply your age by 0.7, then subtract that number from 207. For the same 40-year-old, that gives a max of 179, which is close but tends to be more reliable at the extremes of age.
How to Check Your Heart Rate
Sit down and rest quietly for a few minutes before measuring. Turn one hand palm-up and place the tips of your index and middle fingers on the inside of your wrist, just below the base of your thumb, between the bone and the tendon. Press lightly until you feel each beat. Pushing too hard can actually block blood flow and make it harder to feel the pulse.
Count the beats for a full 60 seconds while watching a clock. If you’re in a hurry, count for 15 seconds and multiply by four, though the full minute gives a more accurate reading. For the most consistent results, measure at the same time each day, ideally first thing in the morning before you’ve had coffee or gotten out of bed. That gives you the closest thing to a true resting rate and makes it easier to spot trends over weeks or months.
When Your Heart Rate Signals a Problem
A single high or low reading usually isn’t meaningful. What matters is a pattern. A resting heart rate that’s regularly above 100 bpm when you’re sitting calmly, or regularly below 60 when you’re not an athlete, deserves attention. The context matters too. A heart rate of 110 after two cups of coffee and a stressful morning is very different from 110 while lying in bed.
Pay closer attention if a fast or slow heart rate comes with other symptoms: feeling faint or lightheaded, chest pain or tightness, shortness of breath that doesn’t match your activity level, or episodes where your heart seems to skip beats or flutter. These combinations can point to rhythm problems that need evaluation. Stimulant drugs, including cocaine and methamphetamine, are particularly dangerous for heart rhythm and can trigger life-threatening changes in heart rate.