About the Max Heart Rate Calculator
Your maximum heart rate is the highest number of beats per minute your heart can reach during hard effort. It falls slowly with age, and coaches use it to set training zones for easy runs, tempo work and sprints. This calculator estimates it from your age with the Fox, Tanaka, Gulati or HUNT formula, then turns it into five zones from very light to maximum. If you also enter your resting heart rate, it switches to the Karvonen method, which sets the zones from your heart rate reserve and tends to suit fitter people better. All the formulas are averages, so treat the result as a starting point.
Updated October 2026
How to use the Max Heart Rate Calculator
- 1Type your age in years.
- 2Pick a formula. Tanaka is a good general choice; Gulati was built from data on women.
- 3Optional: add your resting heart rate, counted for a full minute after waking.
- 4Read your estimated maximum and the beats-per-minute range for each zone.
- 5Use the zones to set the effort of your next walk, ride or run.
Choosing a formula
The 220 minus age rule dates from the 1970s and was never meant as a precise tool. The Tanaka formula was based on a combined analysis of many studies and fits adults over 40 better. The Gulati formula comes from research on women, while HUNT used a large Norwegian population of healthy adults.
The calculator lets you compare the four side by side by switching the formula. If they differ by only a few beats, the choice hardly matters.
Using the zones
- Zone 1 and 2: easy effort for warm-ups, recovery days and long steady sessions.
- Zone 3: comfortably hard, good for tempo efforts of 10 to 30 minutes.
- Zone 4: hard intervals of a few minutes with rest between them.
- Zone 5: all-out efforts of seconds up to about a minute, used sparingly.
Staying safe
If you are new to exercise, have a heart condition, high blood pressure or take regular medicines, speak to a doctor before training near your maximum. Stop and get help if you feel chest pain, dizziness or unusual breathlessness.
For related numbers, see the Target Heart Rate Calculator, the Calories Burned Calculator and the Pace Calculator.
Features
- Four published formulas to compare
- Five zones with a plain description of how each feels
- Karvonen heart rate reserve option
- Ranges rounded to whole beats per minute
- Copy the whole zone table in one tap
- No sign-up and no data stored
Frequently asked questions
How do I calculate my maximum heart rate?
The simplest rule subtracts your age from 220, so a 40-year-old gets 180 beats per minute. The Tanaka formula, 208 minus 0.7 times your age, gives 180 as well at 40 but is usually closer for older adults. Pick whichever formula you prefer and use it consistently.
Which max heart rate formula is the most accurate?
None is exact. Studies find an individual can sit 10 to 12 beats above or below any formula. Tanaka and HUNT came from larger and more varied groups than the original 220 rule. A hard, safe field test or a lab test gives your true value.
What are heart rate training zones?
They are bands of effort measured as a share of your maximum. Light zones around 50 to 70 percent build an aerobic base, the middle zones improve stamina and speed, and the top zone is for short bursts. Most training time is spent in the lower zones.
What is the Karvonen method?
It adds your resting heart rate to a share of your heart rate reserve, which is maximum minus resting. A fit person with a low resting pulse gets higher zone limits than the plain percentage method would give. It needs a good resting measurement to work well.
Why is my heart rate above the estimated maximum?
That is common and not a sign of a problem by itself. The formulas are population averages, and many people simply have a higher personal maximum. Do not push harder just to stay under the number, and listen to how you feel.
Do medicines or caffeine change my heart rate?
Yes. Beta blockers lower the heart rate during exercise, so the zones here will be too high for you. Caffeine, heat, dehydration, stress and poor sleep can raise it. If you take heart medicine, ask your doctor for personal target ranges.