Share of women who are obese in United States of America
United States of America: Share of women who are obese was 42.4% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Share of women who are obese in United States of America, 1980–2024
Source: World Health Organization - Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for share of women who are obese in United States of America is 42.4%, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 45 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.8% on the previous year and up 9.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of women who are obese in United States of America peaked at 42.4% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 13.5%, in 1980.
That places United States of America 38th out of 199 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 45 years of available data.
Share of women who are obese in United States of America, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 13.5% | — |
| 1981 | 14.1% | +4.8% |
| 1982 | 14.8% | +4.8% |
| 1983 | 15.5% | +4.7% |
| 1984 | 16.2% | +4.6% |
| 1985 | 17.0% | +4.5% |
| 1986 | 17.7% | +4.3% |
| 1987 | 18.4% | +4.2% |
| 1988 | 19.2% | +4.1% |
| 1989 | 20.0% | +4.0% |
| 1990 | 20.7% | +3.9% |
| 1991 | 21.5% | +3.8% |
| 1992 | 22.3% | +3.7% |
| 1993 | 23.1% | +3.6% |
| 1994 | 23.9% | +3.5% |
| 1995 | 24.8% | +3.5% |
| 1996 | 25.6% | +3.4% |
| 1997 | 26.5% | +3.4% |
| 1998 | 27.4% | +3.3% |
| 1999 | 28.2% | +3.2% |
| 2000 | 29.1% | +3.1% |
| 2001 | 30.0% | +2.9% |
| 2002 | 30.8% | +2.8% |
| 2003 | 31.6% | +2.6% |
| 2004 | 32.4% | +2.5% |
| 2005 | 33.1% | +2.4% |
| 2006 | 33.9% | +2.2% |
| 2007 | 34.6% | +2.1% |
| 2008 | 35.3% | +2.0% |
| 2009 | 35.9% | +1.9% |
| 2010 | 36.5% | +1.7% |
| 2011 | 37.1% | +1.6% |
| 2012 | 37.6% | +1.4% |
| 2013 | 38.1% | +1.3% |
| 2014 | 38.6% | +1.3% |
| 2015 | 39.1% | +1.2% |
| 2016 | 39.5% | +1.1% |
| 2017 | 39.9% | +1.1% |
| 2018 | 40.3% | +1.0% |
| 2019 | 40.7% | +0.9% |
| 2020 | 41.1% | +0.9% |
| 2021 | 41.4% | +0.8% |
| 2022 | 41.7% | +0.8% |
| 2023 | 42.1% | +0.8% |
| 2024 | 42.4% | +0.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 16.6% | 13.5% | 20.0% | 10 |
| 1990s | 24.4% | 20.7% | 28.2% | 10 |
| 2000s | 32.7% | 29.1% | 35.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 38.8% | 36.5% | 40.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 41.7% | 41.1% | 42.4% | 5 |
Countries ranked near United States of America
More gender data for United States of America
- Child population (UN estimates and projections) 57,835 (2030)
- Child population (UN estimates and projections) (0-14), annual growth -0.4626 % change on previous year (2030)
- Age population, age 00, female, interpolated 1.79 million (2025)
- Age population, age 00, male, interpolated 1.88 million (2025)
- Age population, age 01, female, interpolated 1.80 million (2025)
- Age population, age 01, male, interpolated 1.89 million (2025)
- Age population, age 02, female, interpolated 1.83 million (2025)
- Age population, age 02, male, interpolated 1.92 million (2025)
- Age population, age 03, female, interpolated 1.84 million (2025)
- Age population, age 03, male, interpolated 1.92 million (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of women who are obese in United States of America?
- Share of women who are obese in United States of America was 42.4% in 2024, according to World Health Organization - Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of women who are obese recorded in United States of America?
- The highest recorded value was 42.4% in 2024.
- What is the lowest share of women who are obese recorded in United States of America?
- The lowest recorded value was 13.5% in 1980.
- How does United States of America rank for share of women who are obese?
- United States of America ranks 38th out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of women who are obese rising or falling in United States of America?
- Over the last ten years it is up 9.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this United States of America data come from?
- The figures come from World Health Organization - Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of women who are obese. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 45 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Obesity is defined as having a body-mass index (BMI) equal to, or greater than, 30. BMI is a person's weight (in kilograms) divided by their height (in meters) squared.