Share of men who are obese in United States
United States: Share of men who are obese was 39.6% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Share of men who are obese in United States, 1980–2024
Source: World Health Organization - Global Health Observatory (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
United States recorded 39.6% for share of men who are obese in 2024. That is the highest value across all 45 years on record.
The figure is up 0.5% on the previous year and up 7.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of men who are obese in United States peaked at 39.6% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 10.5%, in 1980.
That places United States 10th out of 199 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 45 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 13.0% | 10.5% | 15.8% | 10 |
| 1990s | 20.4% | 16.5% | 24.7% | 10 |
| 2000s | 30.4% | 25.8% | 34.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 37.1% | 35.1% | 38.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 39.2% | 38.8% | 39.6% | 5 |
Countries ranked near United States
More reference data data for United States
- Summer temperature anomalies 0.5014 °C (2026)
- Spring temperature anomalies 2.51 °C (2026)
- Temperature anomalies by month 0.0594 °C (2026)
- Winter temperature anomalies 0.9189 °C (2025)
- Consumer price index 143.86 2010 = 100 (2024)
- Autumn temperature anomalies 0.8696 °C (2025)
- Universal right to vote 2 (2025)
- Civil liberties rating 2 (2025)
- Men's universal right to vote 1 (2025)
- Elected parliament 1 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of men who are obese in United States?
- Share of men who are obese in United States was 39.6% 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 men who are obese recorded in United States?
- The highest recorded value was 39.6% in 2024.
- What is the lowest share of men who are obese recorded in United States?
- The lowest recorded value was 10.5% in 1980.
- How does United States rank for share of men who are obese?
- United States ranks 10th out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of men who are obese rising or falling in United States?
- Over the last ten years it is up 7.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this United States 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 men 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.