Among the many different fitness tests to assess various aspects of your strength and fitness, the vertical jump test is arguably the most well-used, time-tested assessment of an athlete’s power1 Rodríguez-Rosell, D., Mora-Custodio, R., Franco-Márquez, F., Yáñez-García, J. M., & González-Badillo, J. J. (2017). Traditional vs. Sport-Specific Vertical Jump Tests. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 31(1), 196–206. https://doi.org/10.1519/jsc.0000000000001476.
A good vertical jump performance is key in sprinting speed, volleyball players, high jump athletes, NBA players, and high school basketball players alike.
Keep reading to learn about vertical jump test norms, how to assess your highest vertical jump, and what a good and average vertical jump is for men and women of different ages.
Average Vertical Jump by Age and Sex
According to a study2 , the overall average vertical jump height for both sexes combined (n=116 subjects) was just about 40 cm (15.75 inches).
Using the data from this study, the average vert jump test results for men was 45 cm (17.7 inches), and the average female vertical jump height was 30 cm (11.8 inches).
The average age of the subjects in these studies was around 26-27 years old.
Unfortunately, it is hard to find the average vertical jump height by age since most vertical jump norms or studies have been conducted with college-aged students3 (N.d.). Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/232198046_Power_Output_Estimate_in_University_Athletes or professional athletes.
According to the Eurofit Vertical Jump Testing4 De L’europe, C. (n.d.). TESTING PHYSICAL FITNESS EUROFIT Experimental Battery PROVISIONAL HANDBOOK STRASBOURG 1983 COUNCIL OF EUROPE. https://bitworks-engineering.co.uk/linked/eurofit%20provisional%20handbook%20leger%20beep%20test%201983.pdf, here are the vertical test norms by age for men and women based on percentile rankings:
Average Vertical Jump: Men
| Age Range cm (in) | |||||
| Percentile | 20-29 | 30-39 | 40-49 | 50-59 | 60+ |
| 80th | 61(24.0) | 55(21.7) | 52(20.5) | 45(17.7) | 39(15.4) |
| 60th | 55(21.7) | 51(20.1) | 47(18.5) | 42(16.5) | 35(13.8) |
| 40th | 52(20.5) | 47(18.5) | 42(16.5) | 37(14.6) | 31(12.2) |
| 20th | 47(18.5) | 42(16.5) | 38(15.0) | 31(12.2) | 24(9.4) |
Average Vertical Jump: Women
| Age Range cm (in) | |||||
| Percentile | 20-29 | 30-39 | 40-49 | 50-59 | 60+ |
| 80th | 43(16.9) | 40(15.7) | 36(14.2) | 30(11.8) | 26(10.2) |
| 60th | 39(15.4) | 35(13.8) | 31(12.2) | 27(10.6) | 23(9.1) |
| 40th | 36(14.2) | 32(12.6) | 28(11.0) | 25(9.8) | 20(7.9) |
| 20th | 31(12.2) | 29(11.4) | 25(9.8) | 21(8.3) | 17(6.7) |
Vertical Jump Record With A Run Up
The two primary approaches to performing the vertical jump test to determine your vertical jump height are either jumping as high as possible from a standing start or having a running approach to your vertical jump.
The latter vertical jump test protocol, where you get to run a step or two and then leap to the highest point, will result in higher vertical jump test averages than the average standing vertical jump height.
According to the Guinness Book Of World Records5 Highest vertical leap (running start). (2022, June 27). Guinness World Records. https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/95867-highest-vertical-leap-running-start, the highest vertical jump with a running start is 1.27 m, or 4 feet 1.92 inches.
This is essentially equivalent to a 50 inch vertical jump height.
This world record vertical jump height for men was achieved by Darius Clark (USA) in Salt Lake City, Utah, USA, on 28 June 2022.
Vertical Jump Record From Standing
On the other hand, the highest jump world record6 Highest standing jump (male). (2021, February 7). Guinness World Records. https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/highest-standing-jump for men from standing (no run-up) is 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in), or about 67 inches. This highest standing vertical jump world record is held by American Christopher Spell and was set in February 2021.
The highest vertical jump height for women is not readily available.
For reference, Michael Jordan’s vertical jump is said to have been about 48 inches.
Why Age & Sex affect Jump Height
Your vertical jump ability is a good reflection of your lower-body power7 Vanezis, A., & Lees, A. (2005). A biomechanical analysis of good and poor performers of the vertical jump. Ergonomics, 48(11-14), 1594–1603. https://doi.org/10.1080/00140130500101262 and explosiveness.
After around age 30, the average vertical jump height reduces with each decade which passes. This is due to the loss of anaerobic power and decreased muscle mass as you age.
On average, men have higher average jump heights than women. Factors such as average lower body fat, higher muscle mass, and longer legs are all contributing factors.
The Most Important Factor: Fast Twitch Muscle Density
The other key component that contributes to your vertical jump ability is the relative percentage of fast-twitch vs slow-twitch muscle fibers you have, also known as type II vs type I muscle fibers.
Because the vertical jump test is an explosive power-based fitness assessment, and fast-twitch muscle fibers (type II fibers) responsible for more powerful, forceful, explosive contractions, the more fast-twitch muscle fibers you have in your calves, hamstrings, glutes, and quads, the better your vertical jump will be.
How To Test Your Vertical Jump
When you do an official vertical jump test, you use a device called a jump tester, which has thin plastic sticks in one-inch increments along the upper portion of a tall pole.
To test vertical jump height at home or at the gym, you can use a pencil or erasable marker and jump up along a wall.
Mark the wall, being careful not to extend the writing implement higher than the tips of your fingers.
Although most people inherently know how to jump after mastering this developmental milestone in toddlerhood, actually performing a proper vertical jump test takes a fair amount of skill and practice.
As mentioned, the test for vertical jump height can either be performed from the standing position or with a running start, like a vertical leap.
However, it is most common to do the vertical jump test protocol without a running start.
Here is how to do a standing vertical jump test:
- Stand with your core and legs engaged, your chest up, and your feet directly under your hips.
- Keeping your spine upright and core engaged, quickly bend your hips and knees into a partial squat, sitting your hips back and thrusting your arms behind you to create momentum.
- Explode upward, jumping as high as possible while driving your arms forward and overhead.
- Reach up as high as you can with only one arm, and hit the marker on the vertical jump tester (or make a mark on the wall with a writing utensil).
- After you start coming back down, straighten back out and land softly with your knees bending to absorb the load, ensuring they stay straight forward rather than caving in. Allow your arms to swing backward as a counterbalance.
Your vertical jump measurement is the distance between your standing vertical reach (stand up and reach up as high as you can, recording the height of the tip of your fingers) and the height you reach with your fingers when you jump.
For example, if your vertical reach is 98 inches and you mark 128 inches up on the wall with your pencil, your vertical jump distance is 30 inches.
How to Improve Your Vertical Jump Height: 4 Tips
Here are a few tips for increasing your vertical jump technique and height on the vertical jump test:
- Resist the urge to widen your stance because this actually reduces the leg power you’ll be able to generate and drive into the ground for take-off.
- While keeping your feet anchored into the ground, consciously pull your knees outward so that you feel tension in your hips because this engages the hips and glutes so that they’re primed and ready to fire rather than fully relaxed. This gets your neuromuscular system geared up so that muscle recruitment for your jump is faster.
- Make sure to reach up with only one hand instead of both arms because performing a unilateral vertical reach increases the maximum height you obtain compared with reaching with both arms.
- Incorporate plyometrics into your workout routine. This can include box jumps and body weight jumps and lunges.
You can learn more about how to improve your vertical jump here.
