34.02
% of adults, 2024
High trust, 88 of 100 2 good sources agree closely.
- WHO
- WHO crude
- OECD measured
- NCD-RisC women
- NCD-RisC men
Recorded change in how a source reports; hover or focus the ring for details.
Show the data as a table
| Year | WHO Global Health Observatory, NCD_BMI_30A (the NCD-RisC model), age-standardised | WHO Global Health Observatory, NCD_BMI_30C, crude | OECD Health Statistics, share of population who are obese, measured data | NCD-RisC, age-standardised obesity, women, adults 20+ | NCD-RisC, age-standardised obesity, men, adults 20+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 7.59 | 7.51 | – | 8.52 | 7.12 |
| 1981 | 8.05 | 7.95 | – | 9.03 | 7.54 |
| 1982 | 8.53 | 8.41 | – | 9.57 | 7.99 |
| 1983 | 9.04 | 8.9 | – | 10.14 | 8.47 |
| 1984 | 9.57 | 9.42 | – | 10.73 | 8.97 |
| 1985 | 10.13 | 9.98 | – | 11.34 | 9.5 |
| 1986 | 10.71 | 10.58 | – | 11.97 | 10.06 |
| 1987 | 11.32 | 11.2 | – | 12.63 | 10.64 |
| 1988 | 11.95 | 11.84 | – | 13.3 | 11.26 |
| 1989 | 12.61 | 12.52 | – | 14 | 11.91 |
| 1990 | 13.3 | 13.23 | – | 14.72 | 12.6 |
| 1991 | 14.02 | 13.97 | – | 15.47 | 13.33 |
| 1992 | 14.77 | 14.74 | – | 16.23 | 14.09 |
| 1993 | 15.54 | 15.55 | – | 17 | 14.89 |
| 1994 | 16.33 | 16.39 | – | 17.8 | 15.71 |
| 1995 | 17.15 | 17.25 | – | 18.61 | 16.56 |
| 1996 | 17.98 | 18.14 | – | 19.42 | 17.44 |
| 1997 | 18.82 | 19.05 | – | 20.25 | 18.33 |
| 1998 | 19.67 | 19.98 | – | 21.07 | 19.24 |
| 1999 | 20.53 | 20.91 | – | 21.89 | 20.16 |
| 2000 | 21.38 | 21.83 | – | 22.7 | 21.08 |
| 2001 | 22.22 | 22.72 | – | 23.48 | 22.01 |
| 2002 | 23.04 | 23.56 | – | 24.25 | 22.91 |
| 2003 | 23.84 | 24.38 | – | 24.99 | 23.79 |
| 2004 | 24.61 | 25.18 | – | 25.71 | 24.63 |
| 2005 | 25.35 | 25.94 | – | 26.4 | 25.43 |
| 2006 | 26.05 | 26.68 | – | 27.07 | 26.18 |
| 2007 | 26.71 | 27.37 | – | 27.72 | 26.87 |
| 2008 | 27.33 | 28.01 | – | 28.35 | 27.5 |
| 2009 | 27.91 | 28.6 | – | 28.95 | 28.06 |
| 2010 | 28.44 | 29.14 | – | 29.52 | 28.55 |
| 2011 | 28.92 | 29.64 | – | 30.07 | 28.98 |
| 2012 | 29.37 | 30.11 | 28.6 | 30.59 | 29.37 |
| 2013 | 29.81 | 30.54 | 30.9 | 31.1 | 29.73 |
| 2014 | 30.23 | 30.94 | 30 | 31.61 | 30.09 |
| 2015 | 30.65 | 31.32 | 30.9 | 32.1 | 30.45 |
| 2016 | 31.06 | 31.71 | 31.8 | 32.59 | 30.8 |
| 2017 | 31.46 | 32.1 | 32.4 | 33.07 | 31.13 |
| 2018 | 31.85 | 32.48 | 32.4 | 33.54 | 31.43 |
| 2019 | 32.21 | 32.86 | 31 | 34 | 31.71 |
| 2020 | 32.57 | 33.23 | 31.3 | 34.45 | 31.98 |
| 2021 | 32.93 | 33.62 | 34.4 | 34.91 | 32.24 |
| 2022 | 33.29 | 33.99 | – | 35.37 | 32.5 |
| 2023 | 33.65 | 34.36 | 32.5 | 35.83 | 32.77 |
| 2024 | 34.02 | 34.72 | 33.7 | 36.3 | 33.04 |
| 2025 | – | – | 34.2 | – | – |
All countriesAll of New Zealand's figuresCompare
New Zealand among 199 countries
42 have a higher figure and 156 a lower one. Definitions differ between countries, and their years run from 2024 to 2024.
What this number counts
- Counts
- Age-standardised share of adults aged 18 and over with a body mass index of 30 or more, both sexes
- Where
- New Zealand
- When
- WHO 2024, WHO crude 2024, OECD measured 2025, NCD-RisC women 2024, NCD-RisC men 2024 (one year, not an average)
Where the number comes from (5 sources)
| Source | Figure and year | Definition | Quality | Counts for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
WHO Global Health Observatory, NCD_BMI_30A (the NCD-RisC model), age-standardisedWorld Health Organization (WHO) · Model-based estimateRetrieved 2026-11-02 | 34.022024 | Modelled, age-standardised share of adults aged 18 and over with a BMI of 30 or more, both sexes, from a Bayesian model of population-based studies with measured height and weight.WHO's metadata names the NCD-RisC paper in Nature (2026) for input data and method. NCD-RisC itself publishes women and men separately, so this is the published both-sexes figure of that model. Raw file: NCD_BMI_30A.json from xmart-api-public.who.int/GHO/FACT, WHO data last updated 27 May 2026. | 4 of 5 checks
| 67% |
WHO Global Health Observatory, NCD_BMI_30C, crudeWorld Health Organization (WHO) · Model-based estimateRetrieved 2026-11-02 | 34.722024 | The same model and age group as the WHO line, weighted by the country's real age structure (UN World Population Prospects) instead of the WHO standard population, so it is crude and not the page's age-standardised number.It is the figure to set beside a crude survey result. Not counted, as it is the same model. Raw file: NCD_BMI_30C.json from xmart-api-public.who.int/GHO/FACT, WHO data last updated 27 May 2026. | 4 of 5 checks
| Not counted |
OECD Health Statistics, share of population who are obese, measured dataOrganisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) · Health surveyRetrieved 2026-11-02 | 34.22025 | OECD lists height and weight as measured, and the figure is crude, so close to but not the page's age-standardised number.Measured during the interview; OECD says a small share decline, handled by survey weights. Latest survey: Ministry of Health, New Zealand Health Survey 2024-25; aged 15 and over, as OECD states for the 2006-2007 survey and its general definition (page 9 of OECD's Sources and Methods). Raw file: lvng_all.csv from https://sdmx.oecd.org/public/rest/data/OECD.ELS.HD,DSD_HEALTH_LVNG@DF_HEALTH_LVNG,/all?format=csvfilewithlabels, measure SP_OBS, method MSRD. Values to one decimal, as OECD publishes them. Methods: https://webfs-els.oecd.org/files/Health-Statistics/HEALTH_LVNG_Risk-Factors-for-Health/5_2_Overweight-or-obese-population_Measured-data.pdf (page 9). | 4 of 5 checks
| 33% |
NCD-RisC, age-standardised obesity, women, adults 20+NCD Risk Factor Collaboration (NCD-RisC) · Model-based estimateRetrieved 2026-11-02 | 36.32024 | Modelled, age-standardised share of women aged 20 and over with a BMI of 30 or more.NCD-RisC publishes no both-sexes figure, so this is another number than the page's, from the same model as the WHO line. Not counted: women only, from the same model as the WHO line. Raw file: NCD_RisC_Nature_2026_BMI_age_standardised_country.csv. | 4 of 5 checks
| Not counted |
NCD-RisC, age-standardised obesity, men, adults 20+NCD Risk Factor Collaboration (NCD-RisC) · Model-based estimateRetrieved 2026-11-02 | 33.042024 | Modelled, age-standardised share of men aged 20 and over with a BMI of 30 or more.NCD-RisC publishes no both-sexes figure, so this is another number than the page's, from the same model as the WHO line. Not counted: men only, from the same model as the WHO line. Raw file: NCD_RisC_Nature_2026_BMI_age_standardised_country.csv. | 4 of 5 checks
| Not counted |
- WHO67%
- OECD measured33%
Shown but not counted: WHO crude (republishes WHO); NCD-RisC women (women only, from the same model as the WHO line); NCD-RisC men (men only, from the same model as the WHO line).
How the trust score was worked out
- Quality32 / 40
How well the sources are made
- Agreement29.7 / 30
How close the sources are to each other
- Independence16 / 20
How many separate ways the number was measured
- Freshness10 / 10
How recent the newest data is
Who reports it, and since when
- OECD measured, 2022: No data for 2022: body measurement was suspended during COVID-19 in the 2021-22 survey year. source
- OECD measured: no figure here for 2022
figure no figure here, inside its range no later figure recorded change
Why the numbers differ
- Measured or self-reported. In the 14 countries where OECD holds both kinds of survey for one year, the self-reported figure is lower in 12, by a median of 4.30 percentage points. The widest gaps are Chile in 2009 (25.1% measured, 12.1% self-reported), Hungary in 2019 (33.2% measured, 23.9% self-reported), United Kingdom in 2017 (28.7% measured, 21.0% self-reported). These surveys can have different samples and age limits, and OECD says Chile's self-reported figures for 2000 to 2015 came from a visual self-assessment. Self-reported lines are shown but not counted. (source, retrieved 2026-11-02)
- Age-standardised or crude. WHO's main line weights each age group by the WHO standard population, so countries with different age structures can be compared. A crude figure uses the country's real ages, as most surveys here do. This page's number is age-standardised, so crude surveys count at half weight. WHO's crude figure for 2024 is higher than its age-standardised one in 97 of 199 countries and territories, such as the United States (41.83% against 40.96%), and lower in others, such as Japan (5.19% against 5.90%). (source, retrieved 2026-11-02)
- Survey age limits. WHO covers ages 18 and over, NCD-RisC 20 and over, Eurostat's rows here 18 and over, and OECD aims for 15 and over. OECD's country notes give other limits: 30 and over in Finland's measured series, 25 to 74 in Portugal, 20 to 74 in the United States (age-adjusted), and 21 and over in Israel's self-reported series. Each line's note gives its own. (source, retrieved 2026-11-02)
- WHO and NCD-RisC are one model. WHO's metadata names the NCD-RisC paper for its data and method, but it covers ages 18 and over and publishes both sexes, while NCD-RisC covers 20 and over and publishes women and men. For 2024, WHO's figures for women and men differ from NCD-RisC's by 0.76 percentage points on average, and at most 1.98. The model is counted once. (source, retrieved 2026-11-02)
- Some OECD rows are not surveys. For Argentina, Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Russia, South Africa, Thailand and Ukraine, OECD's "measured" series is WHO's crude estimate from an earlier release, and for China, India, Indonesia and South Africa its "self-reported" series comes from WHO's World Health Statistics. They are shown but not counted. OECD's "measured" series for South Korea names perceived height and weight for 2022 to 2024, so it is not counted either. (source, retrieved 2026-11-02)
- One survey, two age bands. For 10 European countries OECD's latest self-reported year comes from the same 2019 European Health Interview Survey as the Eurostat line. OECD often uses ages 15 and over and Eurostat's rows use 18 and over, so the OECD figure is usually a little lower. It is shown but not counted. (source, retrieved 2026-11-02)
- Years. The model gives a figure for every year up to 2024, including years with no survey in that country. Survey lines show the year of the latest survey, which can be much older.
Common mistakes
- A modelled figure for 2024 does not mean a survey was done in that country in 2024. WHO's method pools studies and accounts for differences in data across countries and years. (source, retrieved 2026-11-02)
- OECD says the United Kingdom's self-reported figures from 2021 cover England, are adjusted to match measured heights and weights, and are not comparable with other countries. (source, retrieved 2026-11-02)
- BMI is weight in kilograms divided by height in metres squared, so this page counts a ratio of weight to height. (source, retrieved 2026-11-02)
- Do not compare an age-standardised line with a crude one for the same country: set the WHO crude line beside a crude survey. (source, retrieved 2026-11-02)
Download, cite and report an error
From the table What share of adults are obese in each country? Updated 2026-11-02.
Download every value in this table (CSV)
Cite as: RealStats, “Adult obesity in New Zealand”, updated 2026-11-02, with the original sources listed on the page.