Calculate your Zone 1 through Zone 5 heart rate ranges, including your Zone 2 cardio heart rate, maximum heart rate, and personalized target training zones. This target heart rate calculator supports both the Karvonen (heart rate reserve) method and the simpler percent-of-maximum method.
Heart Rate Zone Calculator
Enter your details below and press Calculate for your personalized zones.
Karvonen uses your resting heart rate for a more personalized estimate.
bpm
For the most consistent reading, measure your resting heart rate while relaxed, ideally before getting out of bed in the morning.
Advanced: Maximum Heart Rate Formula
Both are population-based estimates, not a measurement of your individual maximum heart rate. The result will clearly label which formula was used.
bpm
Enter a professionally measured or otherwise reliable maximum heart rate. A smartwatch peak during a hard workout is not automatically the same as a true measured maximum.
This highlights the zone most commonly associated with that training type. It does not change the math behind your zones.
Your Five Heart Rate Zones
Each zone shows its own BPM range and effort word. Zone systems can vary between coaches, devices, and training platforms; this is the system CalculateThisWay uses.
The Percent of Maximum method uses only estimated maximum heart rate. The Karvonen method also accounts for resting heart rate, so its personalized zone ranges may be different. Neither result is "wrong."
Heart rate zones turn a single number on your watch, treadmill, bike, or heart-rate monitor into something more useful: an estimate of how hard your cardiovascular system is working. Instead of simply asking, "Is my heart rate high?", heart rate zone training asks a better question: "How hard am I working compared with my own estimated maximum?"
CalculateThisWay divides your training range into five zones, from easy Zone 1 effort to very hard Zone 5 effort. You can also calculate the number many people are specifically searching for right now: your Zone 2 cardio heart rate.
Your results can be calculated in two ways. The simpler method uses a percentage of your estimated maximum heart rate. The Karvonen method uses both your maximum heart rate and your resting heart rate to calculate heart rate reserve. Because it includes another piece of information about you, it can produce a more personalized range. Neither method can perfectly measure your true physiological training thresholds. They are practical estimates that can help organize cardio training.
Visual: The Five-Zone Heart Rate Bar
Example using age 35 and a resting heart rate of 65 BPM with the Karvonen method.
Enter your own age and resting heart rate in the calculator above to see your personal version of this chart.
What Are Heart Rate Zones?
Heart rate zones are ranges of beats per minute used to describe exercise intensity. As exercise becomes harder, your muscles require more oxygen and energy. Your heart normally responds by beating faster so it can circulate more blood. Instead of treating every exercise heart rate the same, a five-zone model divides the range between easy work and maximum effort into separate intensity bands.
On CalculateThisWay, the zones are: Zone 1 (50% to 60%), Zone 2 (60% to 70%), Zone 3 (70% to 80%), Zone 4 (80% to 90%), and Zone 5 (90% to 100%). The percentages refer either to maximum heart rate or heart rate reserve depending on which calculation method you choose.
Other coaches, watches, fitness platforms, and laboratories may define their zones somewhat differently. That is why two devices can occasionally assign the same heart rate to different zones. The important thing is to know which system you are using and stay consistent when comparing your own workouts.
What Is Zone 2 Cardio?
Zone 2 cardio is a light-to-moderate aerobic training intensity. In the five-zone model used on this page, Zone 2 corresponds to approximately 60% to 70% intensity. Many people can sustain this level much longer than Zones 4 or 5.
A practical clue is the talk test. During Zone 2 effort, you are exercising enough for your breathing and heart rate to be elevated, but you can generally still speak in complete sentences.
This does not mean everyone experiences Zone 2 in exactly the same way. Running may place one person in Zone 2 while the same running speed puts another person in Zone 3 or Zone 4. For someone newer to exercise, brisk walking may be enough to reach Zone 2. That is why heart-rate zones are relative to the individual.
Visual: What Each Zone Feels Like
This is an educational approximation based on the talk test, not a medical test.
What Is My Zone 2 Heart Rate?
To calculate your Zone 2 heart rate, you first need an estimate of your maximum heart rate. A commonly used age-based estimate is Maximum Heart Rate = 220 - Age. For someone age 40: 220 - 40 = 180 BPM.
Using the simple maximum-heart-rate method, Zone 2 begins at 180 × 0.60 = 108 BPM and ends at 180 × 0.70 = 126 BPM. So the estimated Zone 2 range would be 108 to 126 BPM.
However, the Karvonen method may give that same person a different range because it also uses resting heart rate. That is why CalculateThisWay lets you choose the method rather than pretending there is only one way to estimate your heart rate zones.
Zone 2 Heart Rate by Age
People frequently search for a Zone 2 heart rate by age chart. Age matters because estimated maximum heart rate generally decreases as age increases. Using the simple formula 220 - age, and defining Zone 2 as 60% to 70% of estimated maximum heart rate, gives approximate ranges such as the ones below.
These are broad age-based estimates rather than individualized training prescriptions. A person's measured maximum heart rate may differ from the age-predicted value. Resting heart rate, medications, health conditions, fitness level, and individual physiology can also change what a particular effort feels like. Use the calculator above when you want a personalized estimate using your own resting heart rate.
Visual: Approximate Zone 2 Heart Rate by Age
Using 60% to 70% of estimated maximum heart rate, with estimated maximum from 220 - age.
These are age-based estimates. Your personalized Karvonen Zone 2 may differ because it also uses your resting heart rate.
How to Calculate Heart Rate Zones With the Karvonen Formula
The Karvonen method uses heart rate reserve. Heart rate reserve is the difference between maximum heart rate and resting heart rate. The calculation has three basic steps.
Step 1. Estimate maximum heart rate: Maximum HR = 220 − Age
Step 2. Calculate heart rate reserve: Heart Rate Reserve = Maximum HR − Resting HR
Step 3. Apply the desired intensity: Target Heart Rate = Heart Rate Reserve × Intensity + Resting HR
Example
Suppose you are 35 and your resting heart rate is 65 BPM. Estimated maximum: 220 - 35 = 185 BPM. Heart rate reserve: 185 - 65 = 120 BPM.
For the bottom of Zone 2: 120 × 0.60 + 65 = 137 BPM. For the top of Zone 2: 120 × 0.70 + 65 = 149 BPM.
Your estimated Karvonen Zone 2 would therefore be 137 to 149 BPM.
Notice that this is different from simply multiplying maximum heart rate by 60% and 70% (which gives 111 to 130 BPM for the same age using the percent-of-maximum method). That difference is exactly why resting heart rate matters in the Karvonen calculation.
How Maximum Heart Rate Is Estimated
Maximum heart rate is approximately the fastest your heart would beat during maximal physical effort. For most calculator users, it is estimated rather than directly measured. One widely recognized shortcut is 220 - age. For a 30-year-old: 220 - 30 = 190 BPM. For a 50-year-old: 220 - 50 = 170 BPM.
These numbers should not be treated as exact physiological limits. Two healthy people of the same age can have different true maximum heart rates. Age-predicted formulas are population-based estimates. A supervised maximal exercise test can provide more individualized information, but most people using a general fitness calculator do not have one. If you already know a professionally measured or otherwise reliable maximum heart rate, the calculator above lets you enter it instead of using the age estimate.
How Heart Rate Zones Can Help Maximize Your Workouts
Heart rate zones can help connect the effort of a workout to its purpose. The goal is not to spend every workout at the highest heart rate possible. Different training intensities create different demands.
Zone 1 is commonly used for easy movement, warm-ups, cool-downs, and recovery. Zone 2 is widely used for steady aerobic-base and endurance training. Zone 3 represents a more challenging steady effort. Zone 4 is often used for threshold, speed, and harder interval work. Zone 5 represents very hard, short-duration effort near maximum intensity.
A balanced training plan can include several zones depending on goals, fitness level, sport, and recovery. More intensity is not automatically better. Harder zones usually require more recovery and cannot be sustained as long as easier zones. Heart rate zones focus on cardiovascular intensity rather than strength training; if you are comparing cardio effort with resistance training load, the One Rep Max Calculator addresses strength intensity instead.
Visual: Training Goal Map
Training plans commonly use a mix of zones. More intense is not automatically better. These are general training examples, not a medical prescription.
Zone 1 Heart Rate
Zone 1 is approximately 50% to 60% intensity in the five-zone system used here. The effort should feel easy. You should generally be able to carry on a comfortable conversation. Zone 1 is often useful for warm-ups, cool-downs, easy recovery movement, and low-intensity activity. Someone who is beginning an exercise program may spend more time here while gradually building fitness.
Zone 2 Heart Rate
Zone 2 is approximately 60% to 70%. This is the zone receiving the most search interest because it is commonly associated with steady aerobic exercise. The effort is noticeable but generally sustainable. You may breathe faster, feel warmer, begin sweating, and still speak in full sentences.
Common Zone 2 activities may include brisk walking, easy jogging, easy cycling, elliptical exercise, and steady rowing. The exact activity that puts you into Zone 2 is different for everyone. Do not assume running automatically equals Zone 2. Your heart rate determines which estimated zone you are in, not the activity name alone.
Does Zone 2 Burn More Fat?
Zone 2 training is often called a "fat-burning zone." That phrase can be misleading if it is interpreted to mean Zone 2 automatically creates more body-fat loss than every other form of exercise. At lower-to-moderate aerobic intensities, the body can obtain a greater proportion of its energy from fat compared with very high-intensity exercise. That does not mean the workout automatically produces more fat loss.
Changes in body fat depend on overall energy balance, nutrition, total activity, training consistency, and many other factors over time. Zone 2 is valuable because it can be sustainable, supports aerobic training, and can often be accumulated in larger amounts without the recovery demands of repeated maximum-intensity sessions. Use our Calories Burned Calculator and TDEE & Calorie Calculator when your question is specifically about energy expenditure rather than heart-rate intensity.
Zone 3 Heart Rate
Zone 3 is approximately 70% to 80%. The effort becomes noticeably more challenging. Speaking in complete comfortable sentences becomes harder. This range can appear during faster steady runs, harder cycling, vigorous cardio classes, and sustained race-oriented efforts. Zone 3 is not "bad" and should not be presented as a useless zone. Its usefulness depends on the workout and training goal.
Zone 4 Heart Rate
Zone 4 is approximately 80% to 90%. This is hard work. You may only be able to speak a few words at a time. Zone 4 training is commonly associated with threshold work, harder intervals, speed development, and improving tolerance for sustained hard efforts. These sessions are generally performed for shorter periods than easy aerobic training.
Zone 5 Heart Rate
Zone 5 is approximately 90% to 100%. This represents very hard to near-maximum effort. It generally cannot be sustained for long. Zone 5 may appear during short sprints, very hard intervals, maximum-effort testing, and brief competitive bursts. Spending an entire workout in Zone 5 is neither realistic nor necessary for most people. Heart-rate response also lags behind sudden changes in exercise intensity, so very short sprints may finish before heart rate fully reflects the effort.
What Is Zone 2 Running?
"Zone 2 running" does not refer to one universal running pace. It simply means running at a pace that keeps your heart rate within your estimated Zone 2 range. One runner might reach Zone 2 at 12 minutes per mile. Another may need 10 minutes per mile. Someone else may need to alternate jogging and walking to remain in Zone 2.
Weather, hills, fatigue, hydration, fitness, and recovery can also change heart rate at the same running pace. That is why pairing the Heart Rate Zone Calculator with the CalculateThisWay Pace Calculator can be useful. Heart rate tells you how hard the effort appears to be, while pace tells you how fast you are moving. Use our Pace Calculator to calculate running or walking pace from distance and time.
Heart Rate Zones for Walking
You do not have to run to use heart-rate zone training. Walking intensity can range from very easy to vigorous depending on speed, hills, incline, fitness level, and terrain. Brisk walking may place many people into a moderate cardiovascular intensity. For some people, an incline treadmill walk can push heart rate into Zone 2 or Zone 3 without running at all. Use your actual measured heart rate rather than assuming a specific walking speed always equals a specific zone.
How to Measure Resting Heart Rate
Resting heart rate is the number of times your heart beats per minute while you are at rest. For the most consistent reading, measure it while relaxed. A common time is shortly after waking, before substantial activity or caffeine.
If measuring manually: find your pulse at the wrist or neck, use your first two fingers rather than your thumb, count beats for 30 seconds, and multiply by 2. For example, 32 beats in 30 seconds × 2 = 64 BPM. Wearables may also estimate resting heart rate from repeated measurements. For the Karvonen calculator, use a resting heart rate that reasonably represents your normal resting level rather than a reading taken immediately after exercise.
Why Two People the Same Age Can Have Different Zones
Imagine two people who are both 35 years old. Both have the same age-estimated maximum: 185 BPM. But Person A's resting heart rate is 55 BPM, while Person B's resting heart rate is 75 BPM. Using heart rate reserve, their personalized Karvonen calculations will differ.
That is because the Karvonen method measures intensity across the usable range between resting and maximum heart rate rather than looking only at maximum heart rate. This is why simply searching "Zone 2 heart rate by age" gives a useful starting point but not necessarily the most personalized result.
Visual: Same Age, Different Resting Heart Rate
Two people, both age 35, with the same estimated maximum heart rate of 185 BPM.
This is why the Karvonen method can change the result even when two people share the same age and estimated maximum heart rate.
Target Heart Rate vs. Heart Rate Zone
The terms are closely related. A target heart rate is a desired beats-per-minute range for a particular exercise intensity. Heart rate zones organize several target ranges into a larger training system. For example, Zone 2 is one target heart-rate range, and Zone 4 is another target range. So a Heart Rate Zone Calculator is essentially a more detailed Target Heart Rate Calculator because it calculates several target ranges instead of just one broad exercise range.
Heart Rate Zones and the Talk Test
Heart rate numbers are useful, but they are not the only way to estimate exercise intensity. The talk test is one simple option. During moderate exercise, you can generally talk but not comfortably sing. During vigorous exercise, speaking more than a few words without pausing for breath becomes difficult.
This matters because watches can lose contact, chest straps can malfunction, formulas can be imperfect, and individual heart-rate responses vary. Your heart rate is useful information, but it should be interpreted together with how the exercise actually feels.
Why Your Smartwatch Zones May Be Different
Apple Watch, Garmin, Fitbit, Polar, exercise machines, fitness apps, and CalculateThisWay may display slightly different heart-rate zones. Possible reasons include different maximum-heart-rate formulas, different zone percentage boundaries, automatic resting-heart-rate updates, measured versus estimated maximum heart rate, heart rate reserve versus percent of max, and custom athlete settings. A different zone number does not automatically mean one system is broken. Check the settings and calculation method before comparing them.
Worked Heart Rate Zone Examples
The examples below use the exact same calculation engine as the calculator above. Values are computed live in JavaScript rather than typed in as fixed text, so they will always match what the calculator itself would return for these inputs.
Zone 2 Using Percent of Maximum
Age 40. No resting heart rate used.
Zone 2 Using Karvonen
Age 35. Resting heart rate 65 BPM.
Zone 4 Using Karvonen
Age 30. Resting heart rate 60 BPM.
Using a User-Provided Maximum
Age 40. Measured maximum 192 BPM. Resting heart rate 60 BPM.
Entering a known maximum instead of the age estimate (which would have been 220 - 40 = 180 BPM) changes every zone boundary, because heart rate reserve is calculated from the maximum you provide.
Try It Yourself
Age 50. Estimated maximum heart rate: 170 BPM (percent-of-maximum method, no resting heart rate).
Using the simple percent-of-max method, what is the lower end of Zone 2?
A. 85 BPM B. 102 BPM C. 136 BPM
B. 102 BPM. 170 × 0.60 = 102.
Heart Rate Zone Questions, Answered Quickly
What is Zone 2 cardio?
Zone 2 is light-to-moderate aerobic exercise, defined on this page as approximately 60% to 70% intensity.
What is my Zone 2 heart rate?
Use the calculator above. Your result depends on age, calculation method, and resting heart rate if using Karvonen.
How do I calculate maximum heart rate?
A commonly used estimate is 220 minus age, although individual maximum heart rate can differ.
What is the Karvonen formula?
It calculates target heart rate using heart rate reserve, which is maximum heart rate minus resting heart rate.
Can walking be Zone 2?
Yes. Depending on your fitness and walking intensity, brisk walking or incline walking may place you in Zone 2.
A heart rate zone is a beats-per-minute range used to describe how hard your cardiovascular system is working during exercise, relative to your own estimated maximum heart rate or heart rate reserve.
What are the five heart rate zones?
This calculator uses five zones based on intensity percentages: Zone 1 (50% to 60%), Zone 2 (60% to 70%), Zone 3 (70% to 80%), Zone 4 (80% to 90%), and Zone 5 (90% to 100%) of maximum heart rate or heart rate reserve.
What is Zone 2 cardio?
Zone 2 cardio is light-to-moderate aerobic exercise, defined on this page as approximately 60% to 70% intensity, where most people can still speak in full sentences.
What is Zone 2 cardio heart rate?
It is the beats-per-minute range that corresponds to Zone 2 intensity for you personally, calculated above using either the Karvonen method or the percent-of-maximum method.
What is my Zone 2 heart rate?
Use the calculator above. Your result depends on your age, calculation method, and resting heart rate if you use the Karvonen method.
How do I calculate my Zone 2 heart rate?
Estimate your maximum heart rate, then apply 60% to 70% of either that maximum (percent-of-maximum method) or your heart rate reserve plus resting heart rate (Karvonen method).
What is Zone 2 heart rate by age?
It is an age-based estimate that generally decreases as age increases, since estimated maximum heart rate (220 minus age) declines with age. See the Zone 2 Heart Rate by Age chart above for approximate ranges.
What is Zone 2 running?
Zone 2 running means running at whatever pace keeps your heart rate inside your estimated Zone 2 range, not one universal pace that applies to everyone.
Can walking be Zone 2 cardio?
Yes. Brisk walking or incline walking can place many people, especially those newer to exercise, into Zone 2.
Is Zone 2 good for beginners?
Zone 2 is often comfortable and sustainable for people starting an exercise routine, though no single zone is medically required for everyone.
Is Zone 2 the fat-burning zone?
Zone 2 is sometimes nicknamed the fat-burning zone because the body uses a greater proportion of fat for fuel at lower-to-moderate intensities, but this does not mean it automatically burns more total fat than other exercise.
Does Zone 2 automatically cause weight loss?
No. Changes in body fat depend on overall energy balance, nutrition, and total activity over time, not the heart rate zone used during a single workout.
How long can Zone 2 exercise be sustained?
Many people can sustain Zone 2 effort considerably longer than higher zones, though exact duration depends on individual fitness and training history.
What is Zone 1 heart rate?
Zone 1 is approximately 50% to 60% intensity, an easy effort commonly used for warm-ups, cool-downs, and recovery.
What is Zone 3 heart rate?
Zone 3 is approximately 70% to 80% intensity, a noticeably more challenging, moderate-to-hard effort.
What is Zone 4 heart rate?
Zone 4 is approximately 80% to 90% intensity, hard effort often used for threshold and interval work.
What is Zone 5 heart rate?
Zone 5 is approximately 90% to 100% intensity, very hard to near-maximum effort that usually cannot be sustained for long.
How do I calculate heart rate zones?
Estimate or enter your maximum heart rate, choose a calculation method, and apply each zone's percentage boundaries, as the calculator above does automatically.
What is the Karvonen formula?
It calculates target heart rate using heart rate reserve, which is maximum heart rate minus resting heart rate: Target HR = Heart Rate Reserve × Intensity + Resting HR.
What is heart rate reserve?
Heart rate reserve is the difference between your maximum heart rate and your resting heart rate, used by the Karvonen method to personalize zone ranges.
What is maximum heart rate?
Maximum heart rate is approximately the fastest your heart would beat during maximal physical effort, usually estimated rather than directly measured.
How is maximum heart rate estimated?
A commonly used estimate is 220 minus age, though other formulas such as 208 minus 0.7 times age also exist.
Is 220 minus age exact?
No. It is a population-based average. Individual maximum heart rate can be meaningfully higher or lower than the formula predicts.
Can I enter my actual maximum heart rate?
Yes. If you have a professionally measured or otherwise reliable maximum heart rate, choose "I know my measured maximum heart rate" in the calculator above.
What is resting heart rate?
Resting heart rate is the number of times your heart beats per minute while you are at rest, typically measured in the morning before activity.
How do I measure resting heart rate?
Find your pulse at your wrist or neck, count beats for 30 seconds, and multiply by two. Measure while relaxed, ideally before getting out of bed.
Why does resting heart rate affect Karvonen zones?
The Karvonen method measures intensity across your personal heart rate reserve, which is maximum minus resting heart rate, rather than looking only at maximum heart rate, so a different resting heart rate changes the result.
What is target heart rate?
A target heart rate is a desired beats-per-minute range for a particular exercise intensity, essentially one zone's range.
What is the difference between target heart rate and heart rate zones?
A heart rate zone calculator is essentially a more detailed target heart rate calculator, producing several target ranges, Zone 1 through Zone 5, instead of one broad range.
What heart rate is moderate exercise?
Moderate exercise generally falls around Zone 2 to low Zone 3 in the system used here, though definitions vary between sources.
What heart rate is vigorous exercise?
Vigorous exercise generally corresponds to upper Zone 3 through Zone 4 or higher in the system used here.
Why are my Apple Watch zones different?
Apple Watch may use a different maximum-heart-rate formula, different zone percentage boundaries, or automatic resting-heart-rate updates than this calculator.
Why are my Garmin zones different?
Garmin may use its own zone percentage boundaries, measured versus estimated maximum heart rate, or custom athlete settings that differ from the system used here.
Are smartwatch heart rate zones accurate?
Smartwatch zones are estimates built on their own formulas and sensor readings, so they can differ from this calculator without either one being wrong.
Can medication change exercise heart rate?
Yes. Some medications can raise or lower heart rate at rest and during exercise, which is one reason to follow individualized guidance from a healthcare professional if you take heart-rate-affecting medication.
Can fitness level change heart rate?
Yes. Fitness level, among other factors, can change how heart rate responds to a given pace or effort.
Why does my heart rate change at the same running pace?
Weather, hills, fatigue, hydration, fitness, and recovery can all change your heart rate response at an identical pace.
Do heart rate zones differ between people?
Yes. Two people of the same age can have different zones because of differing resting heart rate, fitness, and true individual maximum heart rate.
Should I always exercise in Zone 2?
No. Zone 2 is not the only useful cardio intensity. A balanced training plan commonly uses a mix of zones depending on goals.
Is a higher exercise heart rate always better?
No. More intensity is not automatically better. Harder zones require more recovery and cannot be sustained as long as easier zones.
Five training zones are calculated at 50-60%, 60-70%, 70-80%, 80-90%, and 90-100% of either maximum heart rate (percent-of-maximum method) or heart rate reserve plus resting heart rate (Karvonen method), depending on the method selected.
Maximum heart rate is estimated using 220 minus age by default, with an optional 208 minus 0.7 times age estimate, or it can be replaced with a user-provided measured maximum heart rate.
Age-based maximum heart rate formulas are population-based estimates. Individual maximum heart rate may differ, sometimes meaningfully.
This calculator does not diagnose cardiovascular health and should not be used as a substitute for a healthcare professional's individualized guidance.
Medications and medical conditions can affect resting and exercise heart rate. Users with heart conditions or heart-rate-affecting medications should follow individualized guidance from their healthcare professional.
Zone boundary definitions vary between coaches, devices, and platforms; this page clearly states which percentage boundaries it uses.
This calculator provides fitness estimates, not a diagnostic or medical tool. Age-based maximum heart rate formulas are population-based estimates, and your individual maximum heart rate may differ. Medications and medical conditions can affect resting and exercise heart rate. If you have a heart condition or take medication that affects heart rate, follow individualized guidance from your healthcare professional rather than relying on this calculator alone.