What Is a Good VO2 Max? Charts by Age and Gender

By Cristian Serb · Updated April 7, 2026

VO2 max is the single best measure of cardiovascular fitness. It tells you how much oxygen your body can use during all-out exercise, measured in milliliters per kilogram of body weight per minute (ml/kg/min). Higher is better. But what counts as "good"?

The answer depends on your age, sex, and what you're comparing against. This guide provides normative charts so you can see exactly where you stand.

VO2 Max Norms for Men

These values are based on normative data from the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) and the Cooper Institute.

Values in ml/kg/min.

VO2 Max Norms for Women

Values in ml/kg/min.

What Do These Categories Mean?

• Poor / Below Average: Your cardiovascular system is significantly undertrained. Even small improvements here produce large health benefits. A person at 25 ml/kg/min who reaches 30 ml/kg/min has meaningfully reduced their mortality risk.
• Average: You're at the population midpoint. For general health, this is adequate, but research suggests pushing above average provides substantial longevity benefits.
• Above Average / Good: You're in a strong position. You exercise regularly and your cardiovascular system is well-adapted.
• Excellent / Superior: You're at competitive athlete or highly trained recreational athlete levels. Maintaining this range is associated with the lowest mortality risk across all studies.

What Do Elite Athletes Score?

For context, here are VO2 max values from professional and elite athletes:

The gap between an untrained adult and an elite endurance athlete is enormous, but even modest improvements within your own range have significant health implications.

VO2 Max and Longevity: The Numbers

VO2 max isn't just a fitness metric. It's the strongest predictor of all-cause mortality, stronger than smoking, hypertension, or diabetes as a risk factor (Myers et al., 2002; Mandsager et al., 2018).

A study in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology following 4,137 healthy adults for 24 years found that each 1 MET increase in fitness (roughly 3.5 ml/kg/min of VO2 max) was associated with (Imboden et al., 2018):

• 11.6% reduction in all-cause mortality
• 16.1% reduction in cardiovascular death

A separate JACC study tracking 5,107 men over 46 years found that each unit increase in VO2 max was associated with 45 additional days of life expectancy (Clausen et al., 2018).

A study from the Cleveland Clinic, tracking over 122,000 patients, found that people with "elite" cardiorespiratory fitness had an 80% lower risk of death compared to those in the lowest fitness group. The researchers concluded there is "no upper limit" to the benefit of higher cardiorespiratory fitness (Mandsager et al., 2018).

The takeaway: moving from "poor" to "average" is life-changing. Moving from "average" to "good" is still highly meaningful. Every point matters.

How to Measure Your VO2 Max

Lab test (gold standard)

The most accurate way is a graded exercise test in a sports medicine lab. You run on a treadmill or pedal a bike ergometer at increasing intensity while wearing a mask that measures your oxygen consumption and CO2 output. The test takes about 10-15 minutes to reach your maximum.

Lab tests typically cost $150-$400. You can find VO2 max testing labs near you in our lab directory.

Wearable estimates

Modern smartwatches provide VO2 max estimates that are surprisingly accurate for most people:

• Apple Watch estimates VO2 max during outdoor walks and runs
• Garmin watches estimate VO2 max using Firstbeat analytics during running and cycling
• COROS, Polar, Suunto also provide estimates using similar heart rate and pace algorithms

Wearable estimates are useful for tracking trends over time, even if the absolute number may differ slightly from a lab test.

Field tests

If you don't have a lab or smartwatch, field tests can estimate your VO2 max:

• The Beep Test: Progressive 20m shuttle run. Your final level maps to an estimated VO2 max.
• Cooper 12-Minute Run: Run as far as you can in 12 minutes. Distance correlates to VO2 max.
• 1-Mile Walk Test: Walk a mile as fast as possible. Heart rate at the finish estimates VO2 max.

How to Improve Your VO2 Max

VO2 max is highly trainable. Most people can improve by 5-15% in 8-12 weeks with the right training. Key principles:

High-intensity interval training works best

Research consistently shows that structured intervals at 90-95% of max heart rate produce significantly greater VO2 max gains than moderate steady-state exercise. The sweet spot is 2 interval sessions per week.

Proven protocols

• Norwegian 4x4: 4x4 minutes at 90-95% HRmax with 3-minute active recovery. The gold standard, backed by extensive research.
• 30/30 intervals: 30 seconds hard, 30 seconds easy for 15-25 minutes. Accessible and effective.
• Tabata: 8x20 seconds all-out with 10-second rest. Short and intense.

Age is not a barrier

If you're over 40, don't let age discourage you. VO2 max is improvable at any age. People in their 60s have increased VO2 max by 19-22% through structured training. The protocols scale to your individual max heart rate, not an absolute pace.

The Bottom Line

A "good" VO2 max depends on your age and sex. Use the charts above to see where you stand. But regardless of your current number, the most important thing is the direction: improving your VO2 max, at any level, reduces mortality risk and improves quality of life. Whether you use a lab test, a smartwatch, or a field test, knowing your number gives you a baseline to build from.

Use our VO2 max improvement calculator to project how long it will take to reach your target.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a good VO2 max for my age?

It depends on your sex and age. For example, a 40-year-old man scoring 42-48 ml/kg/min is in the "Good" range, while a 40-year-old woman in the same range would need 34-38 ml/kg/min. See the normative charts above for exact thresholds by decade.

What VO2 max do I need for longevity?

Research shows there is no upper limit to the benefit of higher cardiorespiratory fitness. Each 1 MET increase (roughly 3.5 ml/kg/min) is associated with an 11.6% reduction in all-cause mortality. Moving from "poor" to "average" is life-changing, and further improvements remain meaningful.

Can I improve my VO2 max?

Yes. Most people can improve VO2 max by 5-15% in 8-12 weeks with structured interval training. The Norwegian 4x4 protocol is the most research-backed method. Even people over 40 respond well to training.

How do I measure my VO2 max without a lab?

The most accurate non-lab options are: a wearable like Apple Watch or Garmin (accurate to within a few ml/kg/min), the beep test (r = 0.84-0.92 correlation with lab values), or the Cooper 12-minute run test (r = 0.90).

Is VO2 max the same as cardiovascular fitness?

VO2 max is the gold standard measure of cardiovascular fitness. It measures the maximum amount of oxygen your body can use during intense exercise. Higher values mean your heart, lungs, and muscles are more efficient at delivering and using oxygen.

References

1. Myers J, Prakash M, Froelicher V, et al. Exercise capacity and mortality among men referred for exercise testing. N Engl J Med. 2002;346(11):793-801. PubMed
2. Mandsager K, Harb S, Cremer P, et al. Association of cardiorespiratory fitness with long-term mortality among adults undergoing exercise treadmill testing. JAMA Netw Open. 2018;1(6):e183605. PubMed
3. Imboden MT, Harber MP, Whaley MH, et al. Cardiorespiratory fitness and mortality in healthy men and women. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2018;72(19):2283-2292. PubMed
4. Clausen JSR, Marott JL, Holtermann A, et al. Midlife cardiorespiratory fitness and the long-term risk of mortality: 46 years of follow-up. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2018;72(9):987-995. PubMed
5. Helgerud J, Høydal K, Wang E, et al. Aerobic high-intensity intervals improve VO2max more than moderate training. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2007;39(4):665-671. PubMed