Cattle Weight Calculator

Estimate a cow's live weight from heart girth and body length with a tape measure.

Weight (lb) = heart girth² × body length ÷ 300, with both measured in inches. A cow with a 76-inch girth and 66-inch body length weighs about 76² × 66 ÷ 300 ≈ 1,271 lb (577 kg).

Free, runs in your browser. Nothing you enter is uploaded.

How to use it

Measure heart girth: around the chest just behind the front legs.
Measure body length: from the point of the shoulder to the pin bone.
Enter both in inches or centimetres and read the estimated weight.

What you enter

Heart girth
Body length

What you get

Estimated weight in lb and kg

Formula

Weight (lb) = girth (in)² × length (in) ÷ 300

Worked example

Input: Girth 76 in, length 66 in

Result: ≈ 1,271 lb (577 kg)

A mid-sized mature beef cow.

Questions

How do you estimate a cow's weight without a scale?

Measure heart girth and body length with a tape, square the girth, multiply by the length, and divide by 300 (inches, gives pounds).

How accurate is the heart girth formula?

Usually within about 5–10% of scale weight for adult cattle in average condition. It is less accurate for very fat, thin, pregnant or young animals.

Where exactly do I measure heart girth?

Around the body just behind the front legs and shoulder blades, with the animal standing square and the tape snug, not tight.

How much does an average cow weigh?

A mature beef cow typically weighs about 1,100–1,400 lb (500–635 kg), and a Holstein dairy cow about 1,500 lb (680 kg).

Limitations

An estimate only; use a scale for dosing drugs with narrow safety margins or for sale weights.

References

Penn State Extension; heart girth formula widely used in extension guides.

More Farm Planning

All free tools · By Dr. Zubair Khalid, DVM, MS, PhD.