Vertical jump calculator

Work out your vertical jump from flight time, from video frames at any frame rate, or from jump and reach, in inches or centimetres. Free, with the formula.

Vertical jump calculatorFree · no sign-up

Time in the air

From a jump mat, or take-off to landing in a video.

12.1 in30.7 cm

500 ms in the air. Take-off speed 2.45 m/s.

No numbers yet? Film a jump and measure it below: the tester counts the frames for you.

How to use it

01Flight time: enter the time in the air in milliseconds, from a jump mat or a video.
02Video frames: count the frames from the first one with both feet off the ground to the first one with a foot back down, and enter the frame rate.
03Jump and reach: enter your standing reach and the highest point you touched.
04Or skip the counting: film a jump and let the tester further down mark it with you.

The formula

You rise and fall for the same time, so a flight time t gives a height h = g·t²/8, with g = 9.81 m/s². Half a second in the air is 30.7 cm (12.1 in). It assumes you land the way you took off: with bent knees at landing the flight lasts longer and the height reads 0.5–2 cm high [1].

Jump mats and validated phone apps use this same flight-time method [2]. How the test works covers the marks and the accuracy.

Counting frames

Frames ÷ frame rate = flight time. Half a second is 15 frames at 30 fps, 30 at 60 fps, 60 at 120 fps and 120 at 240 fps. Each frame you miscount moves a 30 cm jump by about 4 cm at 30 fps but only 0.5 cm at 240 fps, which is why slow motion is worth using: one frame-rate study recommends 240 fps [3].

Inches, centimetres and flight time

Vertical	Centimetres	Flight time
8 in	20.3 cm	407 ms
12 in	30.5 cm	499 ms
15 in	38.1 cm	557 ms
18 in	45.7 cm	611 ms
20 in	50.8 cm	644 ms
24 in	61.0 cm	705 ms
28 in	71.1 cm	762 ms
32 in	81.3 cm	814 ms

Jump and reach

Highest touch minus standing reach. Measure standing reach with one hand, up on your toes: a flat-footed reach makes jumps read high [4]. Jump and reach and flight time don't agree closely, so don't mix them when you track progress [5].

Measure your jump

Test your jumpFree · no install

Upload a video

Best: a slow-motion video from your camera app. On iPhone, slow motion takes a few seconds to prepare after you pick it. Your video stays on this device. Nothing is uploaded.

Set up in 30 seconds

1Put the phone on the floor or at knee height, 2–3 m (7–10 ft) away, so your whole body and both feet are in the picture.
2Stand still, jump straight up as high as you can, and land on the same spot with straight legs.
3Then step through the video and mark two frames: take-off and landing.

Questions

How do you calculate vertical jump from flight time?

Height = 9.81 × t² ÷ 8, with t in seconds. 0.5 s in the air gives 0.307 m, which is 30.7 cm or 12.1 in.

How do I count frames in a video?

Step through the video one frame at a time. Count from the first frame where both feet are off the ground to the first frame where a foot touches down, then divide by the frame rate.

What frame rate do I need?

Slow motion at 240 fps is the best choice for phone video. 120 fps is good, 60 fps is usable, and 30 fps gives only a rough answer.

How do I convert my vertical from inches to centimetres?

Multiply by 2.54: 20 in is 50.8 cm. Divide centimetres by 2.54 to get inches.

More on the vertical jump

How to measure your vertical jumpEvery way to measure a vertical jump, compared: the wall and chalk test, jump mats, force plates and phone video. Then measure yours here, free.Dunk calculatorHow high do you need to jump to dunk? Enter your height or standing reach for the vertical you need to touch a 10 ft rim and to dunk, and measure yours.Average vertical jumpAverage vertical jump by age and sex from a national survey of 5,188 people, plus college athletes and the NBA and NFL combines. See your percentile.