Can You Grow Taller After 18?

Yes, but only a little, and only if your growth plates are still open. Most people have reached their adult height by 18: on CDC growth charts the median man grows about 0.3 inch (0.7 cm) between 18 and 20, and the median woman about 0.1 inch (0.2 cm). Late bloomers can gain a bit more, usually an inch or less. Once the growth plates close, nothing can make your bones longer, but better posture can win back height you lose to slouching.

Can you grow after 18?

Your bones get longer only at the growth plates, softer layers near the ends of long bones. Near the end of puberty these plates harden into solid bone, and from then on the bone cannot grow longer. In most people this has happened by the late teens.

Cleveland Clinic notes that growth after 18 is rare and, when it happens, usually adds an inch or less. Here is what to expect:

The people most likely to grow after 18 are late bloomers: those who started puberty late, hit their growth spurt at 15 or later, and are still seeing changes like a deepening voice or facial hair filling in.

Can height increase after 19 or 20?

For a few people, slightly. A late-maturing 19-year-old can still have open growth plates and gain a fraction of an inch. By 20 to 21, almost everyone is done.

Growing noticeably at 19 or 20 is not automatically a problem, but it is worth mentioning to a doctor. In rare cases, continued growth in a young adult is caused by too much growth hormone from a gland problem, which needs treatment.

Can you grow after your growth plates close?

No. Once your growth plates have closed, your bones cannot get longer through exercise, stretching, diet, sleep, supplements or hormones. Growth hormone, for example, only affects height while the plates are open, and doctors prescribe it to children with specific conditions, not to adults who want to be taller. Our guide on whether HGH makes you taller explains why.

The only way to add bone length after that point is limb-lengthening surgery, in which leg bones are cut and slowly pulled apart over months. In one surgical series of adults who had it for height, the average gain was about 2.8 inches (7.2 cm), treatment lasted around nine months, and the authors stressed that patients must understand the serious risks. It is a major operation, not a height trick, and the ethics of doing it for cosmetic reasons are debated.

How to increase height after 18 (what actually works)

You cannot grow taller bones, but you can make sure you stand and measure at your true height:

1. Fix your posture. Slouching, a forward head and rounded shoulders make you shorter than you are. Cleveland Clinic notes that stretching does not add height but can help you stand taller by loosening the tight muscles behind hunching. Chin tucks, doorway chest stretches and back-strengthening exercises all help. See does stretching make you taller? for the details.
2. Measure correctly. Stand barefoot, heels, back and head against a wall, looking straight ahead. In one small study of young adults, people were about three-quarters of an inch (2 cm) taller in the morning than at night, because spinal discs compress during the day. Compare measurements taken at the same time of day.
3. If you might still be growing, protect it. Get enough sleep (8 to 10 hours for teens, and at least 7 for adults), eat regular meals with enough protein and calcium-rich foods, and stay active.
4. Look after your bones and back. Strength training and an active lifestyle keep your spine and posture muscles strong as you get older.

Bottom line: After your growth plates close, "increasing height" really means standing to your full height. Anyone selling a pill, oil, stretching program or device that promises real growth in adults is selling something that does not exist.

Be especially careful with height-increase tablets, powders and "growth activators" marketed online. There is no good evidence that any of them make adults taller, and growth hormone or testosterone products bought without a prescription can be harmful.

How to tell if you can still grow

• Measure every few months. If your height has not changed in a year, measured carefully at the same time of day, you are almost certainly done.
• Check your puberty signs. A voice that is still changing or facial hair that is still filling in suggests you may have a little growth left.
• Ask about a bone age X-ray. A doctor can X-ray your left hand and wrist to see whether the growth plates are still open. Our guide on how to tell if your growth plates are closed explains what it shows.

For a quick estimate, the Am I done growing? quiz uses your age, recent growth and puberty signs.

When to see a doctor

See a doctor if:

• You are still growing noticeably at 19 or 20 or later.
• Puberty is still not finished at 18, for example very little body or facial hair, or periods that never started.
• Your hands, feet or facial features seem to be getting bigger as an adult.
• Worry about your height is affecting your mood, eating or daily life.

The short version

A small amount of growth after 18 is possible for some late bloomers, usually an inch or less, and essentially nobody grows after 25. Once the growth plates close, your bones are done growing, whatever an ad promises. What you can still do is stand tall, measure accurately and keep your body strong.