Average HRV by Age — Am I Normal?
Nightly RMSSD from Oura, WHOOP, Apple Watch, or Garmin. Falls with age — filter by age band.
What is a normal HRV by age?+
RMSSD falls predictably with age. Rough reference medians: ~60 ms in the 20s, ~38 ms in the 40s, and ~25 ms in the 60s. Because the range is wide and device-dependent, the age-filtered percentile here is a gut-check — use the HRV Percentile tool for an age-adjusted estimate.
Is a higher HRV always better?+
Generally, higher reflects better parasympathetic tone and recovery — but HRV is intensely individual. Your own multi-week baseline and trend matter far more than a single number or a comparison to other people.
What lowers HRV overnight?+
Alcohol is the most reliable HRV killer (often a 10–20% drop), followed by late caffeine, illness, dehydration, hard training, and acute stress. A morning reading well below baseline is a signal to deload, not push.
Why do my HRV numbers differ between devices?+
Brands measure over different windows (overnight vs morning spot-check), use different sensors (PPG vs ECG), and apply different smoothing. RMSSD is the most portable metric, but absolute values still differ — pick one device and track its trend.
See how you compare.
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