Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. is the 46th President of the United States, serving 2022- and served as the vice president between 2009–2017. He is also the oldest President to have been elected into office, aged 78. If we compare him to the youngest, John F. Kennedy, aged 43, that's a 35 year age gap!
Regarding his height, Joe has always seemed above-average to tall, and when pictured next to other world leaders, he holds his own, and rarely, if ever, seems short.
Naturally, however, similar to past president Richard Nixon, he has lost some height when compared to how tall he was during his youth. On this page we will investigate his peak and current height, by comparing him to other presidents, and some other interesting height info!
How Tall is he Really?
In his earlier years, Joe stood at 6'0.75" tall, taller than 32 of the 45 elected American Presidents. Today, however, similar to his height measurement from 2019/2021 physical examinations, he stands at 5'11.5" (181.6 cm) tall throughout the majority of the day.
Height as a Young Man
In the book Promises to keep (1), Joe mentions that:
"I BEGAN TO grow into myself at Archmere, literally. By my junior year I was a foot taller than when I entered."
So from a freshman at the age of 14-15 to when he was in his Junior year at 16/17 years old, Joe appears to have had a huge growth spurt!
Recent Height Measurements
During a physical examination from December 2019, before stepping into office, Biden was measured 5'11.65" (181.99 cm) and weighed 165 pounds - see here
Also, he had his first medical physical exam since serving as president in late 2021, and the results showed a height of 5'11.65" (181.99 cm), and a weight of 184 pounds.
I am unsure what time of day he was measured, but most likely in the morning, meaning he would drop to closer to 5'11.5" by lunchtime and throughout the majority of the day.
He is Generally Described as Tall
Joe is often described as tall as a young man, for instance, one example is in the book Joe Biden: Our 46th President, mentions:
"Joe was tall, handsome, and well dressed, with smooth manners". (2)
Heights of His Family
Mother and Father
- Joe's Mother, Catherine Eugenia Finnegan (1917-2010) was only 5 feet 1 tall.
- Joe's father, Joseph R. Biden Sr (1915-2002) was a used car dealer, standing at 6 feet tall.
Brothers
- Joe's younger brother James is a businessman and stands at 6'1" tall.
- Joe's youngest brothers Frank is a non-attorney senior advisor and stands at 5'10" inches.
Joe is shorter than Frank and taller than James, so it is safe to say that Joe took his Dad's height genetics!
Sister
Joe's younger sister Valerie Biden Owens is a political strategist and stood at roughly 5'6" in her prime.
Children
- Joe's eldest son Hunter Biden is a lawyer and stands at 5'11" (180.3 cm) tall.
- Joe's youngest son Beau Biden (1969-2015) was a Former Attorney General of Delaware and stood at 5'10" tall.
- Joe's daughter Ashley Biden is a social worker and stands at 5'5" (165.1 cm) tall.
Height Next to Celebs in Early Years
Jimmy Carter 5'9" (175.3 cm) Prime Height
When Joe met then-President Carter in 1979, there are photos of them standing close together, and Joe looks to be comfortably 3.5 inches taller than Jimmy.
Joe was in his 30's here, and appears comfortably over 6 feet tall when next to Jimmy, at 6'0.5".
Ronald Raegan 6'0.75" (184.8 cm) Prime
When Biden met Raegan in 1984, Raegan had lost some height but was still comfortably 6 feet tall. When together, shaking hands etc, Joe appears to be 1 inch taller.
Therefore with Ronald Raegan, during his younger years, Joe Biden appears to stand 6'1" tall.
Height Next to Celebs in Recent Years
Height Loss
Joe is now approaching 80 years of age, and the average man can expect to lose 2 inches of height from his prime. Yet, he is an exception to this rule, and as of 79 years old he still appears 5'11.5" tall, which is 1.25 inches shorter than his peak height.
Barack Obama 6'1" (185.4 cm)
Good friends and allies, when Biden and Obama stand next together, there is a clear difference in height, with Obama being the taller of the pair, by 1.5 inches.
Examples of this include shots inside the Whitehouse of them together jogging in 2014, where Biden looks 1.5 inches. More recently, when Biden received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2017, and Biden's inauguration in 2021, where Biden again looks shorter by 1.5 inches.
So when next to Barack Obama in recent years, Biden appears to be 5'11.5" tall.
Anderson Cooper 5'10" (177.8 cm)
When Joe and self-proclaimed 5'10" Anderson Cooper met at The Presidential Town Hall in 2021, Biden looked comfortably taller, by 1.5" inches.
So, when standing next to Anderson in recent years, Joe looks to be 5'11.5" tall.
The Results -In his youth, Joe appears to be between 6'0.5-6'1" tall. In recent years, however, he appears 5'11.5" tall, losing just over 1 inch of height from his peak years.
Height Compared to Past Presidents
- In the top 5 tallest ever American Presidents, 4 of them died between 140-225 years ago!
- Compared to the heights on this list, Joe Biden is the 13 tallest President.
- The tallest President was Abraham Lincoln with a height of 6'4", and the shortest is James Madison at 5'4", with a 12 inch/1 foot difference in height!
- The average height of all Presidents is 5'10.5" (179.1 cm). This is shorter 1.75 inches shorter than Biden's peak height, and 1 inch shorter than he stands at today.
There have been 31 elections from 1900-2020, and in 21 of them, the elected candidate was taller, with an average of over 1 inch, but Joe is in the minority, standing 1 inch shorter than then-President Donald Trump during his 2020 Presidential campaign!
Conclusion
In his prime years, Joe Biden stood at 6'0.75" (184.8 cm) tall. However, today he is approaching 80 years old and has lost around 1.25 inches of height, and stands at 5'11.5" (181.6 cm) tall.
Heights Related to Joe Biden
- Jill Biden, Wife m.1977, 5'6" (167.6 cm) Prime Height
- Neilia Hunter, Ex-Wife 1966-1972, 5'5 (165.1 cm)
- Kamala Harris, Vice President 2021-, 5'3.5" (161.3 cm)
- John Kerry, Close Friend, 6'3" (190.5 cm)
- Boris Johnson, UK Prime Minister (2019-2022), 5'9" (175.3 cm)
References
1: Promises to Keep: On Life and Politics, By Joe Biden (2021), Page 22
2: Joe Biden: Our 46th President (2020), By Beatrice Gormley, Page 6