When do girls stop growing?
The typical girl is close to done growing taller at 15 and has all but finished by 16. On the CDC growth charts the median girl reaches 98% of her age-20 height at 13 years 11 months and 99% at 14 years 11 months. The American Academy of Pediatrics says most girls grow another 1 to 2 inches (2.5 to 5 cm) after their first period. These are population figures, not a prediction for any one girl or medical advice.
Growth left, year by year
Enter an age to see the CDC growth-chart height for girls at each birthday up to 20. Add a height to follow that percentile line.
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Typical growth left
Enter an age and press Show growth left by year. Without a height the table follows the median (50th percentile) line.
Girls’ height by age: how much growing is left
We calculated this table directly from the CDC 2000 stature-for-age data for girls. It shows the median height at each birthday, how much the median rises in the following year, and how much of the age-20 height is already reached.
| Age | Median height | Gain in the next year | Share of age-20 median | 5th – 95th percentile |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | 127.6 cm (4′2″) | 5.3 cm | 78.1% | 118.3 – 137.6 cm |
| 9 | 132.9 cm (4′4″) | 5.1 cm | 81.4% | 123.0 – 143.5 cm |
| 10 | 138.0 cm (4′6″) | 6.0 cm | 84.5% | 127.3 – 149.3 cm |
| 11 | 144.0 cm (4′9″) | 7.2 cm | 88.1% | 132.2 – 156.1 cm |
| 12 | 151.2 cm (5′0″) | 6.0 cm | 92.6% | 138.9 – 163.2 cm |
| 13 | 157.2 cm (5′2″) | 3.2 cm | 96.2% | 145.7 – 168.4 cm |
| 14 | 160.4 cm (5′3″) | 1.5 cm | 98.2% | 149.6 – 171.2 cm |
| 15 | 161.9 cm (5′4″) | 0.7 cm | 99.1% | 151.2 – 172.6 cm |
| 16 | 162.5 cm (5′4″) | 0.4 cm | 99.5% | 151.9 – 173.2 cm |
| 17 | 162.9 cm (5′4″) | 0.2 cm | 99.7% | 152.3 – 173.6 cm |
| 18 | 163.1 cm (5′4″) | 0.1 cm | 99.9% | 152.5 – 173.8 cm |
| 19 | 163.3 cm (5′4″) | 0.1 cm | 99.9% | 152.6 – 173.9 cm |
| 20 | 163.3 cm (5′4″) | – | 100.0% | 152.6 – 174.0 cm |
How to read it: “gain in the next year” is how far the median line rises over the following 12 months. “Share of age-20 median” is the median at that age divided by the median at 20. The last column is the 5th to 95th percentile of height at that age. The CDC charts come from surveys that measured many different children once each, so they smooth out individual growth spurts: a single child’s fastest year is usually faster, and their slow-down sharper, than the median line suggests.
What the table says
- The fastest stretch of the median line is the 12 months starting at about 11 years 1 month, when it rises 7.2 cm.
- The median girl passes 95% of her age-20 height at about 12 years 8 months.
- Yearly gain on the median line drops below 2 cm at about 13 years 8 months, below 1 cm at about 14 years 6 months and below 0.5 cm at about 15 years 6 months.
- After the 16th birthday the median line rises another 0.8 cm by 20.
Growth and the first period
For girls the clearest marker is the first period. The American Academy of Pediatrics describes the sequence this way: the fastest growth in height usually comes between the start of breast development and about six months before the first period; the average age of the first period in the United States is around 12; and most girls grow another 1 to 2 inches afterwards, with more than that being less common. So a first period is a sign that the fastest growth is over, not that growth has stopped that day.
The age varies because puberty does. According to the US National Institutes of Health, the physical changes of puberty typically begin in girls between ages 8 and 13. Height stops increasing when the growth plates near the ends of the long bones harden into solid bone, which Nemours KidsHealth puts at around ages 13 to 15 in girls. Only an X-ray read by a doctor can show whether that has happened, and one is not normally taken without a medical reason.
Why girls finish before boys
On the same CDC charts the girls’ median line falls below 1 cm a year at about 14 years 6 months; the boys’ line does so at about 16 years 10 months. Girls typically enter puberty earlier, so their growth spurt and their slow-down both come earlier. The boys’ figures are on when do boys stop growing.
When to talk to a doctor
- No breast development by age 13, or no period by age 15. MedlinePlus describes both as delayed puberty and lists a slow growth rate and puberty that does not progress normally as reasons to contact a health care provider.
- Signs of puberty before age 8. The AAP advises contacting a pediatrician in that case.
- Height has moved across percentile lines on the growth chart instead of following one. The height percentile calculator places a single measurement; a pediatrician reads the trend.
This page cannot tell whether any of these apply to a particular child. It only describes the reference data.
Common questions
- Do girls grow after their first period?
- Usually, by a modest amount: the AAP says most girls grow another 1 to 2 inches after it. The amount differs between girls.
- Do girls grow after 14?
- On the CDC charts the median line rises 2.9 cm (1.2 in) between the 14th birthday and age 20. A girl who started puberty late can have more left than the median.
- Do girls grow after 16?
- Very little on average: 0.8 cm on the median line between 16 and 20.
- How tall will she be when she stops?
- The height predictor estimates adult height from age, height, weight and the parents’ heights. The how tall will I be quiz asks the same things one at a time, and Am I done growing? covers both sexes on one page.
Sources (web pages checked 2026-11-12): growth figures: Kuczmarski RJ, et al. “2000 CDC Growth Charts for the United States: methods and development.” Vital and Health Statistics 11(246), 2002; stature-for-age LMS data file from cdc.gov/growthcharts. Growth around the first period, and puberty before 8: American Academy of Pediatrics, HealthyChildren.org: Physical development in girls. Puberty age range: NICHD (US National Institutes of Health): About puberty and precocious puberty. Delayed puberty and when to contact a provider: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia: Delayed puberty in girls. Growth plates: Nemours KidsHealth: Growth plate fractures (section “What is a growth plate?”).