Find your bodyboard size in 30 seconds

Bodyboard size is chosen by combining your weight, your height and your level. Stood upright in front of you, heel on the ground, the board should reach between your navel and the bottom of your sternum. In practice that means 36 to 38″ for a child of 25 to 45 kg, 40 to 42″ for an adult of 50 to 75 kg, and 42 to 45″ above 80 kg. Bodyboards are measured in inches, from the 32″ children’s size to the 46″ for larger riders, and one inch is 2.54 cm.

This bodyboard size guide brings together the tables we use every day on our shop floor in Hossegor, the conversions in centimetres, and the cases that fall outside the table: larger riders, drop knee, hollow waves, a growing child. It only covers size. For all the other criteria — foam, level, shape and budget — everything is in our complete guide to choosing your bodyboard.

The navel method

Stand the board upright in front of you, heel on the ground, and look at where it stops. A board of the right size reaches between your navel and the bottom of your sternum. If it goes past your ribs it is too big: you will not control it through turns and it will get away from you on the take-off. If it stops below your navel it is too small: it will not float you enough and you will stay behind the wave.

It is imperfect, but this test eliminates 80% of mistakes, and it is the first thing we get a customer to do when they walk into the shop. Its limit: it only takes your height into account. Two riders of 1.75 m weighing 65 and 90 kg do not need the same board. To decide precisely you have to combine three parameters: weight, height and level. That is what the tables below are for.

The 10-second test

• Board upright, heel on the ground
• It reaches between navel and sternum: right size
• It goes past your ribs: too big
• It stops below your navel: too small

Profile	Bodyboard size
Child (25 to 45 kg)	36 to 38″
Teenager or light adult (45 to 60 kg)	38 to 40″
Standard adult (60 to 75 kg)	40 to 42″
Larger adult (75 to 90 kg)	42 to 43.5″
Big rider (90 kg and above)	43.5 to 46″

This first table gives you the ballpark at a glance, by build. It is enough in most cases and matches what we say out loud in the shop when a customer asks for their size with no further detail. To fine-tune by level, move on to the detailed table just below.

Bodyboard size table by build and by level

This bodyboard size table combines the three parameters that really decide : weight, height and level. The Intermediate column corresponds to a rider who can catch their wave and start their first turns. A beginner is better off taking half an inch to an inch more than their theoretical value : the extra float catches more waves, and the number of waves caught is what drives progress in the first months. Conversely, an expert goes down by the same amount to gain control and pivot.

Height	Weight	Beginner	Inter.	Expert
120 to 135 cm	25 to 35 kg	36 to 37″	36 to 36.5″	34 to 36″
135 to 150 cm	35 to 45 kg	37 to 38″	36.5 to 37.5″	36 to 37″
150 to 160 cm	45 to 55 kg	38 to 39.5″	38 to 39″	37 to 38.5″
160 to 170 cm	55 to 65 kg	39.5 to 41″	39 to 40.5″	38.5 to 40″
170 to 178 cm	65 to 75 kg	41 to 42.5″	40.5 to 42″	40 to 41.5″
178 to 185 cm	75 to 85 kg	42.5 to 43.5″	42 to 43″	41.5 to 42.5″
185 to 190 cm	85 to 95 kg	43.5 to 45″	43 to 44″	42.5 to 43.5″
190 cm and above	95 kg and above	45 to 46″	44 to 45.5″	43.5 to 45″

Bodyboard size in cm: the conversion table

Shapers always quote their boards in inches, never in centimetres. One inch is exactly 2.54 cm, which puts the adult range between roughly 91 and 117 cm. Here are the conversions for the sizes actually produced, including the half-inches that make up half the catalogue.

Inches	Centimetres	For whom
34″	86.4 cm	Child
36″	91.4 cm	Child
38″	96.5 cm	Teenager, light adult
39″	99.1 cm	Light adult
40″	101.6 cm	Standard adult
41″	104.1 cm	Standard adult
41.5″	105.4 cm	Standard adult
42″	106.7 cm	Standard adult
42.5″	108.0 cm	Larger adult
43″	109.2 cm	Larger adult
43.5″	110.5 cm	Larger adult
44″	111.8 cm	Big rider
45″	114.3 cm	Big rider
46″	116.8 cm	Big rider

Two sizes account for most of the sales. The 42″ is the best-selling bodyboard size among adults, because it covers the 65 to 80 kg bracket, which is the widest. The 40″ comes next for lighter builds and teenagers at the end of their growth. The 43″ takes over as soon as you go past 80 kg. If you are torn between two neighbouring sizes, for example between a 41″ and a 42″, decide with your level rather than your weight: go up if you are starting out, down if you are already turning.

The three sizing mistakes we see most in the shop

1 Buying too big to grow into

1. Buying too big to grow into

Choosing a bodyboard size that is too big is the number one reason for exchanges with us, and it mostly affects family purchases. An oversized board is hard to control, frustrates the child and cuts progress dead. The reasoning is understandable: the child is growing, so why not plan ahead. Except that a board that is too big does not pivot under a small build, goes sideways in the whitewater and turns the session into a chore. Better a size that is right now, even if it means buying again in two years. A first board has one job: to make you want to go back in the water.

2. Believing that a 41″ is a 41″ everywhere

A 41″ Morey is not a 41″ Pride, which is not a 41″ NMD. Shapers do not all measure at the same point and do not have the same widths or thicknesses at a given length. A 41″ Morey is noticeably wider than a 41″ Pride pro model, therefore more buoyant, therefore closer to a competitor’s 41.5″ in actual volume. At identical nominal size, always compare the width and thickness given on the product page. The figure in inches is a starting point, not a verdict.

2 A 41″ is not a 41″ everywhere 3 Overestimating your level

3. Overestimating your level

In the shop, one customer in three classes themselves as intermediate when they are still a beginner, strictly speaking: fewer than twenty sessions, and no wave yet taken at the peak. The problem is not ego, it is the consequence: they leave with a board that is too short, catch fewer waves, and conclude that they are not good enough. If you are torn between two levels, take the lower one and add half an inch : the float you gain is worth more than the control you imagine.

The special cases that fall outside the table

Big riders, above 90 kg

Past 90 kg, the right bodyboard size is not automatically the longest one, and that is the counter-intuitive part of this bracket. Some brands make wide body shapes that are wider and thicker, such as the Pride Spartan, which add buoyant volume without stretching the board out of proportion. That works better than a classic 45″, which will be slow to pivot and awkward to hold in the hollow part. The right reflex is to look at the volume and the width before the length.

Volume Look at the volume and the width before the length -1″ For drop knee, below your theoretical prone size

Drop knee

If you ride drop knee, one knee on the board and the other foot forward, go a full inch below your theoretical prone size. The position puts your weight on a smaller surface, and you need a compact board that pivots quickly under the knee. A board sized for prone becomes a barge as soon as you get up.

Wave type

The spot shifts your bodyboard size by half an inch one way or the other, once the build is set. On hollow, powerful waves — the Landes coast in autumn, say — take off 0.5″: control comes first, the wave already supplies all the speed. In whitewater and small summer waves, add 0.5″: you need to find the float that is missing. Water temperature, on the other hand, does not change your size, it changes the core that suits you, which we detail in the guide to choosing your bodyboard.

±0.5″ Depending on the spot: less for hollow and powerful, more for whitewater

What bodyboard size for a child?

For a child, bodyboard size is between 33″ and 38″ depending on build, that is roughly 25 to 45 kg, and the navel test remains the best judge. The pitfalls are the same as for adults, only more pronounced. A board that is too big becomes unmanageable for a light body that does not have the strength to bring it back in line. A solid foam supermarket board hits its ceiling after three sessions and teaches nothing.

The right indicator is the child standing next to the board, not the parent projecting the growth of the next two summers. An 8-year-old weighing 28 kg will be comfortable on a 36″ and lost on a 40″, even if they will fit the 40″ in two years. Reckon on one board every two to three years during the growth period; that is the price of successful sessions.

33-38″ The children’s bracket, from 25 to 45 kg

FAQ: your questions about bodyboard size

How long is a bodyboard?

Adult bodyboards measure between 36″ and 46″, that is 91 to 117 cm. Children’s models go down to 32 or 37″, that is 81 to 94 cm. Above 46″ you move into specialist shapes for very big riders, produced in small runs.

How do you choose your bodyboard size from weight alone?

Weight alone is enough to narrow down your bodyboard size : take the line matching yours in the detailed table and stay in the Intermediate column. Then adjust for your level: add 0.5 to 1″ if you are starting out, take off 0.5 to 1″ if you are an expert. Weight is the dominant parameter; height is there to decide between two neighbouring lines.

How big is a 42-inch bodyboard?

A 42-inch bodyboard measures 106.7 cm, and it is the best-selling size among adults, suited to a build of 65 to 80 kg for around 1.70 to 1.80 m. Be careful though: at a nominal 42″, width and thickness vary from one brand to another, and so does the actual volume.

Should you take a size up when you are starting out?

Yes. A beginner is better off going half an inch above their theoretical bodyboard size, because the float gained catches more waves. That is what we advise in the shop for the first sessions. You will drop back down a notch the day you start looking for control in your turns rather than for easy waves.

What size for powerful waves such as Hossegor or Nazaré?

In powerful waves, go 0.5 to 1″ below your theoretical bodyboard size, with a stiff core and a reinforced stringer. In the hollow part, control comes before float: the wave supplies the speed, you do not need to go looking for it.

The boards we recommend, by tier

Once you have your size, the core remains. The three foams on the market correspond to three clearly different uses, and each comes in the full range of sizes above. Here are the three boards we recommend most often in the shop, one per tier.

Entry level, PE core Pride Stereo recycled PE bodyboard The PE core forgives poor positioning and glides from the whitewater on. The right choice to confirm your interest before investing, with a core that is at least 63% recycled. Mid range, NRG+ core Pride Timeless NRG+ HD bodyboard NRG+ adds pop without becoming brittle in cold water. The board for the regular rider who goes out all year round on the Atlantic coast. Top of the range, PP core Bodyboard Stealth Golden Child Kinetic PP PP gives its full speed in powerful waves and holds the line in the hollow part. For the experienced rider who turns and wants an immediate response.

You have your size, now for the board

Got your size in inches? Head for our selection of bodyboards, sorted by size and by brand (Pride, Morey, NMD, Sniper, Hubboards and the rest). Filter on your size, then let the core guide you according to how you ride.

If size is settled but the rest is not — foam, level, shape, budget — it is all covered point by point in our complete guide to choosing your bodyboard. And if you are passing through Hossegor, come to the shop: we have almost everything in stock, and we check the size with you, board in hand, before you buy. It is still the most reliable method.