NIST lists Abraham Lincoln’s height as 1.93 m, or 193 cm. Its presidential height resource identifies him as the tallest US president in that reference. The chart compares Lincoln with Barack Obama and Ronald Reagan using historical listings and real photographs.
How tall was Abraham Lincoln in feet and inches?
The 193 cm metric reference converts to approximately 6 feet 4 inches. More precisely, 193 divided by 2.54 is about 75.98 inches, just under 76 inches. The reference is already rounded, so the extra calculator decimals do not imply that Lincoln was measured to that precision.
Try this in the height converter: enter 193 cm and read the feet-and-inches result. Or enter 6 feet 4 inches to obtain 193.04 cm. Both conversions explain the familiar rounded figure without treating tiny numerical differences as new historical evidence.
What is the source for Lincoln’s height?
The NIST Presidents and Measurements resource publishes 1.93 m for Lincoln and 1.85 m for Obama. We use those stated values rather than inferring stature from clothing, doorways or photographs. Historical reference listings are a different evidence type from a modern measurement session.
For Reagan, the Reagan Presidential Library explicitly gives 6 feet 1 inch. That converts to 185.42 cm. The source table labels each reference so readers can see where rounded metric values and converted imperial values enter the comparison.
| Person | Height | Evidence / source |
|---|---|---|
| Abraham Lincoln | 193 cm | Historical reference listing National Institute of Standards and Technology Checked 2026-10-24 |
| Ronald Reagan | 185.42 cm | Presidential-library biography Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum Checked 2026-10-24 |
| Barack Obama | 185 cm | Historical reference listing NIST Checked 2026-10-24 |
References rechecked: 30 October 2026. The source table retains the library records’ earlier review dates. HeightCompare has not independently measured these historical figures.
Compare Lincoln with other US presidents
The metric listings put Lincoln 8 cm above Obama. Against Reagan’s converted biography listing, the arithmetic gap is 7.58 cm, or about 7.6 cm. These calculations compare the stated numbers, not a standardized measurement of three people at one age.
The selected lineup stays within the same country and office. It is not a complete presidential ranking. For a broader selection, open the US presidents height comparison. The Barack Obama article gives a focused comparison and a unit-conversion example.
Why a historical photo does not settle the measurement
Lincoln’s photograph is a period portrait, and the other pictures were taken at different times. A slight lean, the angle of a camera and the position of footwear affect a visible head-to-shoe span. The chart uses the reference heights for scale; it does not extract a measurement from the image.
Height is also separate from the size of a statue or monument. A memorial sculpture may be many times larger than the person it represents. Use the scale drawing calculator if you want to turn a human reference height into a reduced drawing or model.
A classroom comparison activity
- Ask learners to predict the order before reading the labels.
- Subtract two centimeter values and convert the result to meters.
- Compare a rounded listing with an exact unit conversion.
- Discuss why a historical source and a photograph answer different questions.
Find further activities in the education guide. To add a known personal measurement, use Add people or your height. Choose Create image to preview a comparison card.
Photo sources
Lincoln: Thomas Le Mere / Mathew Brady Studio, Smithsonian digitization. Obama: Chuck Kennedy / The White House. Reagan: US government historical photograph. Open the chart’s Photo credits for the individual source links.
Frequently asked questions
Is 193 cm an exact measurement?
This page reports the rounded historical reference value. Conversion decimals do not establish additional historical accuracy.
Does Lincoln’s hat count in the height?
No extra hat height is added to the chart. A hat or any other item of clothing does not supply evidence of body stature.
Where can I inspect the references?
Use the source table above and read our source methodology for evidence labels and correction options.