What a couple’s height difference looks like
On level ground, the gap between two people is the difference between their heights: 10 cm is about 4 inches, 15 cm about 6 inches and 20 cm about 8 inches. Shoes, sitting down and where the camera stands can make the visible gap bigger or smaller, so start from barefoot heights.
Draw your own couple height difference10, 15 and 20 cm side by side
Each example starts from 165 cm for the shorter person and adds the gap. 165 cm and 175 cm are 10 cm (3.9 in) apart, 165 cm and 180 cm are 15 cm (5.9 in) apart, and 165 cm and 185 cm are 20 cm (7.9 in) apart.
Each pair stands on one baseline and the three drawings share one scale, so the space between the two heads is the whole difference and the gaps can be compared directly. Open any pair and replace the example numbers with your own heights to see your gap.
Shoes change the gap
Footwear raises each person by the height of its sole and heel. When both of you wear similar shoes, the gap stays close to the barefoot gap. When one of you wears heels or thick soles and the other does not, the gap shrinks or grows by the difference between the two lifts.
To see the result, measure each person standing in the shoes and enter those heights, or duplicate a figure and note “in boots” under Art and details. Keep the barefoot heights as the reference.
Sitting down
Seated, the gap depends on the length of each person’s upper body, not on total height. Two people with a 15 cm standing gap can sit almost level or further apart, depending on how each height is split between legs and torso.
The chart draws standing height only. It does not estimate where anyone’s eyes, shoulders or seated head would be.
In photos
A photo shows the real gap only when both people stand on the same level ground at the same distance from the camera. Whoever stands closer to the lens looks taller next to the other person.
A step, a slope or a curb changes the gap by its own height. If a photo looks different from the chart, check the ground and the distance to the camera before doubting the numbers.
Look the same height in a photo
Example: type your own heights and distance over it.
Stand the taller person 11 ft 3 in from the camera, 1 ft 3 in behind the shorter one: in the photo they then look the same height.
A simple camera model: a person’s size in the picture is their height divided by their distance from the lens, with the camera held level. Side by side at the same distance, the photo shows the real gap.
Next to a doorway
A common interior door is 6 ft 8 in (203.2 cm) tall. Add the door to your chart to see how much room each of you has under the frame; the space above each head is the door height minus that person’s height.
The same works with any reference on the board, such as a basketball rim or a double-decker bus.
Draw the 15 cm gap beside a doorWhat the number does not say
A height gap cannot tell you anything about a relationship.
If you want to write about a height difference in a story rather than picture your own, the guide to describing height differences covers wording and scene blocking.
Try the same example
Draw your own couple height difference. The names, units and values carry into the editable chart.
For the arithmetic alone, use the height difference calculator. For a different unit, use the height converter.
The next useful step
How the charts work explains the shared scale, source precision and custom inputs.