Your blood glucose (sugar) levels are a critical part of your overall health and your body’s ability to function properly.
For those of us with diabetes, striving to achieve “normal” blood sugar levels is a constant, hour-by-hour pursuit. And it isn’t easy.
In this article, we’ll look at normal blood sugar levels and goal ranges for people without diabetes and recommended blood sugar goals for people with prediabetes, type 1 diabetes, and type 2 diabetes.
Table of Contents
- Normal blood sugar ranges in people without diabetes (chart)
- Recommended blood sugar ranges in people with diabetes (chart)
- How do you know what your blood glucose level is?
- Diagnosing prediabetes, type 1, and type 2 diabetes
- Your A1c and blood sugar goals
- Your blood sugar isn’t just because of what you eat
- Final thoughts: Still frustrated with your blood sugar and A1c results?
Normal blood sugar ranges in people without diabetes (chart)
For a person without any type of diabetes, blood sugar levels are generally between 70 to 99 mg/dL (3.9 to 5.5 mmol/L) fasting and under 140 mg/dL (7.8 mmol/L) after a meal.
Here are the normal blood sugar ranges for a person without diabetes according to the NIH:
Fasting Blood Sugar (e.g., In the Morning Before Eating) | Less than 100 mg/dL (5.6 mmol/L) |
1 to 2 Hours After a Meal | Less than 140 mg/dL (7.8 mmol/L) |
2 to 3 Hours After a Meal | Less than 100 mg/dL (5.6 mmol/L) |
Recommended blood sugar ranges in people with diabetes (chart)
Here are the generally recommended blood sugar ranges for a person with diabetes according to the ADA:
Fasting Blood Sugar (e.g., In the Morning Before Eating) | 80 to 130 mg/dL (4.4 to 7.2 mmol/L) |
1 to 2 Hours After a Meal | Less than 180 mg/dL (10.0 mmol/L) |
Learn more about fasting and after-meal blood sugar levels in: Blood Sugar Chart: Blood Sugar and A1c Targets.
How do you know what your blood glucose level is?
Unless it’s fairly high or low, you generally can’t feel what your blood sugar level is. And in fact, you may not even be able to tell from physical symptoms when it is high or low.
The best way to know your blood sugar level is to either check it with a traditional glucose meter or use a CGM (continuous glucose monitor) device.
For a glucose meter, you do a finger-stick with a lancet, put a drop of blood onto a test strip, and then insert the strip into the meter for a reading. With a CGM, readings are taken from the interstitial fluid (the fluid between the cells) about every 5 minutes via a sensor inserted just under the skin.
Diagnosing prediabetes, type 1, and type 2 diabetes
The following are tests that may be used by your healthcare provider to determine if you have diabetes:
Tests used to diagnose diabetes
Fasting plasma glucose test
This test measures your glucose level at a single point in time, typically after you have been fasting (nothing to eat or drink except water) for at least 8 hours.
Random glucose test
This test measures your glucose level at a single point in time and may be given at any time, whether you have fasted or not.
Oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT)
For this test, you will have a blood sample taken after fasting for at least 8 hours. Next, you will drink a liquid high in sugar and will have another blood sample taken after 2 hours to see how your blood glucose levels have changed.
(In those who are pregnant, glucose will be checked every hour for 2 to 3 hours to test for gestational diabetes.)
A1c test
This blood test reflects your average glucose levels over the previous 2 to 3 months. You can eat and drink prior to having an A1c test.
A repeat of these tests is typically required to confirm a diabetes diagnosis.
Test results for diagnosing diabetes (chart)
The following blood sugar and A1c results (a measure of glucose control over the previous 2 to 3 months) are used to diagnose prediabetes and diabetes, according to the ADA:
A1c | Fasting Glucose | 2 Hours After a Meal | |
Prediabetes | 5.7 to 6.4 percent | 100 to 125 mg/dL (5.6 to 6.9 mmol/L) | 140 mg/dL to 199 mg to dL (7.8 to 11.1 mmol/L) |
Diabetes (type 1 or type 2) | 6.5 percent or higher | 126 mg/dL (7.0 mmol/L) or higher | 200 mg/dL (11.1 mmol/L) or higher |
Learn more about diagnosing diabetes in: Types of Diabetes.
Please note: Type 1 diabetes tends to develop very quickly, which means that by the time symptoms are felt, blood sugar levels are often well above 200 mg/dL all the time. For many people, symptoms come on so quickly that they are dismissed as a lingering flu or another seemingly ordinary virus.
By the time blood sugar levels are checked, many people with undiagnosed type 1 diabetes may have levels above 400 mg/dL or higher.
If you suspect that you or a loved one has type 1 diabetes, visit your primary care or urgent care immediately and ask for a urine test to measure ketones in addition to checking blood sugar levels and A1c.
Read more about ketones at diagnosis in: How to Avoid Diabetic Ketoacidosis (DKA).
Your A1c and blood sugar goals
Managing any type of diabetes is far more complicated than giving a person some insulin and telling them to keep their blood sugars within X and X mg/dL. If you’ve lived with diabetes for more than a few days, you probably already know this.
What is A1c?
“A1c, also known as hemoglobin A1c, HbA1c, glycated hemoglobin, or glycohemoglobin, is a blood test that measures your average blood sugar over the last 2 to 3 months,” explains Christel Oerum, MS, in Diabetes Strong’s guide to lowering your A1c.
Although the test reflects the glucose attached to hemoglobin (the protein in your red blood cells) over the past 2 to 3 months, the blood sugar levels in the 2 weeks leading up to your A1c test influence the results the most. Essentially, higher blood sugar levels during this period result in more glucose binding to hemoglobin.
Translating your A1c to a blood sugar level
Using this simple calculator from the ADA, you can translate your most recent A1c result to an “eAG,” or “estimated average glucose level.”
You can also use this translation when working to improve your A1c and achieve closer to normal blood sugar levels.
For instance, if you know an A1c of 6.0 percent equates to an average blood sugar level of 126 mg/dL (7.0 mmol/L), then you can look at your current blood sugar results on your CGM and meter and pinpoint what time of day you’re frequently higher than that level.
A1c | eAG |
6 percent | 126 mg/dL |
7 percent | 154 mg/dL |
8 percent | 183 mg/dL |
9 percent | 212 mg/dL |
10 percent | 240 mg/dL |
11 percent | 269 mg/dL |
12 percent | 298 mg/dL |
Normal blood sugar levels in a person without diabetes can result in an A1c of 5.6 percent or lower.
Just a decade or two ago, it was rare for a person with type 1 diabetes to achieve an A1c result below 6.0 percent.
Thanks to new and improved insulin and better technology like CGMs, smarter insulin pumps, and hybrid closed-loop technology (which allows some insulin doses to be automatically delivered), more people with diabetes are now able to safely achieve A1c levels in the higher 5 percent range.
Why your A1c matters
In a nutshell: Your A1c is one of the clearest indicators of your risk for developing diabetes complications like neuropathy (nerve damage), retinopathy (a type of eye disease), nephropathy (kidney disease), cardiovascular disease, and severe infection in any part of your body that requires healing.
For instance, a small cut on your toe could become infected due to high blood sugars, struggle to heal, and become severe enough that the infection could require an amputation.
The general guidelines from the ADA recommend an A1c level of less than 7.0 percent to help prevent diabetes-related complications. Lowering your A1c closer to 6.0 percent may further reduce the risk of microvascular complications (those impacting the small blood vessels), such as those affecting the eyes (retinopathy), kidneys (nephropathy), and nerves (neuropathy).
Some people with diabetes aim for A1c levels in the 5s and lower — especially those who follow strict low-carb diets like the ketogenic diet and the Bernstein diet. However, this hasn’t been proven in research as especially necessary, nor is it reasonably achievable for the larger population of people with diabetes.
It’s also important to remember that your blood sugar levels and your A1c are just information that tells you whether your body needs changes in factors like insulin, other diabetes medications like metformin, your nutrition, or your physical activity.
If you don’t like the number you’re seeing on your glucose meter or your A1c results, use that number as motivation to make changes (with the support of your diabetes healthcare team) in how you safely manage your diabetes in order to get different results.
Determining the right A1c goal for you
Just because a blood sugar range of 70 to 130 mg/dL (3.9 to 7.2 mmol/L) is considered the healthiest for people with diabetes doesn’t necessarily mean that’s the appropriate goal range for you — especially if you have type 1 diabetes, or take insulin as a person with type 2 diabetes.
The reason this may not be the right goal for you is that extremely tight blood sugar management in people taking insulin can potentially lead to frequent hypoglycemia (low blood sugar), which can be dangerous.
Achieving extremely tight blood sugar management also generally requires a strict nutrition plan, very frequent blood sugar monitoring, precise medication management, and, often, years of experience studying your blood sugar levels.
Your A1c goals should be set in close consultation with your medical team, who can help balance the benefits and risks of different targets based on your health status, lifestyle, and preferences.
Older adults with cognitive or functional limitations or severe comorbidities (major additional health issues) may have a less-stringent A1c goal of less than 8 percent.
It is also worth noting that your A1c targets can change over time as your diabetes management evolves.
A1c goals should be individualized
“A1c goals should be individualized based on the individual capabilities, risks, and prior experiences,” explains Gary Scheiner, MS, CDCES, founder of Integrated Diabetes and author of Think Like a Pancreas.
“For example, we generally aim for very tight A1c levels during pregnancy and more conservative targets in young children and the elderly.”
Scheiner highlights important factors that could justify aiming for a higher A1c, like hypoglycemia unawareness, a condition in which a person with diabetes no longer feels the typical warning signs of low blood sugar.
Hypoglycemia unawareness can put you at significant risk for severe low blood sugars that have the potential to be life-threatening. To reduce that risk, you would aim for higher target blood sugar ranges.
“Someone with significant hypoglycemia unawareness and a history of severe lows should target higher blood glucose levels than someone who can detect and manage their lows more effectively,” adds Scheiner.
“And certainly, someone who has been running A1cs in double digits [like 10 percent or higher] for quite some time should not be targeting an A1c of 6 percent … better to set modest, realistic, achievable goals.”
Read about reducing your A1c in: How to Lower Your A1c and How to Lower A1c Naturally.
Your blood sugar isn’t just because of what you eat
It’s easy to believe that your blood sugar levels are impacted only by what you eat and how much you exercise, but people with type 1 and type 2 diabetes who check their blood sugars frequently could tell you otherwise.
It’s especially important to keep this in mind when looking at your own blood sugars and your goals, because there are certain variables and challenges that impact blood sugar levels that you can’t always control.
For example:
- Menstrual cycles: often raise blood sugar and insulin needs
- Adrenaline rushes from competitive sports, heated arguments, roller coaster rides, and other intense situations: raise blood sugar and insulin needs
- The common cold and other illnesses: usually raise blood sugar and insulin needs
- Hormonal changes due to puberty and healthy growth in young adults: raise blood sugar and insulin needs
- An injury that increases overall inflammation levels: raises blood sugar and insulin needs
- Gluconeogenesis during anaerobic exercise: raises blood sugar and insulin needs
While you can’t necessarily prevent these factors that affect your blood sugar from occurring, you can work with your diabetes healthcare team to adjust your insulin, other diabetes medications, nutrition, and activity levels to help compensate for them when they do occur.
For example, when engaging in anaerobic exercise such as weightlifting, many people with type 1 diabetes find it necessary to take a small bolus of insulin prior to or during their workout because anaerobic exercise can actually raise blood sugar.
Final thoughts: Still frustrated with your blood sugar and A1c results?
Your blood sugars and your insulin or medication needs never stay in one place. If you gain weight or lose weight, your insulin and medication needs will change. If you become more active or less active, your needs will change. If you make drastic or even small changes to your nutrition, your needs will change.
Working with your diabetes healthcare team and diabetes coaches who can teach you how to make changes in your overall diabetes management plan is essential. Diabetes is a lifelong learning process.
Take a deep breath and be patient. If you don’t like what you’re seeing on your glucose meter, don’t get mad … get studying! Take good notes and work with your team to make changes to reach your goals.
Estefani O
My blood gul test 102. Am i diabectic ?my test have always been in normal range .This is the frist time its been like that.Iam so worried.
Christel Oerum
You have to see a doctor to get a proper diagnosis. One blood sugar reading at 102 mg/dL doesn’t tell you much. It could be an error or a single elevated blood sugar. If you’re worried see your doctor and ask for an A1c test
Sree
Hello,
I went for a annual health check in March’19 and was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes ( My A1C was 9.4). Immediately doc has put me on Metformin 500 mg morning and evening. I completely changed my diet and starting hitting gym/ primarily 4-5 miles of walking everyday. In April’19 ( in a month), A1C came down to 6.8, In May’19, A1C came down to 5.6 and again checked recently, in August A1C came down to 5.3.
I do daily monitoring atleast 4-5 times to check my responses to different foods. Now a days sugar level comes down to 100 in 2+ hours after a meal.
Now the question is —– Is the reduction in my A1C and daily sugar levels because of medicine that I use? If I stop medicine, will the sugar level shoot up again? Am I diabetic now? As my A1C levels are arond 5.3 for more than 4-5 months now? Advise please
Christel Oerum
That’s amazing! Congratulations on all your hard work and progress.
Type 2 diabetes can be reversed but not cured. Your blood sugars can return to normal levels but if you go back to your old ways your blood sugars might shoot up again (read more HERE).
As for getting off Metformin, that’s a discussion you should have with your doctor. He might take you off it and have you monitor what happens
Eric
Hi: Your fasting glucose range for people without diabetes is accurate. But nowhere on the American Diabetes Association’s site are the other figures you list:
1 hour after a meal: 90 to 130 mg/dL
2 hours after a meal: 90 to 110 mg/dL
5 or more hours after eating: 70 to 90 mg/dL
Where did the above ranges come from? Their site only shows normal fasting glucose (<100) and the level it should be two hours after taking an oral glucose tolerance test (<140).
Ginger Vieira
HI Eric!
You’re right — the ADA seems to have completely changed the numbers on their site originally listed. They’ve made many updates to their entire site since this article was written. I’ve found a couple older links and other sites as resources to demonstrate the source of this information. Unfortunately, every medical organization and country seems to have slightly different numbers that vary just slightly, even by 3 points!
Amy T.
My fasting glucose was 100. After breakfast (2 whole grain toast with raw almond butter , banana, peach, and 1/2 cup of blueberries) I checked my glucose 30 minutes after and it was 191. An hour after was 150 and 2 hours after eating my breakfast it was 85. am I a diabetic since my sugar went up to 191? I was told that my glucose should not pass 180 any time.
Christel Oerum
Not necessarily, your body is clearly reducing your blood sugar nicely on its own. For an actual diagnosis, you’ll to see a doctor. You can ask for an A1c test, that will clarify if your blood sugar has been elevated the last 3 months
James S Kantor
Amy.
I would ask for a HBA1c, but you may want to ask your doctor for as glucose Toleration test to make sure blood sugar goes back down. In the mean time you might be better to eat more protein and fats, like cheese or hard boiled eggs that three serving of fruit.
You honestly don’t want you blood sugar to be going over 140 mg/dl if you can help it by diet and exercise.
Tasmiya
Hi I am not a daibetic recently I had blood test done after 3hrs of my break fast It was 101 is this normal.
Christel Oerum
A single blood sugar test isn’t going to tell you much. But in isolation, I wouldn’t be too worried about a 101 mg/dl measurement. However, if you’re concerned I’d recommend seeing a doctor for an A1c test
Kristin
I just tested my blood sugar almost an hour after eating my breakfast. I work out at 4:30am and I ate breakfast at 7:15am-7:30. Today I tested my blood sugar at 8:20am and it was 80. I use a preworkout at 4:30, and a BCAA after my workout. So I thought I would have a higher blood sugar.
Christel Oerum
I can’t give you a good answer to why your blood sugar is what it is, too many unknown variables. If you live with type 1 diabetes it simply means that you most likely had the right amount of insulin on board for your workout
Kristin Burggraff
Today my blood sugar was 88 before breakfast at 7:15 and 30 minutes after breakfast it was 132. (Normally it is around 110-117) Is that because my body didn’t like what I was eating?
Christel Oerum
Could be, but there can also be a lot of other reasons. One data point is rarely enough to make any conclusions. If you really enjoy the meal, try again and see what happens
Aymi Gold
Im prediabetic and 23 years both my parents have diabetic some times I get headaches when ever I drink soft drinks so Im just curious are headaches related to diabetic? I tested my random blood sugar after an hour eating my meal the reslult was 138 . do you think Im diabetic? . Is 138 random blood sugar is normal ? Kindly reply plz
Christel Oerum
You need to see a doctor and get blood work done to get a diagnosis. If both your parents live with diabetes and your blood sugars tend to run high you could be living with diabetes or maybe pre-diabetes. Early diagnosis is important, as pre-diabetes for many won’t become type 2 diabetes if you intervene.
As for the headaches, it could, but it could also be so many other things. Please go see a doctor
Kyle
I have been experiencing off and on excessive thirst and frequent urination, a friend recommenced I test blood sugar, The first was 272 and 258.. in the mornings I run about 110ish (normal?) and some
Days I stay within normal range. (Never below 100) and evenings after dinner I’m usually 130’s to 160’s. So went to dr. And A1c was 5.1, glucose slight elevated and high levels in protein.. said we would re check in 3 months and to watch carbs. Any suggestions? I’m trying to understand something I have no idea about. I have urgency to urinate all the time. No uti
Christel Oerum
Most people will experience blood sugar fluctuations throughout the day. That combined with your very low A1c is probably why your doctor decided to monitor what happens over the next 3 months.
I’d suggest you follow your doctor’s guidance and reduce the number of refined carbohydrates you eat and potentially your overall carbohydrate intake. This is a great resource on carbohydrates (https://www.diabetes.org/nutrition/understanding-carbs).
Increasing your activity level can also be a great way to help to manage your blood sugars
James S Kantor
With the symptoms you have I would do see an endocrinologist. You should not have blood sugar in the 200’s. I would have the HbA1C repeated. And ask for a fasting blood sugar and a fasting insulin. Yes, in the mean time I would eat low carb. Are you hungry often, I was, and yes did, need to urninate especially at night.
Linda
I was diagnosed as a diabetic type 2 in July 2017. I was placed on insulin for 26 days and went and saw an Diabetic Specialist and I was told I didn’t need insulin and my test results such as pep and the other things they look for was normal except my alc level. Metformin 500 mg I took twice a day until March 22 2018 and I was taken off metformin. I recently did an annual check up and my alc level is still 5.2 with no meds, am I considered as half remission or something of remission?? Doctor didn’t tell me much, but my blood sugar is good!
Ginger Vieira
Linda!!!
Congratulations — it does sound like your blood sugars have come down into a non-diabetic range. Just keep in mind that your lifestyle habits will play a huge central role in keeping you in that non-diabetic range. That doesn’t mean you need to be perfect in everything you eat, but it does mean you’ll want to strive to eat a mostly whole-foods diet with lots of vegetables and….get plenty of daily exercise. Walking every day or something more intense if you’re up for it — but walking is an awesome, awesome, awesome thing for the body and for keeping blood sugars healthy.
And of course, every now and then, check-in and see how your A1c is doing!
Congrats! Keep us posted!
-Ginger
Luz
Hello my sugar drops doctor told me I have hypoglycemia but didn’t give me any medication or anything just told me to monitor today I felt like it had dropped so I ate a hot dog with water and a couple slices of watermelon and i checked it and was at 176 I’m not diabetic I’m freaking out I have severe depression and anxiety
Christel Oerum
I would call your doctor and ask what he/she would recommend you do when your blood sugar runs high/low. An occasional blood sugar of 176 is probably nothing to be concerned about but your doctor knows your medical history and should be able to guide you.
As for treating low blood sugar (hypoglycemia), I’d recommend a fast-acting carbohydrate such as 15 grams of carbs from glucose tabs or a glass of juice
Younes
Hi I recently got my sugar levels dropping to 3.8 my hba1c is normal 5.4 my fasting glucose ranges from 4.9 to 5.7 doctors saying I’m not diabetic tested OGTT came back at 2.8 got tested again OGTT came back at 6 now when I’m hungry my sugar is around 4.1 during day at times I feel lost or confused or brain fogged when hungry am I diabetic or not
Christel Oerum
Hypoglycemia (low blood sugar)is not just related to diabetes and can be a sign of other underlying conditions. You can read more HERE. I suggest discussing the issue with your doctor and try to identify why you’re having hypos
Tina
Hi: Would you clarify where your glucose numbers come from? You cite the American Diabetes Association, but the link to their site states that any fasting glucose under 100 is normal. But you list the normal range as 70-90.
Ginger Vieira
Tina! You’re absolutely right! Thank you for catching this mistake. I’ve updated the article.
Ron R Robles
My blood sugar in the morning and sometimes about 110-108 and then later on about 3 or 4 hours after you eat is about 88 what is going on is that good or I don’t understand anything they did send my A1C about six months ago or maybe more than that was at 6.1
Christel Oerum
88 mg/dL is considered a “normal” blood sugar, so that’s great. The elevated morning blood sugar and A1c could be pre-diabetes or type 2 diabetes but your doctor has to give you that diagnosis. If they just sent you an A1c of 6.1% with no explanation I would suggest you call and ask for one as well as a plan of action
Ron R Robles
What is the best way to lower your blood sugar I don’t want to be on medication I already had open heart surgery that I don’t want no that kind of medication anything natural that I can use
Christel Oerum
There are no Herbal cures for diabetes. Some can lower their blood sugars through exercise and diest (read more HERE) and others have to go on medication.
Mike o sullivan
Has cinnamon a lowering effect o blood sugars ?
Christel Oerum
No, it does not