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Creatinine blood test

In short

A typical adult creatinine result is 0.59 to 1.04 mg/dL for women and 0.74 to 1.35 mg/dL for men. A small rise is common and often comes from a muscular build, a big meat meal or low fluids. Doctors look at eGFR and whether it stays high on a repeat test. Always read your result against the range printed on your own report.

A waste product from muscles that the kidneys clear.

Your muscles make creatinine at a steady rate, and healthy kidneys filter it out into urine. When the kidneys filter less, creatinine builds up in the blood. Doctors use it, with your age and sex, to estimate kidney function (eGFR).

Is my Creatinine high or low?

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Typical range

ForRangeUnit
Female0.59–1.04mg/dL
Male0.74–1.35mg/dL
Female52–92µmol/L
Male65–119µmol/L

Typical ranges for adults. Labs differ a little, so the range printed next to your result is the one to go by.

If your Creatinine is high

A small rise is common and often comes from a muscular build, a big meat meal or low fluids. Doctors look at eGFR and whether it stays high on a repeat test.

Common reasons

  • Not drinking enough, or losing fluid through heat, vomiting or diarrhea
  • A muscular build, or hard exercise in the day or two before
  • A large meat meal or creatine supplements before the test
  • Some medicines, including some pain relievers, water pills and blood pressure medicines
  • Kidneys filtering less, often linked to diabetes or high blood pressure
  • Less often: a sudden kidney injury, a urinary blockage, or muscle breakdown

If your Creatinine is low

A low creatinine usually reflects less muscle and is rarely a concern on its own.

Common reasons

  • A smaller or less muscular build
  • Pregnancy, when the kidneys filter more
  • Older age, as muscle mass slowly falls
  • Eating little meat or protein
  • Less often: muscle loss from a long illness, or severe liver disease

What can throw it off

A big meat meal, creatine supplements or hard exercise shortly before the test can raise it.

Questions to take to your appointment

  1. 1Is this change big enough to matter, or should we repeat it?
  2. 2Could my build, diet or medicines explain it?
  3. 3Should my urine be checked for protein too?

Read together with

Doctors rarely read Creatinine alone. These usually sit next to it.

Quick answers

What is the creatinine blood test?

Creatinine: A waste product from muscles that the kidneys clear. Your muscles make creatinine at a steady rate, and healthy kidneys filter it out into urine. When the kidneys filter less, creatinine builds up in the blood. Doctors use it, with your age and sex, to estimate kidney function (eGFR).

What is a normal creatinine level?

For most adults, creatinine is typically 0.59 to 1.04 mg/dL for women and 0.74 to 1.35 mg/dL for men. Some countries print it in µmol/L, so check the unit first. Labs differ a little, so the range printed next to your result is the one to go by.

What does a high creatinine mean?

A small rise is common and often comes from a muscular build, a big meat meal or low fluids. Doctors look at eGFR and whether it stays high on a repeat test. Common reasons include not drinking enough, or losing fluid through heat, vomiting or diarrhea; a muscular build, or hard exercise in the day or two before; a large meat meal or creatine supplements before the test; and some medicines, including some pain relievers, water pills and blood pressure medicines. A doctor reads it together with your other results and how you feel.

What does a low creatinine mean?

A low creatinine usually reflects less muscle and is rarely a concern on its own. Common reasons include a smaller or less muscular build; pregnancy, when the kidneys filter more; older age, as muscle mass slowly falls; and eating little meat or protein.

What can affect my creatinine result?

A big meat meal, creatine supplements or hard exercise shortly before the test can raise it.

What should I ask my doctor about my creatinine?

Questions worth taking to the appointment: Is this change big enough to matter, or should we repeat it? Could my build, diet or medicines explain it? Should my urine be checked for protein too?

What this page can’t do

It reads each number on its own.

Doctors read results together — ALT with AST, ferritin with hemoglobin, TSH with free T4. A pattern says more than any single flag.

It doesn't know you.

Your age, your medicines, how you feel and your last result all change what a number means.

It doesn't remember.

Close this page and your results are gone. That's on purpose: nothing was ever sent to us.

We also make Vita: Health Coach, an app for those parts. It reads your whole report with your medicines and history in mind, answers follow-up questions in plain words, and keeps your reports in one place — for you and for the people you look after.

Vita: Health Coach on the App Store

Sources

Stuck on a word? See the medical words. How we choose our sources. More about Vita Health Coach.