Total cholesterol blood test
In short
A typical adult total cholesterol result is under 200 mg/dL (desirable). A high total cholesterol raises heart and stroke risk over years, not overnight. How it splits between LDL and HDL matters more than the total. Always read your result against the range printed on your own report.
All the cholesterol in your blood, good and bad together.
Cholesterol is a waxy fat your body needs to build cells and hormones. This number includes the 'good' HDL and the 'bad' LDL, so it is read alongside them. The right target depends on your overall heart risk, which your doctor weighs.
Is my Total cholesterol high or low?
Type your result to see where it sits.
Nothing you type leaves this device.
Typical range
| For | Range | Unit |
|---|---|---|
| Adults · desirable | under 200 | mg/dL |
| Adults · desirable | under 5.2 | mmol/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 Total cholesterol is high
A high total cholesterol raises heart and stroke risk over years, not overnight. How it splits between LDL and HDL matters more than the total.
Common reasons
- A high 'good' HDL, which also counts toward the total
- Foods high in saturated fat, such as fatty meat, butter and cheese
- Extra body weight or little physical activity
- Genes: high cholesterol often runs in families
- An underactive thyroid, pregnancy, or the hormone changes of menopause
- Some medicines, including steroid medicines
- Less often: kidney or liver conditions, or an inherited condition with very high levels
If your Total cholesterol is low
Low total cholesterol is usually not a concern and is often the aim of treatment. Very low levels in someone not on treatment may be looked into.
Common reasons
- Some cholesterol medicines, which is often the goal
- Weight loss or a very low-fat diet
- A recent illness, infection or surgery
- An overactive thyroid
- Less often: poor absorption of food, liver disease or a rare inherited condition
What can throw it off
A recent illness, surgery or heart attack can lower cholesterol for several weeks.
Questions to take to your appointment
- 1What target fits my overall heart risk?
- 2How do my LDL and HDL look behind this total?
- 3When should this be checked again?
Read together with
Doctors rarely read Total cholesterol alone. These usually sit next to it.
- LDL cholesterolThe 'bad' cholesterol that can build up in artery walls.
- HDL cholesterolThe 'good' cholesterol that carries extra cholesterol back to the liver.
- TriglyceridesThe main type of fat carried in the blood.
- Non-HDL cholesterolAll the 'bad' cholesterol together: total cholesterol minus HDL.
- Cholesterol/HDL ratioTotal cholesterol divided by HDL; lower is better.
Quick answers
What is the total cholesterol blood test?
Total cholesterol: All the cholesterol in your blood, good and bad together. Cholesterol is a waxy fat your body needs to build cells and hormones. This number includes the 'good' HDL and the 'bad' LDL, so it is read alongside them. The right target depends on your overall heart risk, which your doctor weighs.
What is a normal total cholesterol level?
For most adults, total cholesterol is typically under 200 mg/dL (desirable). Some countries print it in mmol/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 total cholesterol mean?
A high total cholesterol raises heart and stroke risk over years, not overnight. How it splits between LDL and HDL matters more than the total. Common reasons include a high 'good' HDL, which also counts toward the total; foods high in saturated fat, such as fatty meat, butter and cheese; extra body weight or little physical activity; and genes: high cholesterol often runs in families. A doctor reads it together with your other results and how you feel.
What does a low total cholesterol mean?
Low total cholesterol is usually not a concern and is often the aim of treatment. Very low levels in someone not on treatment may be looked into. Common reasons include some cholesterol medicines, which is often the goal; weight loss or a very low-fat diet; a recent illness, infection or surgery; and an overactive thyroid.
What can affect my total cholesterol result?
A recent illness, surgery or heart attack can lower cholesterol for several weeks.
What should I ask my doctor about my total cholesterol?
Questions worth taking to the appointment: What target fits my overall heart risk? How do my LDL and HDL look behind this total? When should this be checked again?
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 StoreSources
Stuck on a word? See the medical words. How we choose our sources. More about Vita Health Coach.