Uric Acid
Uric acid is a waste product from breaking down purines. High levels can lead to gout or kidney stones in some people.
AI-verified against cited sources. Awaiting expert reviewAlso called SUALOINC 3084-1
Check your result
The usual range for Uric Acid depends on sex. Choose female or male above to see where you stand.
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What it is
Uric acid forms when your body breaks down purines. Purines come from your own cells and from foods such as red meat, organ meats, some seafood and alcohol. Most uric acid dissolves in the blood and leaves in urine after passing through the kidneys. A smaller share is cleared through the gut. The blood test shows how much is in your blood now.
Why it matters
When uric acid builds up, it can form sharp crystals in joints (gout) or stones in the kidneys. But many people with a high level never get gout, so the number is read along with symptoms and kidney function. People being treated for gout use repeat measurements to see whether they are reaching their target.
If it’s low
A low uric acid is uncommon and usually does not cause problems. It can come from a low-purine or low-protein diet or certain medicines, and less often from severe liver disease or rare inherited conditions.
Common causes
- Medicines that lower urate, such as allopurinol, probenecid and high-dose aspirin
- Low protein or purine intake
- Vitamin C supplements
- Severe liver disease
- Rare inherited conditions, such as Wilson disease, cystinosis and xanthinuria
What can help
- Ask your clinician whether a medicine or supplement could explain a low value
- Ask whether a repeat test is useful to confirm it
If it’s high
A higher uric acid means your body is making more urate than usual or clearing less of it. Many people with a high level have no symptoms. A higher level makes gout and kidney stones more likely, and it is common when the kidneys are clearing less. A single number can't tell your clinician which of these applies to you.
Common causes
- A diet rich in purines (red meat, organ meats, some seafood), alcohol or sugary drinks
- Extra body weight or metabolic syndrome
- Reduced kidney function
- Medicines such as diuretics, low-dose aspirin, high-dose niacin and cyclosporine
- Being male, older age, and for women, after menopause
- Fasting, dehydration or rapid weight loss
- Conditions with fast cell turnover, such as psoriasis or some cancers, and some cancer treatments
- A family history of gout or high uric acid
What can help
- Cutting back on alcohol and sugary drinks such as soda
- Moving toward a balanced diet with fewer purine-rich animal foods
- Working toward a healthy weight gradually if you carry extra weight
- Asking your clinician whether any of your medicines could be raising your uric acid, without stopping them on your own
- If you have had gout flares or kidney stones, asking your clinician whether treatment to lower uric acid is right for you
Usual ranges
What labs print as the reference range, by who was tested. Ranges differ a little between labs, so the range on your own report is the one your result is judged against.
The usual range depends on sex and age. Choose women or men to see the one that applies.
- Men, 18+3.8–8.4 mg/dL
Sources: Labcorp, Mayo Clinic Laboratories, ARUP Laboratories, Arthritis Care & Research, Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases, Metabolites
- Women, 18–502.6–6.2 mg/dL
Sources: Labcorp, Mayo Clinic Laboratories, National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIH)
- Women, 51–703–7.2 mg/dL
Source: Labcorp
- Women, 71+3.1–7.9 mg/dL
Source: Labcorp
See Uric Acid by age and sex, with the U.S. survey numbers where they exist.
If this applies to you
Uric Acid means a little more for some people. Open the one that fits you.
Gout
For people on urate-lowering treatment, the ACR 2020 guideline strongly recommends aiming for a uric acid below 6 mg/dL, with dose changes guided by repeat uric acid tests. Lower levels are linked to fewer flares and faster shrinking of tophi, the swellings under the skin that urate crystals can form.
Keto or low-carb eating
Uric acid can rise for a while early in a ketogenic diet and in most cases returns to its earlier level, a 2023 review notes. Across 6 trials lasting 8 to 16 weeks, the average uric acid did not change significantly.
How common is your level?
NHANES describes the US civilian, non-institutionalized population, not a 'healthy' reference group. People with disease, on medication, fasting or not (except fasting-subsample markers), smokers and so on are all included. A percentile says where a value sits among Americans of that sex and age, not whether it is normal.
Use the left and right arrow keys to read each age. Shift moves five years.
Reference data derived from CDC/NCHS National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), cycles 2015-2016, 2017-March 2020 (pre-pandemic), August 2021-August 2023. Analysis by bloodtesttracker.com; not endorsed by CDC, NCHS or HHS.
Explore Uric Acid by age and sex: every percentile as a table, with a download.
What can affect your result
- Sex and age: levels are higher in men, and in women they rise after menopause
- Diet: purine-rich foods, alcohol (all types) and sugary drinks such as soda made with high fructose corn syrup
- Body weight and metabolic health
- Kidney function: lower kidney function means less urate is cleared
- Medicines, including diuretics, aspirin and niacin
- Hydration, fasting and rapid weight loss
- Family history and genes
- Purine-rich meals, alcohol, sugary drinks, fasting, starvation and rapid weight loss can raise the level.
- Medicines that can raise uric acid include diuretics, low-dose aspirin, high-dose niacin, cyclosporine, pyrazinamide and ethambutol. Medicines that can lower it include allopurinol, probenecid, high-dose aspirin and X-ray contrast agents.
- Vitamin C supplements are listed by Labcorp among causes of a lower uric acid level.
- Some uricase-based methods read falsely low with N-acetylcysteine, the acetaminophen byproduct NAPQI (at overdose levels), metamizole, alpha-methyldopa, deferoxamine or calcium dobesilate.
Diet, alcohol, weight and medicine changes generally show up over weeks to months.
When to talk to a clinician
Seek care promptly for a hot, swollen, very painful joint, often the big toe, especially if you also have a fever. Talk with a clinician if your level is above your lab's range and you have had gout flares or kidney stones. Signs of a kidney stone include sharp pain in your side, back or lower belly, blood in your urine, or pain when urinating. If you are being treated for gout, guidelines aim for a level below 6 mg/dL (360 µmol/L).
Questions you could ask
- How often should my uric acid be rechecked?
- If I have had gout flares or kidney stones, what level should we aim for?
- Could any of my medicines or health conditions be raising my uric acid?
- Should we check my kidney function or anything else along with this?
- Is this a level we should just keep an eye on, or does it change anything for me?
- Could a medicine or supplement I take explain a low value?
Questions people ask
Does a high uric acid mean I have gout?
No. Only a minority of people with a high level go on to develop gout. Gout is recognized from symptoms such as a sudden, painful, swollen joint, and sometimes from testing joint fluid. A high uric acid result is one clue among several.
Why are the ranges different for men and women, and by age?
Men tend to have higher levels than women. In women, levels rise after menopause. Labs set separate intervals so that each result is compared with people like you.
What level do doctors aim for in people with gout?
Rheumatology guidelines (ACR 2020, EULAR 2016) aim for below 6 mg/dL (360 µmol/L), and EULAR aims below 5 mg/dL (300 µmol/L) for severe gout. This is a treatment target for people with gout, not a goal for everyone. Evidence: strong guideline recommendation for people with gout.
How do I convert uric acid between mg/dL and µmol/L?
Multiply mg/dL by 59.48 to get µmol/L. For example, 6 mg/dL is about 357 µmol/L. To go the other way, multiply µmol/L by 0.0168.
Can what I eat and drink change my uric acid?
Yes, over time. Foods high in purines (red meat, organ meats and some seafood), alcohol of all types and sugary drinks made with high fructose corn syrup are linked to higher levels. Diet is only one part of the picture, since genes and kidney function also matter a lot.
Show the science and sources
Units
- 1 mg/dL = 1 mg/dL
- 1 mg/dL = 59.48 µmol/L
- 1 mg/dL = 0.05948 mmol/L
Open the Uric Acid unit converter
Is a change real?
Uric Acid naturally varies about 8.32% from test to test in the same healthy person. Between two results from the same lab, a change of roughly 23% or more is unlikely to be day-to-day noise or lab variation (95% reference change value). Source: The European Biological Variation Study (EuBIVAS): a summary report.
For clinicians and researchers
Uric acid (C5H4N4O3, molecular weight 168.11) is the end product of purine catabolism in humans. About 70% of daily urate is excreted by the kidneys and about 30% through the intestine. At pH 7.4, monosodium urate reaches its saturation point at about 6.8 mg/dL (405 µmol/L), above which crystals can precipitate, yet no universally accepted laboratory definition of hyperuricemia exists. Mayo Clinic Laboratories states that hyperuricemia is most commonly defined as above 8.0 mg/dL in males or above 6.1 mg/dL in females (its upper reference limits). Most labs use a uricase method followed by a peroxidase color reaction (for example a quinone-imine dye), which reads falsely low with some reducing substances (N-acetylcysteine, NAPQI, metamizole, alpha-methyldopa, deferoxamine, calcium dobesilate). Reference intervals depend on sex, age and method. Labcorp's female intervals step up at 51 and 71 years, and male intervals do not split above age 18. Only a minority of people with hyperuricemia develop gout. The ACR 2020 gout guideline strongly recommends treating to a serum urate target below 6 mg/dL with serial measurements. EULAR 2016 recommends below 6 mg/dL, and below 5 mg/dL in severe gout. Urine uric acid is a separate marker.
LOINC 3084-1 (primary), 14933-6. Specimen: serum-or-plasma.
Sources
- Uric Acid (test 001057), Labcorp
- URIC - Uric Acid, Serum, Mayo Clinic Laboratories
- Uric Acid, Serum or Plasma (test 0020026), ARUP Laboratories
- 2020 American College of Rheumatology Guideline for the Management of Gout, Arthritis Care & Research (2020)
- 2016 updated EULAR evidence-based recommendations for the management of gout, Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases (2017)
- Gout: Symptoms, Causes, and Risk Factors, National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIH) (2023)
- Asymptomatic Hyperuricemia and the Kidney: Lessons from the URRAH Study, Metabolites (2025)
- Uric acid (PubChem compound 1175), NCBI PubChem
- Uric Acid in Primary Hyperparathyroidism: Marker, Consequence, or Bystander?, Metabolites (2025)
AI-verified against cited sources. Awaiting expert review. Last reviewed 2026-10-03. How we build and check these pages.