Timed Up and Go (TUG) Calculator
Assess fall risk and functional mobility using the Timed Up and Go test with age-adjusted and assistive device considerations.
About this calculator
The Timed Up and Go (TUG) test, first described by Podsiadlo and Richardson in 1991, is one of the most widely used bedside mobility screens: a patient rises from a standard armchair, walks 3 meters, turns, walks back, and sits down again, and the whole sequence is timed in seconds -- entered here as TUG Time. Fall Risk uses the 13.5-second cutoff established by Shumway-Cook and colleagues in 2000 as predictive of fall risk in community-dwelling older adults -- the actual validated fall-risk threshold in the literature: below 13.5 seconds is low risk, 13.5 seconds and above is high risk.
Independence Level uses a separate, differently sourced pair of cutoffs -- Podsiadlo and Richardson's own 1991 mobility-grade boundaries, roughly 10 seconds and 20 seconds, describing independence in basic transfers versus more dependence -- to produce a three-tier scale from independent through dependent; these are mobility grade cutoffs, not fall-risk cutoffs, which is why they drive Independence Level rather than Fall Risk. Age-Adjusted Risk goes a step further, comparing the test time (reduced slightly for Assistive Device use, since a cane or walker adds time for reasons unrelated to underlying balance) against approximate age-banded normal ranges drawn from Steffen et al.'s 2002 normative study of community-dwelling older adults (roughly under 8 seconds for ages 60-69, under 9 seconds for 70-79, and under 11 seconds for 80 and older; that study doesn't publish a separate band for adults under 60, so this calculator uses the same 8-second ceiling as the youngest published band for those patients too, keeping the threshold non-decreasing across the full age range) -- this age-and-device blend is this calculator's own synthesis of that normative data, not itself a single named clinical instrument, so treat Age-Adjusted Risk as a supplementary context signal alongside the two source-backed Fall Risk and Independence Level scores, not a replacement for either.
Medical Disclaimer
This calculator is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before making decisions about your health. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay seeking it because of results from this tool.
Inputs
Results
TUG Score
13.5 seconds
Fall Risk
2 (1=Low, 2=High, per Shumway-Cook 13.5s cutoff)
Figures current as of 2000. Sources: Podsiadlo D, Richardson S. The timed "Up & Go": a test of basic functional mobility for frail elderly persons. J Am Geriatr Soc. 1991;39(2):142-148., Shumway-Cook A, Brauer S, Woollacott M. Predicting the probability for falls in community-dwelling older adults using the Timed Up & Go Test. Phys Ther. 2000;80(9):896-903.
How to Use This Calculator
- Enter TUG Time, Patient Age, and Assistive Device.
- Review TUG Score (seconds) and Fall Risk ((1=Low, 2=High), based on the Shumway-Cook 13.5-second validated fall-risk cutoff).
- Use Independence Level ((1=Independent, 2=Mostly Independent, 3=Dependent), based on Podsiadlo & Richardson's mobility-grade cutoffs) and Age-Adjusted Risk ((1=Low, 2=Moderate, 3=High)) to inform your decision.
How the result changes with TUG Time
| TUG Time | TUG Score | Fall Risk |
|---|---|---|
| 6.75 | 6.8 seconds | 1 (1=Low, 2=High, per Shumway-Cook 13.5s cutoff) |
| 10 | 10 seconds | 1 (1=Low, 2=High, per Shumway-Cook 13.5s cutoff) |
| 20 | 20 seconds | 2 (1=Low, 2=High, per Shumway-Cook 13.5s cutoff) |
| 34 | 34 seconds | 2 (1=Low, 2=High, per Shumway-Cook 13.5s cutoff) |
What each input means
- TUG Time
- Time in seconds to stand from a chair, walk 3 meters, turn, walk back, and sit down.
- Patient Age
- Age of the patient in years for age-adjusted normative comparison.
- Assistive Device
- The mobility aid, if any, used during the test.
How this is calculated
Worked example, using the default values
- Identify Input ParametersTUG Time = 13.5, Patient Age = 72, Assistive Device = 0 = 3 input(s) provided
- Calculate TUG ScoreTUG Score13.5 = 13.5
- Calculate Fall RiskFall Risk2 = 2
- Calculate Independence LevelIndependence Level2 = 2
- Calculate Age-Adjusted RiskAge-Adjusted Risk2 = 2
Figures and sources
- Timed Up and Go (TUG) test (1991) — Podsiadlo D, Richardson S. The timed "Up & Go": a test of basic functional mobility for frail elderly persons. J Am Geriatr Soc. 1991;39(2):142-148.
- TUG 13.5-second fall-risk cutoff (2000) — Shumway-Cook A, Brauer S, Woollacott M. Predicting the probability for falls in community-dwelling older adults using the Timed Up & Go Test. Phys Ther. 2000;80(9):896-903.
Engine last updated . Checked against 2 independently-derived tests — how we verify calculators. Built by Paul Gunder, a software engineer, not a licensed financial, medical, or legal professional.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does Fall Risk use a different cutoff than Independence Level?
They come from two different, separately published sources measuring two different things. Fall Risk uses the 13.5-second cutoff established by Shumway-Cook and colleagues in 2000, which was specifically validated as predictive of fall risk in community-dwelling older adults. Independence Level uses Podsiadlo and Richardson's own roughly 10-second and 20-second boundaries from their original 1991 TUG paper, which describe mobility grade (independent, mostly independent, dependent in basic transfers) rather than fall risk. Using the right source for the right output is why this calculator keeps them separate instead of blending both cutoffs into either score.
Does using a cane or walker automatically increase Fall Risk?
Not directly -- Fall Risk is based purely on the raw TUG Time in seconds against the Shumway-Cook 13.5-second cutoff, without any adjustment for assistive device use. Assistive Device only factors into Age-Adjusted Risk, where a small time offset (0.5 seconds for a cane, 1 second for a walker) accounts for the fact that using a mobility aid adds some time to the test for reasons other than underlying balance impairment.
What TUG time is considered 'normal' for an 82-year-old versus a 65-year-old?
Using approximate age-banded norms from Steffen et al.'s 2002 normative study, a 65-year-old (in the 60-69 band) would be compared against roughly an 8-second normal threshold, while an 82-year-old (80 and older) would be compared against roughly 11 seconds. This reflects that gait and mobility speed naturally slow with advancing age even in the absence of a specific impairment, so the same raw TUG time can mean something different depending on the patient's age.
Does Patient Age change the raw TUG Score or Fall Risk result?
No -- TUG Score is simply the entered TUG Time rounded to one decimal place, and Fall Risk is based only on that raw time against the fixed 10/20-second tiers. Patient Age is used exclusively to compute Age-Adjusted Risk, a separate output that compares the (device-adjusted) time against age-banded normative thresholds, so age never changes the two other scores.
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