Fasting Glucose Normal Range — ADA Thresholds
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This measures the sugar in your blood after a night without food, when levels should be low and steady.
Fasting Glucose reveals where your sugar rests after a stretch of no food overnight. It shows how steadily your body holds that level between meals.
Also known as: FPG, Fasting blood glucose, Fasting blood sugar, FBS, fasting plasma glucose
This isn't a case where higher or lower is better. Your body keeps it in a narrow band, and both directions can matter.
Last reviewed: 2026-08-16
What is Fasting Glucose?
After roughly eight hours without eating, your body runs on stored fuel and no meal is pushing sugar into the blood. This reading captures that resting level, which reflects how tightly your body holds sugar in check.
Why is Fasting Glucose tested?
This test shows how well your body keeps blood sugar steady between meals, a common sugar check.
What is a normal Fasting Glucose range?
- India
- 70–100 mg/dL (normal fasting, ICMR)
- Global
- 70–99 mg/dL (normal); 100–125 mg/dL (impaired fasting glucose); ≥126 mg/dL (consistent with diabetes, ADA)
Ranges vary by lab, method and equipment — the range printed on your own report is the one that applies to your result.
Source: [ADA, 2024]
The printed range is usually the reference for people without diabetes [ADA, 2024]. For someone already living with diabetes, the day-to-day target the doctor sets can be different [ADA, 2024]. Targets are individualised by age and other health conditions [ADA, 2024]. Your doctor sets the target that is right for you.
What does a Fasting Glucose of 100 mean?
Find your Fasting Glucose result in the table below, then read the band it falls into. Each band names the guideline body it comes from. Always compare against the range printed on your own report.
| If your result is | Band | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Below 100 mg/dL | Normal fasting range | ADA (2024) |
| 100–126 mg/dL | Prediabetes range (impaired fasting glucose) | ADA (2024) |
| 126 mg/dL and above | Diabetes range | ADA (2024) |
Fasting Glucose Below 100 mg/dL — Normal fasting range
If your result is 70, 80, 85, 90 or anywhere in this band: This is the usual fasting blood-sugar range. It suggests your body handled sugar well overnight before the test.
Source: [ADA, 2024]
Worth asking your doctor
- Is this fasting result reassuring for someone like me?
- How often should I have my blood sugar checked?
Fasting Glucose 100–126 mg/dL — Prediabetes range (impaired fasting glucose)
If your result is 100, 105, 110, 115 or anywhere in this band: This is above the usual fasting range but below the diabetes range. It often points to early changes in how your body handles sugar. These changes can frequently be improved.
Source: [ADA, 2024]
Worth asking your doctor
- What does an impaired fasting glucose result mean for me?
- Would an HbA1c or a repeat fasting test help build the picture?
- Which everyday changes would you suggest first?
Fasting Glucose 126 mg/dL and above — Diabetes range
If your result is 126, 130, 140, 150 or anywhere in this band: This is in the range doctors use to identify diabetes. It is usually confirmed with a repeat test or an HbA1c before anything is concluded. It is worth discussing with your doctor soon.
Source: [ADA, 2024]
Worth asking your doctor
- Should this be confirmed with another test, and when?
- What is the next step to understand my blood sugar?
- What changes would help me most right now?
Fasting Glucose in mg/dL and SI units
Showing values in mg/dL. This is display only — your report's own value does not change.
| Value (mg/dL) | Same value (mmol/L) |
|---|---|
| 70 mg/dL | 3.9 mmol/L |
| 80 mg/dL | 4.4 mmol/L |
| 85 mg/dL | 4.7 mmol/L |
| 90 mg/dL | 5 mmol/L |
| 95 mg/dL | 5.3 mmol/L |
| 99 mg/dL | 5.5 mmol/L |
Source: [CLSI, 2010]
What does a high Fasting Glucose result mean?
A higher fasting sugar can mean your body is not keeping blood sugar steady while fasting. It is worth discussing with your doctor. They can look at it with your other results.
What does a low Fasting Glucose result mean?
A lower fasting sugar means your blood sugar has dropped below the usual fasting range. Some people feel shaky, sweaty, or lightheaded. Your doctor can explain what it means for you.
What can affect your Fasting Glucose result?
- food or drink taken recently
- physical activity
- stress
- some medicines
- how well you slept
In the Indian context
Type 2 diabetes is common in India. ICMR-INDIAB data show that the same fasting sugar cut-offs used worldwide are also used in Indian clinics.
Questions to ask your doctor
About this result
- What does my Fasting Glucose result mean for me specifically, given my age and health?
- Is my Fasting Glucose in the range that is right for me, not just the lab's general range?
What to do next
- Could anything I eat, do, or take have affected my fasting sugar result?
- Is there anything I should do about my Fasting Glucose, or is it fine to leave as it is?
About retesting
- Does my Fasting Glucose need to be repeated, and if so, when?
The bigger picture
- Should my Fasting Glucose be looked at together with my Postprandial Glucose and Random Glucose result?
- Does my Fasting Glucose connect to any condition I already have, or to anything I have noticed in how I feel?
Frequently asked questions
- What is Fasting Glucose?
- After roughly eight hours without eating, your body runs on stored fuel and no meal is pushing sugar into the blood. This reading captures that resting level, which reflects how tightly your body holds sugar in check. This test shows how well your body keeps blood sugar steady between meals, a common sugar check.
- What is a normal fasting sugar test range?
- In India a typical adult range is 70–100 mg/dL (normal fasting, ICMR). Internationally it is around 70–99 mg/dL (normal); 100–125 mg/dL (impaired fasting glucose); ≥126 mg/dL (consistent with diabetes, ADA). Ranges vary by lab, method and equipment — the range printed on your own report is the one that applies to your result.
- What does a high Fasting Glucose result mean?
- A higher fasting sugar can mean your body is not keeping blood sugar steady while fasting. It is worth discussing with your doctor. They can look at it with your other results.
- What does a low Fasting Glucose result mean?
- A lower fasting sugar means your blood sugar has dropped below the usual fasting range. Some people feel shaky, sweaty, or lightheaded. Your doctor can explain what it means for you.
- What can affect your Fasting Glucose result?
- Several everyday factors can influence it, including food or drink taken recently, physical activity, stress, some medicines, how well you slept.
Sources
- ADA (2024) — Standards of Medical Care in Diabetes — Classification and Diagnosis
- ICMR (2018) — ICMR-INDIAB Study and ICMR guidelines on diabetes in India
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