What is a normal TyG index?

There is no single normal range. In a study against the clamp test (the gold standard), insulin resistance started at about 8.67, and another study found 8.8 for the metabolic syndrome. Below about 8.5 is reassuring; higher values call for an HbA1c or a fasting insulin test.

How do you calculate the TyG index?

Multiply fasting triglycerides by fasting glucose (both mg/dL), divide by 2 and take the natural logarithm. Triglycerides 150 and glucose 100 give ln(150 × 100 ÷ 2) = ln(7,500) = 8.92. For mmol/L values, convert first (× 88.57 for triglycerides, × 18 for glucose); the calculator does it for you.

Why do some papers give a TyG cut-off of about 4.7?

Some early papers wrote the index as ln(triglycerides × glucose) ÷ 2, a scale on which the same result is about half as big. 4.68 on that scale is 8.67 on the usual one. Check which formula a paper used before comparing numbers.

TyG or HOMA-IR: which is better?

HOMA-IR needs a fasting insulin result, which most routine tests leave out; TyG uses two markers almost every check-up has. Both are estimates. If either is high, an HbA1c or an oral glucose tolerance test says more.

TyG index calculator (triglyceride-glucose index)

Short answer: The TyG index is ln(fasting triglycerides × fasting glucose ÷ 2), both in mg/dL. It tracks insulin resistance about as well as HOMA-IR without an insulin test, which most check-ups don’t include. Values of about 8.7 or above point to insulin resistance; there is no single agreed cut-off.

Free calculator

TyG index calculator (triglyceride-glucose)

TyG = ln(triglycerides × glucose ÷ 2), both in mg/dL

Sources: Simental-Mendía LE, Rodríguez-Morán M, Guerrero-Romero F. The product of fasting glucose and triglycerides as surrogate for identifying insulin resistance in apparently healthy subjects. Metab Syndr Relat Disord 2008;6(4):299-304.

Fasting triglycerides

mg/dL

Fasting glucose

mg/dL

After 8 to 12 hours without food

Your result

Enter the numbers from your lab report to see your result.

Use triglycerides and glucose from the same fasting blood test.

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A pointer, not a diagnosis. Talk to a doctor about your result, and sooner if you feel unwell.

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How to read the result

Below 8.67< 8.67Below the level linked with insulin resistance in the study that checked TyG against the clamp test, the gold standard.
8.67 or above≥ 8.67Insulin resistance is more likely: the body needs more insulin to keep sugar in check. Less sugar, refined carbs and alcohol, daily movement and losing some waist fat lower both triglycerides and glucose. An HbA1c test and a talk with a doctor are worth it.

Your lab’s range

TyG is not printed on lab reports and has no single agreed cut-off. Studies put insulin resistance at about 8.5 to 8.8: 8.67 here comes from a comparison with the clamp test (Guerrero-Romero 2010), and 8.8 marked the metabolic syndrome in another study (Unger 2014). The two markers it uses have lab ranges: fasting triglycerides below 150 mg/dL (1.7 mmol/L) and fasting glucose below 100 mg/dL (5.6 mmol/L).

How it is worked out

TyG = ln(triglycerides × glucose ÷ 2), both in mg/dL

Use triglycerides and glucose from the same fasting blood test.

Sources

Simental-Mendía LE, Rodríguez-Morán M, Guerrero-Romero F. The product of fasting glucose and triglycerides as surrogate for identifying insulin resistance in apparently healthy subjects. Metab Syndr Relat Disord 2008;6(4):299-304.
Guerrero-Romero F, Simental-Mendía LE, González-Ortiz M, et al. The product of triglycerides and glucose, a simple measure of insulin sensitivity. Comparison with the euglycemic-hyperinsulinemic clamp. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 2010;95(7):3347-3351.
Unger G, Benozzi SF, Perruzza F, Pennacchiotti GL. Triglycerides and glucose index: a useful indicator of insulin resistance. Endocrinol Nutr 2014;61(10):533-540.

The markers it uses

Triglycerides Fasting Glucose

Questions

What is a normal TyG index?: There is no single normal range. In a study against the clamp test (the gold standard), insulin resistance started at about 8.67, and another study found 8.8 for the metabolic syndrome. Below about 8.5 is reassuring; higher values call for an HbA1c or a fasting insulin test.
How do you calculate the TyG index?: Multiply fasting triglycerides by fasting glucose (both mg/dL), divide by 2 and take the natural logarithm. Triglycerides 150 and glucose 100 give ln(150 × 100 ÷ 2) = ln(7,500) = 8.92. For mmol/L values, convert first (× 88.57 for triglycerides, × 18 for glucose); the calculator does it for you.
Why do some papers give a TyG cut-off of about 4.7?: Some early papers wrote the index as ln(triglycerides × glucose) ÷ 2, a scale on which the same result is about half as big. 4.68 on that scale is 8.67 on the usual one. Check which formula a paper used before comparing numbers.
TyG or HOMA-IR: which is better?: HOMA-IR needs a fasting insulin result, which most routine tests leave out; TyG uses two markers almost every check-up has. Both are estimates. If either is high, an HbA1c or an oral glucose tolerance test says more.

More calculators for the same system

HbA1c to average glucose calculator (eAG)HOMA-IR calculator QUICKI calculator (insulin sensitivity)

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A pointer, not a diagnosis. Talk to a doctor about your result, and sooner if you feel unwell. Reference ranges are general-population guidance compiled from common clinical laboratories, not a diagnosis. Lab-to-lab ranges differ. Always read your results with your doctor.