James Madison was about 5 feet 4 inches tall (around 163 cm), making him the shortest U.S. president on record.

Quick Scoop: How tall was James Madison?

Historians and modern compilations of presidential data consistently list James Madison’s height as 5'4" (163 cm). This puts him well below both the average height of U.S. presidents (about 5'11") and the average male height of his era. Even though he was small in stature, he played an outsized role as a key architect of the U.S. Constitution and the fourth President of the United States.

Fast facts

  • Height: 5 feet 4 inches (163 cm).
  • Status: Widely cited as the shortest U.S. president.
  • Role: Fourth President of the United States, major contributor to the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.

Context: Shortest president, big impact

Modern lists that compare all presidents’ heights place James Madison at the bottom, confirming he was shorter than every other U.S. president, including other relatively short leaders like Benjamin Harrison and Martin Van Buren. Articles and historical summaries often highlight this contrast as a curiosity: despite being physically small, Madison had enormous influence on American political structure and theory.

In forum-style discussions and trivia threads, you’ll often see people repeat the same key line: “James Madison was 5'4" and the shortest U.S. president,” usually paired with jokes about how much power was packed into such a small frame.

TL;DR: James Madison stood about 5'4" (163 cm) tall and is generally regarded as the shortest president in U.S. history.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.