The kidneys are two bean-shaped organs located in your upper abdomen, toward your back, on either side of your spine.

Quick Scoop: Where Are the Kidneys?

  • They sit just below your rib cage, in the back part of your abdomen (the “posterior abdominal wall”).
  • You have one on the left and one on the right of your spine.
  • The left kidney is usually a bit higher, roughly between the levels of the T12 and L3 vertebrae in your spine.
  • The right kidney sits slightly lower because the liver is above it.
  • Each kidney has an adrenal gland sitting on top of it.

How to “locate” them on your body

  • If you put your hands on your lower ribs in your back and then slide them slightly downward, that’s roughly over where your kidneys lie.
  • They’re deeper inside your body than many people imagine (they’re behind the abdominal organs, in what’s called the retroperitoneal space).

If you have pain in this area or concerns about your kidneys, it’s important to talk to a healthcare professional rather than self-diagnosing.

TL;DR: Your kidneys are in your upper back-abdomen area, just below the ribs, one on each side of your spine, with the right a bit lower than the left.

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