Your ferritin value tells you how large your iron store is, because ferritin is a protein that stores iron. Think of it as the store cupboard, and what is on the table right now is serum iron. That store empties before you become anaemic, so you can already feel tired while your blood count still looks fine. There is one thing you need to know to make sense of your result: ferritin also rises when you have an inflammation or infection. That is why a CRP always goes alongside it, because without that second value you cannot tell whether a normal figure is genuinely normal.
Doctor's Assessment Included
See the value that applies to you:
Choose male or female — this range differs by sex.
Enter your age — this range changes with age.
This range also depends on context such as cycle phase or sample material; the highlighted rows apply to your group.
Source: Star-shl Reference population: Dutch primary-care population (Star-shl, Roche Cobas e801)
Reference ranges may vary between laboratories. When you order a test, a BIG-registered doctor assesses your personal results in context. For treatment decisions, discuss your results with your GP.
Check your own valueFerritin is a protein that holds and stores iron, mainly in your liver, spleen and bone marrow. A small part of it leaks into your blood, and that is the part we measure, in micrograms per litre (µg/l). So how much iron you have in store is what your ferritin tells you.
A comparison helps most. Serum iron is what is circulating right now, and it changes throughout the day, including after eating. Ferritin is your store cupboard and moves much more slowly. If you are wondering whether you have enough iron, ferritin is the value you want.
At Star-shl, men sit at 30 to 400 µg/l and women at 15 to 150 µg/l. In women the lower limit sits lower because the group those figures come from includes menstruating women, who lose iron every month. So it describes what is usual, and it is no statement that women need less iron.
Important: these figures genuinely differ between laboratories, because another lab uses 15 to 200 for men, for instance. Two national bodies therefore say you should go by the values on your own report, so if your result shows a different band from the one above, yours is the right one. Beyond that, always look at it together with your haemoglobin and your CRP, the inflammation value.
A normal ferritin only tells you something if you also know whether inflammation is involved, because ferritin rises with inflammation. If you have an infection, an injury, an autoimmune condition, a liver problem, or you drink a lot of alcohol, your ferritin goes up while your iron store stays the same. A normal figure is then not reassuring, because it can hide a deficiency, and that is why a CRP always goes beside it. It tells you whether inflammation is involved and therefore which threshold applies.
Then the numbers your doctor uses. Without inflammation: below 15 µg/l means iron deficiency. With inflammation, that threshold rises to around 70 µg/l, precisely because the inflammation lifts the figure artificially. And for iron-deficiency anaemia the GP standard works with three zones: below 15 confirms it, above 100 excludes it, and in between you do not yet know.
That middle zone between 15 and 100 is where most confusion arises. Your result falls inside the reference values, so formally nothing is wrong, yet your complaints are real, and that is no contradiction. Your iron store empties before your haemoglobin falls, so you can be tired, lose hair or have restless legs with an entirely normal blood count. The literature often uses around 30 µg/l for a genuinely empty store, well above the 15 at which anaemia is established.
In short: one ferritin figure without context says little, and together with your CRP, your haemoglobin and your transferrin saturation it says almost everything. So request them together and you avoid a second blood draw.
Been ill? Wait a little
RequiredHad a fever, an infection or a vaccination in the past 2 weeks? Wait with the draw until you are fully recovered. These values react to inflammation and would give a distorted picture.
Preferably fasting
RecommendedComing fasting gives a slightly cleaner value, but it is not required. If it suits you, eat nothing from 22:00 the evening before and drink only water.
You usually have ferritin measured because you are tired and want to know why, and that is a perfectly good reason. Other good prompts are hair loss, restless legs, breathlessness on stairs, frequent dizziness, or an earlier result where your doctor noticed something in your blood count, such as a low haemoglobin or small red cells.
Ferritin itself barely changes with a meal, but the lab lists the test as a fasted draw, so follow the instruction that comes with your appointment. There is also one timing rule that genuinely matters: do not test during or shortly after an infection. If you have just been ill, had surgery or trained hard for a week, wait a few weeks, because ferritin runs higher in that period and that can hide a deficiency.
Always request a CRP alongside. Without it you cannot interpret a normal or high result and you will probably need another draw anyway. If you are having the full iron panel, test in the morning, because serum iron fluctuates across the day and the set then compares better internally.
If you want to know whether iron really is the issue, also look at your haemoglobin and your MCV. The latter says how large your red cells are, and with a longer-standing iron deficiency they get smaller. Together with your ferritin that gives a far more complete picture than one value alone.
With an empty iron store you usually just feel off without being able to put your finger on it. What people mention most: being tired despite sleeping enough, getting out of breath on stairs, feeling dizzy standing up too fast, cold hands and feet, headache, looking pale, brittle nails, hair loss, restless legs and trouble concentrating.
The awkward part is that these are exactly the complaints that fit all sorts of things: too little sleep, a busy period, a thyroid problem or a vitamin deficiency, so they prove nothing. But it is one of the easiest things to have checked, and if it is your iron, there is usually something to be done about it.
You usually notice nothing from a high ferritin level, and that is because the cause is rarely too much iron. Far more often something else is lifting it: an infection or inflammation, heavy alcohol use, a fatty liver, excess weight, or simply having been ill recently. What you feel then belongs to that cause.
So do not be alarmed by a single raised result. Have it repeated at a time when you feel well, together with a CRP. If it stays high, your doctor looks further, including at your transferrin saturation, and only when that is raised as well does iron overload come into view. A doctor assesses that.
Low ferritin indicates depleted iron stores. Consider iron supplementation and dietary iron increase (red meat, spinach).
High ferritin may indicate inflammation, hemochromatosis, or liver disease. Consider CRP testing and comprehensive metabolic evaluation.
Low ferritin indicates depleted iron stores. Consider iron supplementation and dietary iron increase (red meat, spinach, fortified cereals).
High ferritin may indicate inflammation, hemochromatosis, or liver disease. Consider CRP testing and comprehensive metabolic evaluation.
There is a big difference between the two types of iron in your food, and that difference matters more than the amount. Iron from meat, fish and chicken is absorbed considerably better than iron from beans, lentils, wholemeal bread, nuts and spinach. If you eat little or no meat, you get your iron mainly in the form that enters less easily, and that explains why your store can slowly drop without anything being wrong.
Two simple habits genuinely help. Have vitamin C with a plant-based meal, for example peppers, orange or strawberries alongside your lentils or spinach, because it clearly increases absorption. And drink your coffee or tea an hour before or after eating rather than with it, because the compounds in them inhibit absorption, as does a large glass of milk or a yoghurt with the same meal.
Do not start taking iron tablets yourself. Iron accumulates if you take it without reason, and without a demonstrated deficiency it can do harm. If your result shows there genuinely is a shortfall, your doctor decides what you need and for how long, and if your ferritin stays low even after adjusting your diet, have the source of the loss investigated rather than taking more.
Ferritin is a protein that stores iron, mainly in your liver, spleen and bone marrow. A small part leaks into your blood and that is what we measure, so your ferritin value is a measure of your iron store, your reserve. Serum iron is something else: that is what is circulating right now and it fluctuates all day.
That your result falls within the reference values, but at the lower end, so formally nothing is abnormal. You can still have complaints, though, because your store empties before you become anaemic. The literature often uses around 30 µg/l for a genuinely empty store, so "just about normal" can still be worth discussing if you have symptoms.
It is the zone where ferritin alone cannot give you a conclusion. The GP standard says: below 15 iron-deficiency anaemia is confirmed, above 100 it is excluded, and in between you need more data, such as your CRP, your haemoglobin, your MCV and your transferrin saturation. Those four make the zone readable after all.
Usually not straight away. One result is a snapshot, and ferritin responds to inflammation, a recent infection and even a week of hard training. Have a slightly abnormal value repeated at a time when you feel well, together with a CRP, and if it stays abnormal, discuss it with your doctor.
Without complaints and with a normal result there is no reason to repeat this often. If something was found or you are replenishing, your doctor sets the interval; often it is rechecked after several months, because a store does not refill in two weeks. In any case, do not measure shortly after being ill.
First check which band appears on your own lab report, because it genuinely differs between laboratories. If your value falls just below or just above it, that is no diagnosis in itself. Take the result to your doctor along with your CRP and haemoglobin, so the whole picture is considered rather than one figure.
Yes, mainly through combinations. Have vitamin C with a plant-based iron source, because it raises absorption considerably, and avoid coffee or tea with that meal. Beyond that, variety between animal and plant sources helps. Do not start iron tablets on your own, because without a demonstrated deficiency that can be harmful.
This marker is included in the following test panels.
Measure your ferritin, your body's iron store and a common cause of fatigue. No referral needed.
Iron panel: Iron, Ferritin, Transferrin, and Transferrin Saturation.
A 5-biomarker inflammation panel inspired by InsideTracker's Inflammation category — hs-CRP, a complete blood count with differential, vitamin D and ferritin behind your inflammation score.
Six values for plant-based eaters: vitamin B12, vitamin D, ferritin, zinc, magnesium and a basic blood count.
Articles that explain this value in context.
Medical reviewer
Dr. Naimi oversees the medical standards behind our content and assessments.
Medical policyDoctor's Assessment Included
Every result includes a professional assessment from a BIG-registered doctor. For treatment decisions, discuss your results with your GP.
Ferritin
€28,-
We use cookies to analyze site usage and measure ad effectiveness. Privacy Policy
