Your dog age in human years is not seven times anything. The scientifically supported answer comes from a 2020 UCSD study: human-equivalent age equals 16 times the natural log of your dog age, plus 31. A 2-year-old dog works out to about 42 in human terms, and a 10-year-old to roughly 68.
Why the answer is front-loaded
Dogs mature explosively in year one — roughly equivalent to a 31-year-old human — then aging slows. That is why linear rules feel wrong for puppies and seniors alike. I built our dog age calculator on the UCSD formula precisely because it captures that curve instead of flattening it.
Quick reference
- 1 year ≈ 31 human years
- 2 years ≈ 42
- 5 years ≈ 57
- 10 years ≈ 68
- 13 years ≈ 74
Breed size shifts these numbers (more below in this series), but the formula is the honest starting point for any medium dog.
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