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MELD Calculator

Updated Nov 12, 2026 By Infinity Calculator Formulas Sources Medical disclaimer
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Patient Information
Used by MELD 3.0 for patients who were 18 or older when registered for a transplant. Female sex adds 1.33.
Patients registered before age 18 use the MELD 3.0 constant 7.33, even after they turn 18. The female sex adjustment does not apply to them.
Select Yes if the patient had dialysis at least twice, or 24 hours of CVVHD (Continuous Veno-Venous Hemodialysis), in the 7 days before the creatinine test.
Laboratory Values
For classic MELD (Model for End-Stage Liver Disease) and MELD-Na: values below 1.0 mg/dL are set to 1.0; values above 4.0 mg/dL are set to 4.0.
For MELD 3.0: values below 1.0 mg/dL are set to 1.0; values above 3.0 mg/dL are set to 3.0.
If dialysis is active, creatinine is automatically set to the applicable cap value regardless of the entered number.
Values below 1.0 mg/dL are set to 1.0 in all formulas.
Values below 1.0 are set to 1.0 in all formulas.
Values below 125 are set to 125; values above 137 are set to 137.
Used in the MELD 3.0 formula only. Values below 1.5 g/dL are set to 1.5; values above 3.5 g/dL are set to 3.5.

MELD Score Results

Classic MELD
MELD-Na
Liver transplant allocation in the United States moved to MELD-Na in January 2016. The classic MELD score, MELD(i), is calculated first and rounded to a whole number. Serum sodium is added only when MELD(i) is greater than 11.
MELD 3.0 Current Standard
Step-by-Step Solution
Score Comparison
Clinical Guidance

Introduction

The MELD score (Model for End-Stage Liver Disease) is a number that shows how sick a person's liver is. Doctors use it to figure out how urgent a patient's need for a liver transplant is. A higher score means the liver disease is more serious. The score is based on simple blood test results like creatinine, bilirubin, INR, sodium, and albumin.

There are three versions of the MELD score. Classic MELD was the original formula. It was built to predict survival in patients with end-stage liver disease from creatinine, bilirubin, INR and the cause of liver disease.2 The standard classic MELD formula uses only creatinine, bilirubin and INR.4 MELD-Na added sodium to improve accuracy. MELD 3.0 is the current standard used by UNOS for transplant listing. It includes albumin and accounts for differences between male and female patients. This calculator computes all three versions side by side so you can compare them.

To use this tool, enter the patient's biological sex, age bracket, dialysis status, and lab values. The calculator will apply the correct boundary rules, show each score, estimate 90-day survival, and display a full step-by-step breakdown of the math. It works for adults 18 and older and for adolescents ages 12 to 17. Patients under 12 should use the PELD (Pediatric End-Stage Liver Disease) score instead.

How to Use Our MELD Calculator

Enter your patient's basic details and lab values below. The calculator will return three MELD scores (classic MELD, MELD-Na, and MELD 3.0), along with mortality risk, 90-day survival, and a step-by-step breakdown of each formula.

Biological Sex: Select Male or Female. This is used in the MELD 3.0 formula, which adds 1.33 points for female patients.1 This calculator applies that adjustment to patients who were 18 or older when registered for a transplant.3

Age Bracket: Choose whether the patient is under 12 or 12 and older. Patients under 12 should use the PELD calculator instead, because transplant candidates under 12 receive a PELD score.3

Age When Registered for Transplant: If the patient is 12 or older, select whether they were under 18 or 18 and older when registered for a transplant. Patients registered before 18 use a different constant in the MELD 3.0 formula, even after they turn 18.3

Dialysis Status: Select Yes if the patient has had dialysis at least twice in the past week or has been on CVVHD for 24 or more hours. When set to Yes, the calculator automatically raises creatinine to its cap value.

Serum Creatinine: Enter the creatinine level and choose your unit: mg/dL or µmol/L. Values are floored to 1.0 and capped at 4.0 mg/dL for classic MELD and MELD-Na, or 3.0 mg/dL for MELD 3.0.1

Total Bilirubin: Enter the total bilirubin level in mg/dL or µmol/L. Values below 1.0 mg/dL are set to 1.0 in all three formulas.

INR (International Normalized Ratio): Enter the INR value. Values below 1.0 are set to 1.0 in all formulas.

Serum Sodium: Enter the sodium level in mEq/L or mmol/L. Values below 125 are set to 125, and values above 137 are set to 137.1

Serum Albumin: Enter the albumin level in g/dL. This is used only in the MELD 3.0 formula. Values below 1.5 are set to 1.5, and values above 3.5 are set to 3.5.1

Click Calculate to see your results. Click Reset to clear all fields and start over.

What Is the MELD Score?

The MELD score stands for Model for End-Stage Liver Disease. It is a number that doctors use to measure how sick a person's liver is. The score ranges from 6 to 40.3 A higher number means the liver is more damaged and the patient is more urgently in need of a liver transplant.

Hospitals and organ-sharing networks like UNOS (United Network for Organ Sharing) use the MELD score to decide who gets a donor liver first. The sickest patients, those with the highest scores, are placed higher on the transplant waiting list. Another widely used liver disease classification is the Child-Pugh score.

What Does This Calculator Do?

This calculator takes a patient's lab values (creatinine, bilirubin, INR, sodium, and albumin) and computes three versions of the MELD score at once:

  • Classic MELD: The original formula that uses creatinine, bilirubin, and INR.
  • MELD-Na: An updated version adopted in 2016 that adds sodium to the classic formula.6 Low sodium levels are linked to worse outcomes in liver disease.
  • MELD 3.0: The current standard, adopted for US liver transplant allocation in July 2023.6 It adds albumin and a small adjustment for biological sex. This version is more accurate at predicting 90-day survival.

Who Is the MELD Score For?

The MELD score is used for patients aged 12 and older with chronic liver disease. Children under 12 use a different scoring system called PELD (Pediatric End-Stage Liver Disease). Patients aged 12 to 17, and older patients who were under 18 when registered for a transplant, use a slightly modified version of MELD 3.0 with a different constant built into the formula.3

Why Do Lab Values Get Capped or Floored?

The MELD formulas set minimum and maximum limits on certain lab values. For example, if a patient's creatinine is below 1.0 mg/dL, the formula treats it as 1.0. If it is above 4.0 mg/dL (or 3.0 for MELD 3.0), the formula caps it at that limit. These rules come directly from the published research and UNOS policy. They keep the score within a meaningful range.

Patients on dialysis automatically have their creatinine set to the cap value. Creatinine in the formula is there to show how well the kidneys work.1 Dialysis filters wastes such as creatinine out of the blood in place of the kidneys, so a measured level would make the kidneys look healthier than they are.

What Do the Scores Mean?

The 3-month mortality figures below come from a study that applied the classic MELD score to adults with chronic liver disease added to the US transplant waiting list at status 2A or 2B from 1999 to 2001, where the death rate rose with the score.7 The calculator shows these figures for classic MELD and MELD-Na. The MELD 3.0 result shows its own 90-day survival estimate, built from patients listed from 2016 to 2018.1

  • Score 6–9: Low severity. Estimated 3-month mortality is about 1.9%.
  • Score 10–19: Moderate severity. Estimated 3-month mortality is about 6%. Current guidelines advise that people with a MELD score of 15 or higher be referred to a liver transplant center for evaluation.6
  • Score 20–29: High severity. Estimated 3-month mortality is about 19.6%.
  • Score 30–39: Very high severity. Estimated 3-month mortality is about 52.6%.
  • Score 40: Critical. Estimated 3-month mortality is about 71.3%.7

For a complementary view of liver disease severity, clinicians often use the Child-Pugh classification alongside MELD.

Important: This calculator is an educational tool. It does not replace a doctor's judgment. Always talk to a qualified healthcare provider about your results and treatment options.

Formulas used

Classic MELD 4
\text{MELD}_{\text{classic}} = 9.57 \ln(\text{Cr}) + 3.78 \ln(\text{Bili}) + 11.2 \ln(\text{INR}) + 6.43
MELD-Na
\text{MELD-Na} = \text{MELD}(i) + 1.32 \times (137 - \text{Na}) - 0.033 \times \text{MELD}(i) \times (137 - \text{Na}) \quad (\text{when MELD}(i) > 11)
MELD 3.0 3
\text{MELD 3.0} = 4.56 \ln(\text{Bili}) + 0.82(137 - \text{Na}) - 0.24(137 - \text{Na})\ln(\text{Bili}) + 9.09 \ln(\text{INR}) + 11.14 \ln(\text{Cr}) + 1.85(3.5 - \text{Alb}) - 1.83(3.5 - \text{Alb})\ln(\text{Cr}) + C
MELD 3.0 Constant (C) 3
C = \begin{cases} 7.33 & \text{if registered before age 18} \\ 6 + 1.33 & \text{if registered at 18 or older, female} \\ 6 & \text{if registered at 18 or older, male} \end{cases}
90-Day Survival (MELD 3.0, as a fraction, from the rounded score before the cap at 40) 5
\text{Survival} = 0.946^{\,\exp(0.17698 \times \text{MELD 3.0} - 3.56)}

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between classic MELD, MELD-Na, and MELD 3.0?

Classic MELD uses only creatinine, bilirubin, and INR. MELD-Na adds sodium to that same formula. MELD 3.0 adds albumin and a small adjustment for biological sex. MELD 3.0 is the most accurate version and is the current standard used for transplant listing in the United States.

Which MELD version does UNOS currently use?

UNOS currently uses MELD 3.0 for liver transplant allocation decisions. It replaced MELD-Na in July 2023.6 This calculator marks MELD 3.0 as the "Current Standard" in the results.

How does dialysis affect the MELD score?

When you select Yes for dialysis, the calculator sets creatinine to 4.0 mg/dL for classic MELD and MELD-Na, and to 3.0 mg/dL for MELD 3.0. This is because creatinine in the formula is there to show how well the kidneys work, and dialysis filters creatinine out of the blood in place of the kidneys. The entered creatinine value is ignored.

Why does biological sex matter in MELD 3.0?

Research found that female patients with liver disease had worse outcomes than their MELD scores predicted. MELD 3.0 corrects this by adding 1.33 points for female patients who were 18 or older when registered for a transplant.3 This adjustment does not apply to patients registered before age 18 or to the older classic MELD and MELD-Na formulas.

What is the highest possible MELD score?

The maximum MELD score is 40 for all three versions. If the formula produces a number higher than 40, it is capped at 40. A score of 40 means the patient has the most urgent need for a liver transplant.

What is the lowest possible MELD score?

The lowest MELD score is 6. Even if all lab values are completely normal, the formula produces a minimum score around 6. A low score means the liver disease is not severe at this time.

How is MELD different for patients aged 12 to 17?

Patients aged 12 to 17 use the same MELD 3.0 formula as adults, but with a different constant. Instead of adding 6 (plus 1.33 for females), the formula adds 7.33 for all adolescents regardless of sex. This also applies to patients who were under 18 when registered for a transplant, even after they turn 18.3 Classic MELD and MELD-Na have no age term, so they are calculated the same way at every age.

How often should the MELD score be recalculated?

It depends on the score. Patients with higher scores are retested more often. UNOS requires updated labs every 7 days for scores of 25 or higher in patients 18 or older (every 14 days for patients under 18), every 30 days for scores of 19 to 24, every 90 days for scores of 11 to 18, and every 365 days for scores of 10 or less.3 Your transplant center will set the exact schedule.

Does a higher MELD score always mean I need a transplant?

Not always. A higher score means the liver disease is more serious, but treatment decisions depend on many factors. Some patients improve with medical treatment. The MELD score is one tool doctors use alongside physical exams, imaging, and other tests. Always discuss your results with your doctor.

Why is albumin only used in MELD 3.0?

The original MELD and MELD-Na formulas were developed without albumin. Later research showed that low albumin is a strong predictor of poor outcomes in liver disease. MELD 3.0 added albumin to improve prediction accuracy. Values below 1.5 g/dL are set to 1.5, and values above 3.5 g/dL are set to 3.5.

If my sodium is normal, does it still affect the score?

Sodium values above 137 mEq/L are capped at 137 in the formula. At that level, sodium adds zero extra points to both MELD-Na and MELD 3.0. So a normal or high sodium level does not raise your score. Low sodium (below 137) raises MELD-Na only when the classic MELD score is above 11.1 In MELD 3.0, low sodium raises the score unless bilirubin is above about 30 mg/dL.

Sources

  1. Kim WR, Mannalithara A, Heimbach JK, et al. MELD 3.0: The Model for End-Stage Liver Disease updated for the modern era. Gastroenterology. 2021;161(6):1887-1895. doi:10.1053/j.gastro.2021.08.050. Accessed September 3, 2026.
  2. Kamath PS, Wiesner RH, Malinchoc M, et al. A model to predict survival in patients with end-stage liver disease. Hepatology. 2001;33(2):464-470. doi:10.1053/jhep.2001.22172. Accessed September 3, 2026.
  3. OPTN Policies (effective 1 October 2026). Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network. 2026;Policy 9.1.D MELD Score. Accessed October 7, 2026.
  4. Kim WR, Biggins SW, Kremers WK, et al. Hyponatremia and Mortality among Patients on the Liver-Transplant Waiting List. New England Journal of Medicine. 2008;359(10):1018-1026. doi:10.1056/NEJMoa0801209. Accessed November 11, 2026.
  5. Kim WR, Mannalithara A, Heimbach JK, et al. MELD 3.0: The Model for End-Stage Liver Disease Updated for the Modern Era, Supplementary Materials. Gastroenterology. 2021;Supplementary Table 3B. Accessed November 11, 2026.
  6. Referral for Liver Transplantation. Hepatitis C Online, University of Washington. Accessed November 11, 2026.
  7. Wiesner R, Edwards E, Freeman R, et al. Model for end-stage liver disease (MELD) and allocation of donor livers. Gastroenterology. 2003;124(1):91-96. doi:10.1053/gast.2003.50016. Accessed November 11, 2026.

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