For healthcare professionals
Absolute Neutrophil Count Calculator
The absolute neutrophil count (ANC) is the number of neutrophils, a type of white blood cell that helps fight infection, per microliter of blood. It is worked out from the white blood cell count and the percentage of segmented neutrophils and bands, and it grades neutropenia. This tool is written for clinicians and is not a diagnosis.
Blood count with differential
Use the white blood cell count and the differential from the same blood count. Nothing you enter leaves this page.
What you will see
The ANC with the working and the neutropenia grade.
Educational only, not medical advice. Not a diagnosis. Decisions belong to the treating team.
Source
The formula and the neutropenia grades as printed in the review by Khalil MAM and colleagues, Journal of Transplantation 2018 (open access, CC BY 4.0), and the infection risk under 500 from the National Cancer Institute Dictionary of Cancer Terms (US government). The tests check the formula, each grade edge (500, 1000 and 1500 go to the milder grade) and that a value is never rounded onto a cut-off it is not on.
Validated in
The grades are general definitions of neutropenia by severity, reported in a review on blood count problems in kidney transplant recipients. They are not a validated score for an outcome.
Limits
The review defines neutropenia as under 1500 per microliter and writes mild neutropenia as 1000 to 1500; the tool treats exactly 1500 as not neutropenic and exactly 1000 and 500 as the milder grade. Laboratories may report the differential differently (for example, without bands); enter 0 for bands when none are reported.
The formula
ANC = white blood cells (per microliter) x (% polymorphonuclear cells + % bands) / 100 (Khalil 2018).
Worked example: a white blood cell count of 5,000 per microliter with 55% segmented neutrophils and 5% bands gives 5,000 x (55 + 5) / 100 = 3,000 per microliter.
Neutropenia grades
An ANC under 1500 per microliter (1.5 x10^9/L) is defined as neutropenia and graded as (Khalil 2018):
- Mild: 1000 to 1500 per microliter (1 to 1.5 x10^9/L).
- Moderate: 500 to 999 per microliter (0.5 to 0.99 x10^9/L).
- Severe: under 500 per microliter (under 0.5 x10^9/L).
The lower the ANC, the higher the risk of infection; under 500 means a high risk (NCI Dictionary). Severe neutropenia is associated with pneumonia, sepsis and septic shock (Khalil 2018).
Related tools
For fever with neutropenia, the MASCC risk index identifies patients at low risk of complications. For anemia, see the reticulocyte production index calculator and the Mentzer index. Other bedside scores are listed under For healthcare professionals.
Sources
- Khalil MAM, Khalil MAU, Khan TFT, Tan J. Drug-induced hematological cytopenia in kidney transplantation and the challenges it poses for kidney transplant physicians. J Transplant. 2018;2018:9429265. doi:10.1155/2018/9429265. PMID 30155279. Open access (CC BY 4.0). Section 2 (ANC formula and neutropenia grades) and section 6.1. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6093016/
- National Cancer Institute. NCI Dictionary of Cancer Terms: absolute neutrophil count. US Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health. www.cancer.gov/publications/dictionaries/cancer-terms/def/absolute-neutrophil-count
Written and maintained by the uncovermyrisk.com editorial team. We do not have a medical reviewer; every claim links to its primary source above. Last reviewed: 2026-11-02. Spotted an error? See About.