How Old Was Barron Trump When He Became Taller Than His Parents?

Barron Trump's stunning height transformation had everyone in awe, even though he grew up right in front of our eyes. Seemingly overnight, he materialized standing 6 feet, 9 inches tall. But he had long been among the tallest Trumps, surpassing Melania Trump and catching up to his father's height at just 12. In no time, he became the tallest of all five of Donald Trump's children, who make a pretty tall bunch. The second tallest is Eric Trump, at 6 feet, 5 inches.

And he's not happy about that. "I'm very mad at Barron because I was the tallest guy in my family until he came along," he joked on the "First Class Fatherhood" podcast in 2021. "My father calls me the short son now, and I'm six-five." Eric is seemingly not alone. Donald himself accidentally confirmed he's jealous of Barron's height. "I say, 'Barron, I don't want to take a picture next to you,'" he said on Logan Paul's podcast "Impaulsive" in June 2024. That isn't shocking to some who know him.

According to journalist Michael Wolff, author of "Siege: Trump Under Fire," height is one of the weapons Donald uses to intimidate those around him. "He's jealous of everyone's height. He never lets himself be in a photograph with someone taller than he is," he said in a 2019 interview with MSNBC's Lawrence O'Donnell. Luckily for him, Barron is likely done growing. But his growth has been nothing short of stunning, having surpassed his tall parents early on. 

Barron Trump seems to have hit his growth spurt around 2017. At the November 2016 elections, he stood between Melania and Donald Trump at the New York Hilton Midtown, showing he was several inches shorter than both. By August of the following year, he looked taller than Melania while walking next to her in flats. But he was still a bit shorter than the then-president, though not by much. A year later, in November 2018, Barron was shoulder-to-shoulder with his father and taller than his mother in high heels.

It wasn't until 2019 that he seemingly surpassed Donald. Photographed next to his parents on the South Lawn that November (seen above), Barron looked to have a couple of inches on his father. However, Barron appeared to hit another growth spurt in the following months. On the final day of the Republican National Convention in August 2020, Barron towered over his family members, including Melania, Donald, Tiffany Trump, and Donald Trump Jr., and his fiancée Kimberly Guilfoyle.

This means that Barron was 11 when he surpassed Melania Trump, who is 5 feet, 11 inches tall. He was 12 when he reached Donald's height, who stands at 6 feet, 3 inches if you believe his doctor, or 6 feet, 2 inches if you believe his driver's license, and 13 when he became taller than him. Barron's growth is within what's expected for boys, who grow the most between ages 12 and 15, KidsHealth noted. 

Barron Trump is into sports, but the one that has height as a prerequisite isn't among those he cares for. Donald Trump tried, though. "He's 6-foot-9, and I couldn't get him to play basketball," he said on the "Impaulsive" podcast. Instead, Donald's youngest kid is into soccer. When he shared that it was the sport he wanted to play, his father quickly reminded him of the advantage he had. "I thought... at you're height I like basketball better but you can't talk them into everything," he said at a rally in January 2024, according to the Daily Mail.

Donald isn't the only one. After Barron stunned everyone with his height at the funeral of Melania Trump's mother in January 2024, netizens took to social media to call for him to join the NBA. "Barron Trump is 17 years old & already 6'7, he's taller than NBA players. Someone give this kid a basketball ASAP," one wrote on X, previously Twitter.  

While Donald has let his preference between soccer and basketball be known, he is counting his blessings that his son didn't show interest in football. Even though he's a fan of watching the sport, he would have put more effort into convincing his son to stay away from it than he did with soccer. "I've heard NFL players say they wouldn't let their sons play football," he said on CBS' "Face the Nation" in 2019, citing concerns over brain injuries in the sport as the reason.