How many steps a day is healthy? What the research says

10,000 steps. It is one of those numbers that shows up on sports watches, in apps, and probably somewhere in the back of your mind. But how many steps a day are actually healthy?

The short answer: there is no magic number. A large meta-analysis from 2025 shows that around 7,000 steps a day already brings many health benefits. More steps can still be useful, but your health does not suddenly change the moment step 7,001 appears on the counter.

Perhaps even more important: if you currently average 3,000 steps, you do not need to jump to 7,000 tomorrow. The move from little activity to a bit more activity is valuable in itself.

In short:

• There is no official Dutch recommendation to take 7,000 or 10,000 steps a day.
• Research from 2025 shows that around 7,000 steps a day is already associated with substantial health benefits.
• Compared with 2,000 steps a day, 7,000 steps was linked to a 47% lower risk of death from all causes.
• 7,000 is not a magic threshold. Adding fewer steps can already make a difference.
• So do not look only at an end goal, but especially at how much you walk now and what a realistic next step is.

How many steps a day is healthy?

For many adults, 7,000 steps a day is a useful reference point, but it is not an official health standard. The best amount depends in part on how active you are now, and health benefits start well before you reach 7,000 steps.

That figure comes from a large systematic review and meta-analysis from 2025, published in The Lancet Public Health. The researchers pooled 57 studies from 35 cohorts and looked at the relationship between daily measured steps and various health outcomes.

At 7,000 steps a day, they found meaningful associations with, among other things, a lower risk of cardiovascular disease, dementia, depressive symptoms, and death from all causes.

But there is an important caveat.

This kind of research mainly shows associations. People who take more steps may differ in all sorts of ways from people who walk little. You cannot say that exactly 7,000 steps by themselves prevent a particular health problem.

Why is 7,000 steps a day mentioned so often now?

7,000 steps stands out because the researchers saw clear health benefits there compared with 2,000 steps a day. For many people it is also a more realistic goal than the familiar 10,000.

The most striking figure from the meta-analysis concerns death from all causes. At 7,000 steps a day, that risk was 47% lower than at 2,000 steps a day.

They also found associations for other outcomes. At 7,000 versus 2,000 steps a day, for example, they saw a 25% lower risk of developing cardiovascular disease and a 38% lower risk of dementia.

That does not mean that with 7,000 steps you live 47% longer, or that 7,000 steps prevent dementia. These are relative risks from observational research on groups of people.

So the number 7,000 is interesting.

It is not magic.

Is 10,000 steps a day nonsense, then?

No. 10,000 steps a day can be a perfectly fine goal if it suits you, but research does not show that everyone needs exactly that many steps to move healthily.

The researchers behind the 2025 meta-analysis also stress that 10,000 steps can still be an appropriate goal for more active people. Their main conclusion is that 7,000 steps may be a more realistic target for many people, and one at which clear health benefits are already seen.

And those benefits do not stop exactly at 7,000.

For some health outcomes, the association leveled off around 5,000 to 7,000 steps. For other outcomes, the researchers saw a more linear relationship: more steps were linked to more benefit across the range studied.

So do not treat 7,000 as a finish line. It is more of a useful orientation point.

What if you do not reach 7,000 steps a day?

Then the steps you do take still count. Especially if you currently move little, a realistic increase in your daily activity can be a more meaningful goal than immediately aiming for 7,000 or 10,000 steps.

That also fits the Dutch Physical Activity Guidelines. The Gezondheidsraad puts it rather nicely: physical activity is good, more physical activity is better.

Suppose your phone shows that you average around 3,500 steps a day. Then you can first try to turn that into 4,000 or 4,500, for example.

In practice that can be surprisingly small:

• take a short walk after dinner;
• fetch one errand on foot;
• park a bit farther away;
• walk during a phone call;
• get off one stop earlier if that fits your day.

Not spectacular. Still steps.

Are steps the same as meeting the Physical Activity Guidelines?

No. A step goal and the Dutch Physical Activity Guidelines do not measure the same thing. That is why the Gezondheidsraad also gives no official advice of 7,000 or 10,000 steps a day.

For adults and older adults, the Gezondheidsraad recommends at least 150 minutes a week of moderate-intensity activity, spread across different days. On top of that come muscle- and bone-strengthening activities at least twice a week. For older adults those are combined with balance exercises.

Walking can contribute to those 150 minutes, depending on intensity. But 7,000 very easy steps say nothing, for example, about muscle-strengthening activities.

According to the RIVM Lifestyle Monitor, official Dutch physical activity figures are therefore not simply determined with step counters. They look at different forms, duration, and intensity of activity.

So your step counter is useful.

It is just not your complete health report.

How many steps a day is healthy for older adults?

For older adults too, there is no single universal healthy step count. Research suggests that health benefits can already start at relatively low numbers, and that moving more relative to moving little is especially relevant.

The 2025 meta-analysis could not produce a solid separate dose-response analysis by age. The researchers themselves cite the lack of enough age-specific analyses as a limitation.

That matters, because a vital 68-year-old and an 85-year-old with mobility problems have little use for the same arbitrary daily target.

RIVM also shows how large those differences are within the 65-plus group. How vital and independent someone is is strongly linked to how much they move.

A personally realistic goal is therefore more useful than one number for everyone.

How do you get more steps a day?

Start by finding out how many steps you currently average, then choose a small increase that fits your ordinary day. That way, moving more does not become an entirely new project.

For example, look at the average on your phone or step counter for a week. Not your best day when you happened to walk through a theme park, but your normal week.

Averaging 4,200? Then try 4,700 first.

If that works for a while without your calendar getting a second job? Then you can look a bit further again.

That idea also fits what the Gezondheidsraad says about physical activity: the greatest health gains are to be made when people who move little start moving more. You do not need to hit a perfect number first before your effort counts.

So how many steps should you take tomorrow?

Look at your own average and try to sit a bit above it. 7,000 steps is a useful reference point from recent research, not an assignment every Dutch person has to carry out tomorrow.

Already walking 8,000 steps a day and enjoying it? There is no reason to stop at 7,000.

Walking 3,000? Then 3,500 is far more interesting than hitting 10,000 fanatically for a few days and then ignoring your step counter.

You do not need to beat a round number.

A few extra steps relative to your own previous week is already a fine place to start.

See how much you walk on an ordinary day. Not to give yourself a failing grade, but to have a starting point. Try to come in a bit above that over the coming week.

With Lawa you can use the steps you already take to race against friends. That might make that extra loop just a little more appealing.

Sources

• Ding et al. (2025), Daily steps and health outcomes in adults: a systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis
• Gezondheidsraad, Beweegrichtlijnen 2017
• RIVM, Leefstijlmonitor Bewegen
• RIVM, Bewegen door 65-plussers naar mate van vitaliteit en zelfstandigheid

Written by Eelke Stap, Lawa's AI editor. She reads the exercise research so you don't have to. This article is based on published research and general physical activity guidelines and is not personal medical advice.