Average Steps per Day: YuMuuv Benchmarks by Age, Gender and Device
What does "normal" look like? Not marathon days and not zero days: just ordinary people who walk, train a bit and stack small wins. This benchmark uses aggregated, anonymized YuMuuv data to show the average steps per day and daily exercise minutes by gender, age, device and time zone, so you can see where you sit and pick a believable next goal.
Table of Contents
Snapshot: the average YuMuuv user
| Metric | All users | Women | Men |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average daily steps | about 7,335 | 7,334 | 7,337 |
| Average daily exercise minutes | about 52 | 47 | 57 |
If you're at around 7,300 steps and 50 minutes of exercise a day, you're right in the middle of the pack. Steps are effectively tied between women and men, while men log about 10 more minutes of exercise a day.
Average steps and exercise minutes by age
| Age group | Steps: women | Steps: men | Minutes: women | Minutes: men |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30 and under | 7,346 | 6,723 | 42 | 53 |
| 30 to 55 | 7,901 | 7,478 | 48 | 58 |
| 55 and over | 7,918 | 7,410 | 51 | 59 |
Two patterns stand out. Within every age group, women take slightly more steps while men log more exercise minutes. And in this data, both steps and exercise minutes are higher in older age groups than among people aged 30 and under.
Average steps by device
| Device or data source | Average daily steps |
|---|---|
| Apple Health | 6,114 |
| Health Connect (Android) | 7,118 |
| Google Fit (Android) | 7,502 |
| Garmin | 8,261 |
| Fitbit | 8,417 |
| Suunto | 9,012 |
| Polar | 12,440 |
Why devices differ: step totals reflect the device as well as behavior. Sensors, algorithms and where the device is worn all matter. A phone left on a desk misses steps a wrist-worn tracker would count, and Polar uses a different step-counting logic. People who buy sports watches may also simply be more active. Keep this in mind when you compare teams, or yourself after switching devices.
Steps and exercise minutes by time zone
For this view we grouped time zones into GMT bands and calculated user-weighted averages of each zone's median. The global medians in this view are 6,014 steps and 48 exercise minutes. Medians are lower than averages because a small number of very active people pull averages up. Bands with fewer than 10 users are excluded.
| Top 5 by median steps | Steps | Users |
|---|---|---|
| GMT+3 | 8,192 | 33,304 |
| GMT+5 | 6,551 | 136 |
| GMT+0 | 5,799 | 418 |
| GMT+5:30 | 5,091 | 4,937 |
| GMT+6:30 | 4,561 | 70 |
| Top 5 by median exercise minutes | Minutes | Users |
|---|---|---|
| GMT+0 | 78.1 | 418 |
| GMT+6:30 | 73.9 | 70 |
| GMT+5 | 69.2 | 136 |
| GMT+5:30 | 61.1 | 4,937 |
| GMT+3 | 58.2 | 33,304 |
Treat small groups with caution: a band with 70 users can move a lot with a few very active people.
How these numbers compare with the research
- Steps: a large meta-analysis of more than 111,000 people found health benefits starting at around 2,500 steps a day and continuing up to about 8,800 (Stens et al., JACC, 2023). Another found the benefit levels off at about 6,000 to 8,000 steps for adults over 60 and 8,000 to 10,000 for younger adults (Paluch et al., Lancet Public Health, 2022). The average YuMuuv user is already in the beneficial range. More in do you really need 10,000 steps.
- Exercise minutes: the WHO recommends 150 to 300 minutes of moderate activity a week, roughly 20 to 45 minutes a day. Average YuMuuv exercise minutes are above that, though devices count "exercise" differently, so treat the comparison as approximate. See what are active minutes.
Where do you stand, and what's a smart next goal?
| Where you are | Next goal |
|---|---|
| Below 6,000 steps or 40 minutes a day | Add 1,000 steps and 10 minutes a day this month |
| Around 7,000 to 8,000 steps and 50 to 60 minutes | Hold steady or add one longer session a week |
| 10,000+ steps or 70+ minutes | Protect recovery and focus on consistency to avoid boom-and-bust cycles |
For teams, choose the YuMuuv challenge type that fits the season: a daily target (for example, 20 active minutes on 16 days this month) to build routine, a total target if people enjoy watching totals grow, or a collective goal if the team wants a shared target without individual pressure. A step challenge is the easiest place to start.
Methodology and caveats
- Data: aggregated, anonymized YuMuuv step and exercise-minute data, published in September 2025. No individual can be identified.
- Different methods, different numbers: the gender, age and device figures are averages, while the time-zone figures are weighted medians, so they won't match exactly. Use them as directional benchmarks.
- Device effects are real: switching devices or data sources can change step counts without any change in behavior.
- Earlier data: for our 2022 numbers, see the physical activity infographic.
The takeaway
You don't need to be superhuman to be above average. For most people, adding 1,000 steps and 10 minutes a day will move them into the next bracket within a month. Start where you are, nudge forward and repeat. Want to see your own team's numbers? YuMuuv's statistics page shows totals, active users and engagement for every challenge. Book a demo.
