The short answer: about 7,000 steps a day is a strong, realistic target for most adults — not the famous 10,000.
A 2025 Lancet Public Health meta-analysis pooled dozens of studies and found that walking about 7,000 steps per day was associated with roughly 40–50% lower all-cause mortality compared with around 2,000 steps. The steepest gains showed up as people moved from very low activity up toward 5,000–7,000 steps. After roughly 7,500–10,000, the curve flattens: more steps are perfectly fine, but each extra thousand adds less.
The 10,000-steps figure was never a medical recommendation. It traces back to the name of a 1960s Japanese pedometer rather than a clinical study. When researchers actually measured steps against health outcomes, the strong benefits appeared well below 10,000. (More on that in the 10,000-step myth.)
5,000 steps a day already carries meaningful health benefits, and the biggest gains appear as you move from very low activity up toward 7,000. If you currently do less, even an extra 1,000–2,000 steps a day is associated with lower risk.
Step targets aren't one-size-fits-all. Older adults often see most of the benefit at lower counts, while younger and more active people may keep gaining up to higher numbers. The most useful target is a personal one: a little more than your current average, sustained over time.
Two things make a daily step habit pay off beyond the raw count:
Consistency. A steady 7,000 most days beats an occasional 15,000 followed by a week on the couch. Showing up is the real variable.
Some brisk minutes. Danish physician and professor Bente Klarlund Pedersen has long argued that a few brisk intervals — walking fast enough that talking gets a little harder — meaningfully improve fitness, no running required.
If 7,000 feels far off, don't jump straight to it. Find your current daily average, then add about 500–1,000 steps and hold it for a week or two before nudging up again. Small, repeatable increases stick; dramatic ones usually don't.
Walkful shares general wellness information based on published research. It is not medical advice and Walkful is not a medical device. Talk to a clinician about your own situation.