Steps to km conversion

17,000 steps to km

17,000 steps is about 12.7 km for a woman of 1.65 m (5 ft 5 in) and 13.4 km for a man of 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in), the average heights of young adults in the UK, at a normal walking pace (5.5 km/h). That is 2 h 19 min to 2 h 26 min of walking. The distance depends mainly on your height and speed: from 11.4 km to 15.3 km when walking, and 17.2 km to 17.9 km when running at 10 km/h. As a daily total, 17,000 steps put an adult in the “highly active” category.

Woman · 1.65 m

12.7 km

2 h 19 min of walking

Man · 1.78 m

13.4 km

2 h 26 min of walking

Average heights of young adults in the UK, walking at a normal pace of 5.5 km/h.

By height

17,000 steps in km by height

Distance covered at a normal walking pace (5.5 km/h). At the same height, women take slightly shorter steps than men.

HeightWomanMan
1.50 m12.3 km12.5 km
1.55 m12.4 km12.6 km
1.60 m12.6 km12.8 km
1.65 m12.7 km12.9 km
1.70 m12.9 km13.1 km
1.75 m13.1 km13.3 km
1.78 m13.2 km13.4 km
1.80 m13.3 km13.5 km
1.85 m13.4 km13.7 km
1.90 m13.6 km13.9 km
1.95 m13.8 km14.1 km

Highlighted: average height of young adults in the UK.

By pace

17,000 steps walking or running

Distance and time for a woman of 1.65 m (5 ft 5 in) and a man of 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in). The faster you go, the longer each step, so the same number of steps covers more ground.

PaceWoman1.65 mMan1.78 m
Relaxed walk4.8 km/h11.9 km2 h 2812.4 km2 h 35
Normal walk5.5 km/h12.7 km2 h 1913.4 km2 h 26
Brisk walk6.4 km/h13.8 km2 h 0914.5 km2 h 16
Jogging8 km/h14.1 km1 h 4614.6 km1 h 50
Running10 km/h17.2 km1 h 4317.9 km1 h 48
Fast running12 km/h20.1 km1 h 4021.2 km1 h 46

Activity level

Is 17,000 steps a day enough?

With 17,000 steps a day, an adult falls into the “Highly active” category of the scale proposed by Tudor-Locke and colleagues (2011).

That is beyond the plateaus observed in the meta-analysis by Paluch and colleagues (2022, 47,471 adults): the risk of death levelled off at around 6,000 to 8,000 steps for people aged 60 and over, and at around 8,000 to 10,000 steps for those under 60.

These benchmarks describe averages observed in large studies, not a personal target. Talk to a health professional about your activity goals.

  1. SedentaryUnder 5,000
  2. Low active5,000 to 7,499
  3. Somewhat active7,500 to 9,999
  4. Active10,000 to 12,499
  5. Highly active12,500 and moreYou are here

Calories

How many calories do 17,000 steps burn?

Estimate at a normal walking pace (5.5 km/h) for a woman of 1.65 m (5 ft 5 in) and a man of 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in), based on the MET values of the Compendium of Physical Activities. Weight matters far more than height.

WeightWoman1.65 mMan1.78 m
50 kg460 kcal490 kcal
60 kg550 kcal580 kcal
70 kg650 kcal680 kcal
80 kg740 kcal780 kcal
90 kg830 kcal880 kcal
100 kg920 kcal970 kcal

Key distances

From 17,000 steps to a marathon

Walking steps needed for the reference distances at 5.5 km/h, for a woman of 1.65 m (5 ft 5 in) and a man of 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in), and how many remain after 17,000 steps.

DistanceWoman1.65 mMan1.78 m
5 km6,670reached6,340reached
10 km13,340reached12,680reached
Half marathon28,13011,130 to go26,7609,760 to go
Marathon56,27039,270 to go53,51036,510 to go

Your personal result

Calculate 17,000 steps for your height

The calculator is already set to 17,000 steps. Enter your height, sex and pace to get your own distance, time and calories.

Steps → km

Your height
Sex

Only used for the calorie estimate.

Distance covered

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Enter your number of steps to see the distance.

Steps per km

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Step length

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Time

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Calories

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Step length is estimated from your height, sex and pace with the equations published by Hoeger and colleagues in ACSM's Health & Fitness Journal (2008), which measured the number of steps needed to cover one mile at six walking and running speeds. Calories use the MET values of the Compendium of Physical Activities. Both are listed in the sources at the bottom of the page. Results are estimates: terrain, shoes, fatigue and your own way of walking all change your step length.

Method

How these figures are calculated

Distance is the number of steps multiplied by the length of one step. At 5.5 km/h, one step covers about 75.0 cm for a woman of 1.65 m (5 ft 5 in) and 78.9 cm for a man of 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in). 17,000 × 75.0 cm ≈ 12.7 km, and 17,000 × 78.9 cm ≈ 13.4 km.

Step length comes from the equations published in 2008 by Hoeger and colleagues in ACSM's Health & Fitness Journal, derived from adults who walked and ran on a treadmill at six speeds. It increases with height and with speed.

The reference heights are the average heights of young adults in the UK published by the NCD Risk Factor Collaboration in the journal eLife (2016), rounded up to the nearest centimetre. Feet and inches are rounded to the nearest inch.

Frequently asked questions

17,000 steps: your questions answered

About 12.7 km for a woman of 1.65 m (5 ft 5 in) and 13.4 km for a man of 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in), at a normal walking pace (5.5 km/h). At a brisk pace (6.4 km/h), the distance rises to 13.8 km and 14.5 km. For your own height, use the table or the calculator.

About 7.9 miles for a woman of 1.65 m (5 ft 5 in) and 8.3 miles for a man of 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in), at a normal walking pace (5.5 km/h), that is 12.7 km and 13.4 km.

About 2 h 19 min to 2 h 26 min at a normal pace (5.5 km/h), and 2 h 09 min to 2 h 16 min at a brisk pace (6.4 km/h), for a woman of 1.65 m (5 ft 5 in) and a man of 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in).

About 17.2 km for a woman of 1.65 m (5 ft 5 in) and 17.9 km for a man of 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) at 10 km/h, in 1 h 43 min to 1 h 48 min. When running, one step is about 106 cm for a man of 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in), compared with 79 cm when walking.

About 550 kcal for a woman of 1.65 m (5 ft 5 in) weighing 60 kg and 780 kcal for a man of 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) weighing 80 kg, at a normal pace. These estimates use the MET value of 3.8 for moderate walking from the Compendium of Physical Activities.