Steps to miles conversion
20,000 steps to miles
20,000 steps is about 9.3 miles for a woman of 5 ft 5 in and 9.8 miles for a man of 5 ft 10 in, the average heights of young adults in the US, at a normal walking pace (3.4 mph). That is 2 h 44 min to 2 h 52 min of walking, or 15.0 km to 15.8 km. The distance depends mostly on your height and speed: from 8.4 to 11.2 miles when walking, and 12.6 to 13.1 miles when running at 6.2 mph. As a daily total, 20,000 steps put an adult in the “highly active” category.
Woman · 5 ft 5 in
9.3 mi
2 h 44 min of walking
Man · 5 ft 10 in
9.8 mi
2 h 52 min of walking
Average heights of young adults in the US, walking at a normal pace of 3.4 mph.
By height
20,000 steps in miles by height
Distance covered at a normal walking pace (3.4 mph). At the same height, women take slightly shorter steps than men.
| Height | Woman | Man |
|---|---|---|
| 4 ft 11 in | 9.0 mi | 9.1 mi |
| 5 ft 1 in | 9.1 mi | 9.2 mi |
| 5 ft 3 in | 9.2 mi | 9.3 mi |
| 5 ft 5 in | 9.3 mi | 9.5 mi |
| 5 ft 7 in | 9.4 mi | 9.6 mi |
| 5 ft 9 in | 9.6 mi | 9.7 mi |
| 5 ft 10 in | 9.6 mi | 9.8 mi |
| 5 ft 11 in | 9.7 mi | 9.9 mi |
| 6 ft 1 in | 9.8 mi | 10.0 mi |
| 6 ft 3 in | 10.0 mi | 10.1 mi |
| 6 ft 5 in | 10.1 mi | 10.3 mi |
Highlighted: average height of young adults in the US.
By pace
20,000 steps walking or running
Distance and time for a woman of 5 ft 5 in and a man of 5 ft 10 in. The faster you go, the longer each step, so the same number of steps covers more ground.
| Pace | Woman5 ft 5 in | Man5 ft 10 in |
|---|---|---|
| Relaxed walk3.0 mph | 8.7 mi2 h 54 | 9.1 mi3 h 03 |
| Normal walk3.4 mph | 9.3 mi2 h 44 | 9.8 mi2 h 52 |
| Brisk walk4.0 mph | 10.1 mi2 h 32 | 10.6 mi2 h 40 |
| Jogging5.0 mph | 10.3 mi2 h 04 | 10.7 mi2 h 09 |
| Running6.2 mph | 12.6 mi2 h 01 | 13.1 mi2 h 07 |
| Fast running7.5 mph | 14.7 mi1 h 58 | 15.4 mi2 h 04 |
Activity level
Is 20,000 steps a day enough?
With 20,000 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 leveled 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.
- SedentaryUnder 5,000
- Low active5,000 to 7,499
- Somewhat active7,500 to 9,999
- Active10,000 to 12,499
- Highly active12,500 and moreYou are here
Calories
How many calories do 20,000 steps burn?
Estimate at a normal walking pace (3.4 mph) for a woman of 5 ft 5 in and a man of 5 ft 10 in, based on the MET values of the Compendium of Physical Activities. Body weight matters far more than height.
| Weight | Woman5 ft 5 in | Man5 ft 10 in |
|---|---|---|
| 120 lb | 590 kcal | 620 kcal |
| 140 lb | 690 kcal | 730 kcal |
| 160 lb | 790 kcal | 830 kcal |
| 180 lb | 890 kcal | 930 kcal |
| 200 lb | 990 kcal | 1,040 kcal |
| 220 lb | 1,090 kcal | 1,140 kcal |
Key distances
From 20,000 steps to a marathon
Walking steps needed for common distances at 3.4 mph, for a woman of 5 ft 5 in and a man of 5 ft 10 in, and how many remain after 20,000 steps.
| Distance | Woman5 ft 5 in | Man5 ft 10 in |
|---|---|---|
| 1 mile | 2,150reached | 2,040reached |
| 5K | 6,670reached | 6,340reached |
| 10K | 13,330reached | 12,690reached |
| Half marathon | 28,1308,130 to go | 26,7706,770 to go |
| Marathon | 56,25036,250 to go | 53,54033,540 to go |
Your personal result
Calculate 20,000 steps for your height
The calculator is already set to 20,000 steps, in miles, feet and pounds. Enter your height, sex and pace to get your own distance, time and calories.
Steps → km
Km → steps
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 3.4 mph, one step covers about 29.5 in for a woman of 5 ft 5 in and 31.0 in for a man of 5 ft 10 in. 20,000 × 29.5 in ≈ 9.3 miles, and 20,000 × 31.0 in ≈ 9.8 miles.
Step length comes from the equations published in 2008 by Hoeger and colleagues in ACSM's Health & Fitness Journal, built from adults who walked and ran one mile on a treadmill at six speeds (3 and 4 mph walking; 5, 6, 7.5 and 10 mph running). It increases with height and with speed.
The reference heights are the average heights of young adults in the US published by the NCD Risk Factor Collaboration in the journal eLife (2016), rounded up to the nearest inch.
Frequently asked questions
20,000 steps: your questions answered
About 9.3 miles for a woman of 5 ft 5 in and 9.8 miles for a man of 5 ft 10 in, at a normal walking pace (3.4 mph). At a brisk pace (4.0 mph), the distance rises to 10.1 miles and 10.6 miles. For your own height, use the table or the calculator.
About 15.0 km for a woman of 5 ft 5 in and 15.8 km for a man of 5 ft 10 in, at a normal walking pace (3.4 mph).
About 2 h 44 min to 2 h 52 min at a normal pace (3.4 mph), and 2 h 32 min to 2 h 40 min at a brisk pace (4.0 mph), for a woman of 5 ft 5 in and a man of 5 ft 10 in.
About 12.6 miles for a woman of 5 ft 5 in and 13.1 miles for a man of 5 ft 10 in at 6.2 mph, in 2 h 01 min to 2 h 07 min. When running, one step is about 41.5 in for a man of 5 ft 10 in, compared with 31.0 in when walking.
About 690 kcal for a woman of 5 ft 5 in weighing 140 lb and 930 kcal for a man of 5 ft 10 in weighing 180 lb, at a normal pace. These estimates use the MET value of 3.8 for moderate walking from the Compendium of Physical Activities.
Other conversions
Other step counts in miles
- 1,000 steps
- 1,500 steps
- 2,000 steps
- 2,500 steps
- 3,000 steps
- 3,500 steps
- 4,000 steps
- 4,500 steps
- 5,000 steps
- 5,500 steps
- 6,000 steps
- 6,500 steps
- 7,000 steps
- 7,500 steps
- 8,000 steps
- 8,500 steps
- 9,000 steps
- 9,500 steps
- 10,000 steps
- 10,500 steps
- 11,000 steps
- 11,500 steps
- 12,000 steps
- 12,500 steps
- 13,000 steps
- 13,500 steps
- 14,000 steps
- 14,500 steps
- 15,000 steps
- 15,500 steps
- 16,000 steps
- 16,500 steps
- 17,000 steps
- 17,500 steps
- 18,000 steps
- 18,500 steps
- 19,000 steps
- 19,500 steps
- 20,000 steps
- 25,000 steps
- 30,000 steps
Sources
The research behind these figures
- Hoeger et al., One-Mile Step Count at Walking and Running Speeds, ACSM's Health & Fitness Journal (2008)
- Paluch et al., Daily steps and all-cause mortality: a meta-analysis of 15 international cohorts, The Lancet Public Health (2022)
- Banach et al., The association between daily step count and all-cause and cardiovascular mortality, European Journal of Preventive Cardiology (2023)
- Tudor-Locke et al., How many steps/day are enough? For adults, IJBNPA (2011)
- Compendium of Physical Activities (MET values used for the calorie estimate)
- NCD Risk Factor Collaboration, A century of trends in adult human height, eLife (2016)
Estimates for information only, not medical advice.