# What walking calories do I burn?

Estimates the calories burned walking from body weight, pace or hill, and minutes, with MET values from the 2024 Adult Compendium of Physical Activities.

- Page: https://www.acalculator.org/health/calories-burned-walking-calculator
- JSON spec: https://www.acalculator.org/health/calories-burned-walking-calculator.json
- Version: 4a9f05024d4f

## Default answer

Example with the default inputs (Weight 160 lb, Pace or hill Moderate, 2.8 to 3.4 mph, Minutes walked 30): Walking for 30 minutes (Moderate, 2.8 to 3.4 mph) at 160 lb burns about 145 calories.

## Inputs

| Key | Label | Description |
| --- | --- | --- |
| weight | Weight | Your body weight. |
| pace | Pace or hill | How fast you walk, or the hill grade, which sets the MET value. |
| min | Minutes walked | How long you walk, in minutes. |

## Outputs

| Key | Label | Description |
| --- | --- | --- |
| calories | Calories burned | Total kilocalories burned during the walk, including what the body burns at rest. |
| net | Above resting | Kilocalories burned beyond what you would burn resting for the same time: (MET − 1) of the total. |
| perHour | Calories per hour | Kilocalories burned per hour at this pace and weight. |
| met | MET value | The Compendium’s energy cost of the activity as a multiple of the resting rate. |

## Method

Calories = MET × 3.5 × weight (kg) ÷ 200 × minutes; calories above resting use MET − 1.

## Assumptions

- MET values are the 2024 Adult Compendium’s, measured in adults 19 to 59 years old.
- One MET is taken as 3.5 mL of oxygen per kilogram per minute, and 1 litre of oxygen as 5 kilocalories (the Compendium’s conversions).
- The answer is an estimate for an average person; fitness, age, terrain, and carrying a load change the real cost.
- This is for information only and is not medical advice.

## Worked examples

1. weight = 72.574779, pace = 17190, min = 30 gives calories = 144.786685, net = 106.684925, perHour = 289.573369, met = 3.8. Source: 2024 Adult Compendium code 17190 (3.8 MET) and its unit conversion (kcal/min = MET × 3.5 × kg ÷ 200); hand calculation in content.mdx.
2. weight = 70, pace = 17200, min = 60 gives calories = 352.8, net = 279.3. Source: 2024 Adult Compendium code 17200 (4.8 MET); hand calculation in content.mdx: 4.8 × 3.5 × 70 ÷ 200 × 60.
3. weight = 90.718474, pace = 17034, min = 45 gives calories = 378.636231, net = 307.195433. Source: 2024 Adult Compendium code 17034, uphill 1 to 5% grade (5.3 MET); hand calculation in content.mdx.
4. weight = 55, pace = 17152, min = 20 gives calories = 53.9, met = 2.8. Source: 2024 Adult Compendium code 17152 (2.8 MET); hand calculation in content.mdx: 2.8 × 3.5 × 55 ÷ 200 × 20.

## FAQ

### How many calories does walking burn?

It depends on your weight, pace, and time. A 160 lb (72.6 kg) person walking at a moderate 2.8 to 3.4 mph burns about 145 calories in 30 minutes: 3.8 METs × 3.5 × 72.6 ÷ 200 × 30. At a brisk 3.5 to 3.9 mph, it is about 183 calories.

### How is walking calorie burn calculated?

With a MET value, the energy cost of an activity as a multiple of resting. The Compendium of Physical Activities lists walking at 3.8 METs for a moderate pace. Calories per minute = MET × 3.5 × body weight in kg ÷ 200. Multiply by the minutes walked.

### What does "above resting" mean?

Your body burns about 1 MET even at rest. The total includes that. The calories above resting use MET − 1, so they show the extra that the walk itself burned, which is the number to use for weight change.

### Does walking uphill burn more calories?

Yes. The Compendium lists climbing hills with no load at a moderate-to-brisk pace as 5.3 METs on a 1 to 5% grade and 7.0 METs on a 6 to 10% grade, against 3.8 METs for a moderate pace on level ground.

### How accurate is this estimate?

It is a population estimate. The Compendium's values are averages measured in adults 19 to 59 years old, and they assume a resting rate of 3.5 mL of oxygen per kg per minute. Your real burn can differ with fitness, age, body composition, terrain, and walking style.

### How do I count a walk measured in miles?

Divide the distance by your speed to get the time. For example, 2 miles at 3 mph takes 2 ÷ 3 hours, which is 40 minutes. Then enter 40 minutes at the matching pace.

## Sources

- Herrmann SD, Willis EA, Ainsworth BE, et al. 2024 Adult Compendium of Physical Activities: a third update of the energy costs of human activities. Journal of Sport and Health Science 2024;13:6–12. doi:10.1016/j.jshs.2023.10.010
- Compendium of Physical Activities, Walking (codes 17034 to 17231). https://pacompendium.com/walking
- Compendium of Physical Activities, Unit Conversions: 1 MET = 3.5 mL/kg/min; METs to kcal/min = METs × 3.5 × body weight in kg ÷ 200. https://pacompendium.com/unite-conversions/
- NIST SP 811 (2008), Appendix B: 1 lb = 0.45359237 kg exactly.