Treadmills remain one of the most widely used and commercially important fitness products in the market. The latest U.S. participation data still puts treadmill exercise among the country’s biggest fitness activities, while gym-member behavior, equipment sales, and home-fitness market share all show that the category is still highly relevant in 2026.
Treadmill Popularity Statistics (Top Highlights)
- 247.1 million Americans participated in at least one physical activity in 2024, pushing the national activity rate to a record 80%.
- Treadmill running reached about 56 million U.S. participants in 2024, placing it among the country’s most popular exercise activities.
- 54.8 million Americans used a treadmill in 2023, according to the latest fully detailed SFIA fitness activity breakdown.
- 26.8 million treadmill participants were CORE users in 2023, meaning they used the activity 50 or more times during the year.
- Treadmill workouts generated 3.565 billion total occasions in 2023, showing that the category is not just broad, but frequently used.
- 43.4% of U.S. fitness-facility members used treadmills in 2024, making them the single most-used major modality in the gym.
- 77 million Americans held gym, studio, or fitness-facility memberships in 2024, with nearly 96 million total customers when non-members are included.
- Consumer treadmill sales rose 10.1% in 2023, while institutional treadmill sales jumped 23.5%.
- The global treadmill market was valued at $6.05 billion in 2025 and is projected to reach $6.38 billion in 2026.
- Treadmills captured 26.87% of the home fitness equipment market in 2025, the largest share among major home-equipment categories in that report.
Treadmill popularity is still broad, not niche
The strongest signal in the latest participation data is that treadmill use is still mainstream. In 2024, the United States reached a record 247.1 million active participants, and treadmill running remained one of the country’s most common exercise choices. Walking for fitness stayed far ahead of everything else, but treadmill running still sat in the top tier of activities, alongside trail hiking, free weights, and jogging.
That matters because treadmill demand is supported by both sides of the market. It is a mass-participation activity in the consumer world, and it is still a core machine type inside gyms, studios, hotels, and corporate wellness spaces. In other words, treadmill popularity is not being driven by a single fad or a single channel.
Exact U.S. participation numbers still show treadmill scale
The most detailed public SFIA breakdown available shows 54.8 million treadmill participants in 2023. That put treadmills ahead of yoga, stationary cycling, and many other mainstream conditioning activities, trailing only walking for fitness and a few other large-format exercise categories.
Chart: Leading U.S. fitness activities by participants (2023)
| Label | Bar | Value | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Walking for Fitness |
| 114.0M | ||
| Treadmill |
| 54.8M | ||
| Free Weights |
| 53.9M | ||
| Running/Jogging |
| 48.3M | ||
| Yoga |
| 34.2M | ||
| Stationary Cycling |
| 32.6M |
Max = 114.0M. Widths: Walking for Fitness 100.00%, Treadmill 48.07%, Free Weights 47.28%, Running/Jogging 42.37%, Yoga 30.00%, Stationary Cycling 28.60%.
Treadmill participation has rebounded, but the pattern changed
Treadmill participation dropped sharply during the pandemic-era gym shutdowns, then climbed back. The detailed SFIA series shows that treadmill participation fell from 56.8 million in 2019 to 49.8 million in 2020, then recovered to 54.8 million in 2023. That still left the category slightly below its 2019 peak in the detailed 2023 table, but more recent 2024 reporting indicates treadmill activity moved back above pre-pandemic levels.
The usage mix also shifted. In 2023, 27.99 million treadmill participants were casual users, while 26.84 million were CORE users. That suggests treadmills continue to attract heavy repeat users, but also remain highly accessible to occasional exercisers.
Chart: U.S. treadmill participation trend (2019-2023)
| Label | Bar | Value | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 |
| 56.8M | ||
| 2020 |
| 49.8M | ||
| 2021 |
| 53.6M | ||
| 2022 |
| 53.6M | ||
| 2023 |
| 54.8M |
Max = 56.8M. Widths: 2019 100.00%, 2020 87.68%, 2021 94.37%, 2022 94.37%, 2023 96.48%.
Treadmills are still the most-used major gym modality
Popularity is not just about how many people have ever used a treadmill. It also shows up in what paying gym members actually choose once they walk onto the floor. HFA’s 2025 consumer research found that 43.4% of members used treadmills in 2024, compared with 32.1% for dumbbells or free weights, 26.6% for resistance machines, and 18.8% for ellipticals.
That is a strong sign that treadmills still serve as the default cardio option for a large share of gym users, even as strength training, recovery work, and mind-body formats continue to grow.
Chart: Fitness-facility member equipment use (2024)
| Label | Bar | Value | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Treadmills |
| 43.4% | ||
| Free weights |
| 32.1% | ||
| Resistance machines |
| 26.6% | ||
| Ellipticals |
| 18.8% |
Max = 43.4%. Widths: Treadmills 100.00%, Free weights 73.96%, Resistance machines 61.29%, Ellipticals 43.32%.
Sales data says buyers are still investing in treadmills
Participation is one side of popularity, but purchasing behavior matters too. SFIA’s latest manufacturers’ sales report showed that treadmills were one of the strongest-growing product types in both major equipment channels during 2023. Institutional treadmill sales rose faster than the broader institutional category, and consumer treadmill sales also outpaced overall consumer fitness-equipment growth.
Chart: Treadmill sales growth vs overall fitness equipment growth (2023)
| Label | Bar | Value | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Institutional treadmills |
| 23.5% | ||
| Institutional fitness equipment |
| 11.8% | ||
| Consumer treadmills |
| 10.1% | ||
| Consumer fitness equipment |
| 8.0% |
Max = 23.5%. Widths: Institutional treadmills 100.00%, Institutional fitness equipment 50.21%, Consumer treadmills 42.98%, Consumer fitness equipment 34.04%.
The market side of treadmill popularity is still expanding
Commercial market research points in the same direction as the participation data. One widely cited industry report valued the global treadmill market at $6.05 billion in 2025 and projected it to reach $6.38 billion in 2026, with North America holding a 39.60% share in 2025.
Another report estimated that treadmills held 26.87% of the home fitness equipment market in 2025, making them the largest single product type in that category. That result fits the user-behavior story: treadmills work for walking, jogging, intervals, incline work, and low-skill home cardio, so they keep attracting beginners and experienced users at the same time.
Walking pads are helping keep the category fresh
Treadmill popularity is also being reshaped by the smaller end of the category. The global under-desk treadmill market reached $137.8 million in 2025 and is projected to grow to $206.8 million by 2034. That is a much smaller market than full-size treadmills, but it shows how the category is adapting to remote work, apartment living, and low-intensity movement during the day.
This is one reason treadmill popularity has proved more durable than many other cardio trends. The same category can serve runners, walkers, rehab users, weight-management users, office workers, and older adults. Few other fitness products span that many use cases.
What these treadmill popularity statistics mean
The big picture is straightforward: treadmills are no longer a pandemic-era novelty, but they are not fading either. They remain one of the largest participation activities in U.S. fitness, the most-used major gym modality, a growing product category in both consumer and institutional channels, and a meaningful part of the global home-fitness market. The format has broadened, not shrunk, with full-size home units, connected machines, and walking pads all feeding the same core demand for accessible indoor cardio.
Note: Market-size and market-share figures here come from commercial research firms, so they should be treated as directional industry estimates rather than official census-style counts.
Sources
- SFIA 2025 Topline Participation Report press release: https://sfia.org/resources/sfias-topline-participation-report-shows-247-1-million-americans-were-active-in-2024/
- TIME summary of 2024 SFIA participation rankings: https://time.com/7309450/most-popular-sport-exercise-fitness/
- SFIA 2024 Topline Participation Report PDF: https://www.usta.com/es/content/dam/usta/sections/intermountain/districts/colorado/pdfs/sfia-reports/2024-sfia-topline.pdf
- Health & Fitness Association, membership headline data: https://www.healthandfitness.org/one-in-four-americans-belonged-to-a-gym-in-2024/
- Health & Fitness Association, member equipment-use trends: https://www.healthandfitness.org/how-77-million-fitness-members-work-out-new-hfa-data-reveals-shifting-equipment-training-and-membership-trends/
- SFIA Manufacturers’ Sales by Category Report press release: https://sfia.org/resources/sfias-manufacturers-sales-by-category-report-shows-industry-grew-by-4-2-in-2023-up-26-8-since-2019/
- Fortune Business Insights treadmill market report: https://www.fortunebusinessinsights.com/treadmill-market-110438
- Mordor Intelligence home fitness equipment market report: https://www.mordorintelligence.com/industry-reports/home-fitness-equipment-market
- IMARC under-desk treadmill market report: https://www.imarcgroup.com/under-desk-treadmill-market