Nearly one in three adults and most adolescents do not move enough to protect their health, and the share of inactive adults is rising because streets, schools and daily routines increasingly leave little room for walking, cycling and play.
Written from the sources listed below, not independently peer-reviewed.
WHO recommends at least 150 minutes of moderate activity a week for adults. Roughly how many adults worldwide did not reach that level in 2022?
31%
Adults who are not active enough
About 1.8 billion adults did not reach 150 minutes of moderate activity a week (or its equivalent), up about 5 percentage points since 2010. Modelled estimate from population surveys.
Data year 2022. Source: World Health Organization, 2024
More than 80%
School-going adolescents aged 11–17 who are not active enough
Less than one hour of activity a day: 85% of girls and 78% of boys. Most recent global estimate, based on school surveys in 146 countries.
Data year 2016. Source: World Health Organization, 2019
2 in 3
Secondary school pupils not taught the minimum weekly physical education
More than half of primary pupils also fall short of the minimum weekly time, and two thirds of pupils with disabilities get no physical education at all. Reported in UNESCO's first global status report on the subject.
Data year 2024. Source: UNESCO, 2024
Unit: % of adults (age-standardised)
Global age-standardised estimates from a pooled analysis of 507 population-based surveys, modelled for 197 countries and territories. Prevalence rose in 103 of them. WHO projects that, if the trend continues, the share will reach 35% by 2030 (a projection, not shown).
Under WHO's Global Action Plan on Physical Activity, countries agreed to cut the share of insufficiently active adults and adolescents by 15% in relative terms by 2030, compared with 2010. Instead, adult inactivity rose by about 5 percentage points between 2010 and 2022 and is projected to reach 35% by 2030 if trends continue. Only 22 countries were identified as likely to reach the target, and among adolescents the 2001–2016 trend was also too slow to meet it.
Women are less active than men: 34% of women and 29% of men were insufficiently active in 2022, and in some countries the gap reaches 20 percentage points. Inactivity also rises for both women and men after the age of 60.
Source: World Health Organization, 2024Inactivity varies widely by region: it is highest in the high-income Asia Pacific region (48%) and South Asia (45%), compared with 28% in high-income Western countries and 14% in Oceania.
Source: World Health Organization, 2024Adolescent girls were less active than boys in all but four of 146 countries studied, and the gap between them widened in 107 countries between 2001 and 2016. In South Korea, 97% of girls did not get an hour of activity a day.
Source: World Health Organization, 2019Only 58% of countries make physical education compulsory for girls, only 7% of schools give boys and girls equal time for it, and two thirds of pupils with disabilities receive no physical education.
Source: UNESCO, 2024Instead of one “percent solved” score, DO GOOD rates three separate dimensions. A problem can have mature solutions that still reach too few people. These ratings are an editorial reading of the sources on this page, not a measured index.
Has the situation improved in the real world?
LowThe share of insufficiently active adults rose from 26.4% in 2010 to 31.3% in 2022 and increased in 103 of 197 countries. Among adolescents, the share of inactive girls barely changed between 2001 and 2016.
How mature and validated are the available solutions?
ModerateActivity recommendations by age are well established, and WHO's action plan sets out 20 policy recommendations covering safer roads, schools, workplaces and other settings. But there are no globally agreed indicators for basics such as access to parks, cycle lanes and footpaths, so it is hard to show which measures shift activity at scale.
How widely are effective solutions actually used?
LowFewer than half of countries have a national physical activity policy, and fewer than 40% of those are operational. Just over 40% have road design standards that make walking and cycling safer, and two thirds of secondary pupils do not get the minimum weekly physical education.
The adult estimates draw on 507 surveys with 5.7 million participants from 163 countries and territories, but they rely on self-reported activity and are modelled for countries without data. The latest global adolescent estimate dates from 2016 and covers only young people in school.
Adult inactivity has risen steadily since 2000 and WHO projects 35% by 2030 if trends continue, although almost half of countries improved over the past decade and 22 are likely to meet the 2030 target.
Physical inactivity means doing less than the minimum amount of activity that protects health: for adults, WHO recommends at least 150 minutes of moderate or 75 minutes of vigorous activity a week, and for adolescents an average of one hour a day. People who are insufficiently active have a 20% to 30% higher risk of death than those who are active enough, and regular activity helps prevent and manage heart disease, diabetes, cancer and high blood pressure and eases symptoms of depression and anxiety. In 2022, 31% of adults, about 1.8 billion people, did not meet the recommendation, up from 26% in 2010. Among school-going adolescents aged 11 to 17, the most recent global estimate (for 2016) found that more than four in five were not active enough.
Inactivity is shaped far more by surroundings than by individual willpower. WHO points to the growth of motorised transport and screen use, and to social, cultural, environmental and economic conditions that decide whether walking, cycling, sport and play are safe, affordable and possible. Women are less active than men in most countries, adolescent girls less than boys, and people over 60 less than younger adults. WHO estimates that, if activity levels do not improve, almost 500 million new cases of preventable noncommunicable diseases will occur between 2020 and 2030, costing health systems about US$27 billion a year.
Global estimates compare what people report doing in population surveys with WHO's activity recommendations. A person counts as insufficiently active when they fall short of the level recommended for their age:
Adults (18 and over)
Insufficiently active means less than 150 minutes of moderate-intensity or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity activity per week, or an equivalent combination. Activity at work, at home, while travelling and in leisure time all counts.
Adolescents (11–17)
Insufficiently active means less than an average of one hour of moderate- to vigorous-intensity activity per day. Global estimates come from school-based surveys, so young people who are not in school are not covered.
Self-reported surveys, modelled estimates
The adult estimates pool 507 population-based surveys with 5.7 million participants from 163 countries and territories, and use statistical models to produce comparable figures for 197 countries, including those without recent surveys. Answers rely on what people remember and report.
Policy monitoring
WHO tracks progress on the Global Action Plan on Physical Activity 2018–2030 by asking all 194 Member States which policies, guidelines, standards and surveys they have in place.
What works
Footpaths, protected cycle lanes, safe crossings and good public transport let people build activity into daily trips without needing extra time or money. WHO asks countries to make walking, cycling and public transport easier and safer for everyone.
Limits
Only just over 40% of countries have road design standards that make walking and cycling safer, changes to streets take years and depend on transport and planning budgets, and there is no global indicator to track how many people have access to such infrastructure.
What works
Schools reach almost all children, and regular physical education builds skills and habits for life. UNESCO recommends at least two hours of physical education a week in primary school and three hours in secondary school, with trained teachers and inclusive programmes for girls and pupils with disabilities.
Limits
Two thirds of secondary pupils do not get the minimum weekly time, fewer than half of primary teachers have specialist training, and two thirds of countries spend less than 2% of their education budget on physical education.
What works
A national policy that brings together health, transport, education, sport and urban planning is the backbone of WHO's action plan, and national guidelines tell people and professionals how much activity is enough at each age.
Limits
Fewer than half of countries have such a policy and fewer than 40% of those are operational. Only 30% of countries have national activity guidelines for all age groups.
What works
WHO urges countries to support grassroots and community sport and active recreation, making activity affordable and enjoyable for people of all ages and abilities.
Limits
Sport offers do not automatically reach those who move least. Women, girls and adults over 60, the groups that move least, need offers designed around their needs, times and safety concerns.
What works
WHO recommends more opportunities for activity in schools, workplaces and childcare centres. Health workers can also ask about activity during routine care and advise patients on how to build it into daily life.
Limits
Advice from health workers depends on time and training in busy clinics, and workplace programmes mostly reach people in formal jobs.
Promising, but not proven at scale. The stage shows how far each approach has come; it is not a recommendation.
WHO notes that there are no globally approved indicators for access to parks, cycle lanes and footpaths, so countries cannot compare how well their environments support activity. Developing such indicators would let progress on the built environment be tracked alongside survey data.
UNESCO's 2024 status report offers a set of 10 indicators that education authorities can use to rate the quality of physical education. How widely it will be used is not yet known.
Some national surveys now ask participants to wear small motion sensors for a few days instead of relying only on questionnaires, which gives a more objective measure of activity and sitting time. Costs and differences between devices still make such data hard to compare across countries.
Implementation gap
Fewer than half of countries have a national physical activity policy, and fewer than 40% of these are operational, so commitments often do not reach streets, schools and clinics.
Coordination gap
Only just over 40% of countries have road design standards that make walking and cycling safer. Decisions on roads and land use sit with transport and planning ministries, which rarely count health as a goal.
Implementation gap
Two thirds of secondary pupils and more than half of primary pupils do not get the minimum weekly physical education, fewer than half of primary teachers have specialist training, and only 58% of countries make it compulsory for girls.
Knowledge gap
Almost all countries monitor adult activity, but fewer than 30% monitor children under five, and the latest global estimate for adolescents is from 2016 and covers only those in school.
Technology gap
Global estimates rest on questionnaires in which people recall their own activity, and the models fill gaps for 34 of 197 countries and territories without surveys. Device-based measurement is not yet affordable or standardised enough for global monitoring.
Implementation gap
Women are inactive more often than men, and the gap between adolescent girls and boys widened in 107 of 146 countries between 2001 and 2016, showing that existing offers do not fit the needs of many girls and women.
Unresolved questions, not vetted breakthroughs. Answering any of them would change what is possible.
Adult inactivity rose in more than half of countries between 2010 and 2022. How much of this comes from less physical work, more motorised travel, screen use or ageing populations, and does the mix differ between regions?
Almost half of countries made some progress over the past decade. Which policies, investments or social changes explain these gains, and can they be transferred to countries where inactivity is rising?
Girls and women are less active than boys and men in most countries, and the adolescent gap has widened. Which changes in schools, sport, public space and safety reduce this gap without relying on girls to adapt?
How can countries measure access to parks, safe paths and cycle lanes, and the activity of children under five, cheaply and comparably enough to guide policy?
Where it is safe, walk, cycle or combine public transport with walking for short everyday journeys. Small amounts add up: WHO says any activity is better than none.
Ask your child's school how many hours of physical education pupils get each week, whether teachers are trained for it, and whether girls and pupils with disabilities take part equally.
Take part in local consultations on footpaths, crossings, cycle lanes, parks and school routes. Planning decisions are often made with little input from the people who would walk or cycle.
Join or help organise a walking group, community sports session or active activity for older neighbours. People who move least often start more easily with company.
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World Health Organization (26 June 2024), published 2024
WHO's current overview. Source of the 150-minute adult recommendation, the 20–30% higher risk of death among insufficiently active people, the health benefits (cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes, hypertension, depression and anxiety), the drivers (motorised transport, screens), the rise in inactivity after age 60, and the 10% (2025) and 15% (2030) relative-reduction targets.
Strain T, Flaxman S, Guthold R, et al. The Lancet Global Health 12(8): e1232–e1243, published 2024
Open-access (CC BY) record of the WHO-led analysis, hosted by Imperial College London. Source of the global age-standardised prevalence in 2000 (23.4%), 2010 (26.4%) and 2022 (31.3%), the 507 surveys from 163 countries and territories, the estimates for 197 countries, the rise in 103 of them, and the sex difference (33.8% of women, 28.7% of men).
World Health Organization (news release, 26 June 2024), published 2024
Launch of the Lancet Global Health estimates. Source of the 31% and 1.8 billion figures, the 5-point rise since 2010, the 35% projection for 2030, regional figures, the gap between women and men, the 22 countries likely to meet the 2030 target, and WHO's call for community sport, active recreation and active transport.
World Health Organization (news release, 22 November 2019), published 2019
Launch of the most recent global estimates for adolescents (Guthold et al., The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health, 2020), based on school surveys of 1.6 million students aged 11–17 in 146 countries, 2001–2016. Source of the more than 80% figure, the 85% of girls and 78% of boys, the gender gaps, country examples and WHO's recommendations on physical education and active travel.
World Health Organization (19 October 2022), published 2022
Launch of WHO's first global assessment of how 194 countries implement the Global Action Plan on Physical Activity. Source of the almost 500 million new noncommunicable disease cases (2020–2030), the US$27 billion annual cost, the shares of countries with national policies, operational policies, guidelines for all ages and road design standards for walking and cycling, the monitoring gaps and the 20 policy recommendations.
UNESCO (24 July 2024), published 2024
Launch of UNESCO's first global status report on quality physical education. Source of the shares of secondary and primary pupils not taught the minimum weekly time, pupils with disabilities without physical education, teacher training, spending, compulsory physical education for girls, equal time in schools, the recommended weekly hours and the 10 quality indicators.
DO GOOD International (2026). Getting the World Moving. Global Challenges. Updated October 15, 2026. https://www.dogood.world/challenges/physical-inactivity
For figures, please cite the original sources listed above.