Last updated: September 2026
There is no official Apple Watch Move goal by age. Apple doesn’t publish an age chart. Your watch estimates active calories from the age, sex, height and weight in your Health details, then suggests goals based on how much you’ve actually been moving. The charts below turn those same inputs into realistic Move goal ranges by age, gender and activity level, so you can check whether your number makes sense.
Get a Move Goal for Your Exact Age, Weight and Activity Level
The charts use an average-sized adult. The move goal calculator uses your own numbers and your goal (maintain, lose weight or build fitness).
Apple Watch Move Goal by Age and Gender (Chart)
Each figure is the number of active calories (the calories that count toward your Move ring) that an average-sized adult of that age and sex burns per day at each activity level. Treat each one as the daily Move goal that matches your current lifestyle, not a stretch target.
Move Goals for Men by Age
| Age | Sedentary (little or no exercise) | Lightly active (exercise 1–3 days/week) | Moderately active (3–5 days/week) | Very active (6–7 days/week) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18–29 | 150 kcal | 450 kcal | 740 kcal | 1,040 kcal |
| 30–49 | 140 kcal | 430 kcal | 710 kcal | 1,000 kcal |
| 50–64 | 140 kcal | 410 kcal | 680 kcal | 950 kcal |
| 65+ | 130 kcal | 390 kcal | 650 kcal | 910 kcal |
Move Goals for Women by Age
| Age | Sedentary (little or no exercise) | Lightly active (exercise 1–3 days/week) | Moderately active (3–5 days/week) | Very active (6–7 days/week) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18–29 | 120 kcal | 360 kcal | 590 kcal | 830 kcal |
| 30–49 | 110 kcal | 340 kcal | 560 kcal | 790 kcal |
| 50–64 | 110 kcal | 320 kcal | 530 kcal | 740 kcal |
| 65+ | 100 kcal | 300 kcal | 500 kcal | 700 kcal |
How These Numbers Were Calculated
Each row uses the average US adult from the CDC’s latest body measurement data (men: 199 lb and 5’9″; women: 172 lb and 5’3.5″) [CDC] at a representative age for the band (25, 40, 57 and 72).
- Resting burn (BMR): the Mifflin-St Jeor equation, the most widely used resting-metabolism formula for adults [1].
- Total daily burn: BMR multiplied by the standard activity factor (1.2, 1.375, 1.55 or 1.725).
- Active calories: total burn minus BMR, minus about 10% for digesting food. Digestion isn’t movement, so it doesn’t count toward your Move ring.
Two things shift your personal number away from the chart. Body weight changes it most (see below). Activity level categories are also rough, so if you’re between two columns, start with the lower one.
How Much Does Age Actually Change Your Move Goal?
Less than most people expect. Read across the charts: at the same weight and activity level, a 72-year-old man’s goal is only about 12% lower than a 25-year-old’s (650 vs 740 kcal when moderately active). Moving from sedentary to moderately active raises it about five times as much.
That matches the largest study of human energy use to date. Pontzer et al. analysed doubly labelled water measurements from over 6,000 people aged 8 days to 95 years. After adjusting for body size and composition, daily energy expenditure stayed stable from about age 20 to 60 and only declined after that [2]. The “metabolism crashes in your 30s” idea doesn’t hold up. What usually changes with age is how much people move and how much muscle they carry.
That’s also why Apple doesn’t use an age chart. Your activity level matters far more than your birthday, and the watch already accounts for age in its calorie estimates. For adults over 60, the chart’s gentle decline is a sensible default. Past that, pick your number from your activity level and weight, not your age alone.
Move Goal for Kids Under 13
Children under 13 on a family-managed Apple Watch get a different Move ring. It tracks move minutes instead of active calories, and Exercise and workout tracking are also tailored to kids [Apple]. Parents can switch this “under 13” experience on or off in the Apple Watch app on the managing iPhone. So an age-based calorie chart doesn’t apply to young children at all.
How Apple Watch Sets Your Starting Move Goal
The watch uses the height, weight, sex and age in your Health details to estimate how many calories you burn. Apple recommends keeping those details current and calibrating your watch on an outdoor walk or run to improve calorie accuracy [Apple]. If your weight has changed since setup, update it first, because an outdated weight skews every calorie number the watch reports.
After setup, Apple Watch suggests goals based on your previous performance. Every Monday it summarises the past week and lets you adjust your goals for the next one [Apple]. Those suggestions only look at recent activity, so a holiday week or a sick week can push your goal in the wrong direction. Comparing your goal against the chart is a quick sanity check.
To change it, open the Activity app on your watch and choose Change for Today or Change Daily Goal. Current watchOS versions also let you schedule different goals for each day of the week.
Is 300, 500, 600 or 700 Calories a Good Move Goal?
A “good” Move goal is one you close on most days. Here is where common targets sit on the charts:
- 300 calories: above the sedentary column for every age. For a sedentary 40-year-old woman (about 110 kcal), closing 300 means adding roughly 40–55 minutes of walking a day. That’s a solid first target if you’re currently inactive.
- 500 calories: about the moderately active level for women over 50, and between lightly and moderately active for men. It’s a good everyday target for someone who exercises most days.
- 600 calories: moderately active for women under 50 (560–590), and a step above lightly active for men of any age.
- 700 calories: moderately active for men under 50 (710–740), or very active for women 50 and older (700–740). It’s a demanding daily target for most people. Only choose it if you already train almost every day.
What Move Goal Equals 10,000 Steps?
At a moderate pace, 10,000 steps works out to roughly 280–360 active calories for an average-sized adult (about 284 for the average woman and 354 for the average man). A brisk pace pushes that to about 320–400. That’s the energy above your resting burn, which is what the Move ring counts. Calculators that show “calories burned walking” usually include resting calories too, so they give a higher figure (about 400–500 for the same walk).
So a 300–400 calorie Move goal is roughly a 10,000-step day. For your own height, weight and pace:
Convert Your Steps to Calories
Enter your daily steps, weight and walking pace to see the total calories burned and the distance covered.
Why Body Weight Matters More Than Age
Moving a heavier body takes more energy, so body weight shifts your Move goal more than age does. Take two moderately active 40-year-old women of the same height. At 132 lb (60 kg), the chart method gives about 490 active calories a day. At 220 lb (100 kg), it gives about 650. That’s a 160-calorie gap, nearly twice the difference between a 25-year-old and a 72-year-old at the same weight.
It works the other way too. As you lose weight, the same walk or workout burns fewer calories, and a goal that used to be easy gets harder to close. If you’re losing weight, recheck your Move goal every couple of months (and update your weight in the Health app).
Picking Your Number Within the Range
The charts tell you what’s typical for your age and activity level. The right goal for you also depends on what you want from it. Building a habit calls for a goal you close almost every day. Losing weight calls for a deliberate calorie gap. Training for an event means pushing toward the next column. A simple test: if you miss your goal four or more days a week, it’s set too high for your current routine.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Apple Watch set your Move goal by age?
Not directly. Apple doesn’t publish a Move goal chart by age. The watch uses your age, sex, height and weight to estimate the calories you burn, then suggests goals based on your recent activity. Age affects the numbers only slightly. Activity level and body weight have a much bigger effect on what a realistic goal is.
Is 500 calories a good Move goal?
Yes, for most people who exercise regularly. 500 active calories is about the moderately active level for women over 50, and between lightly and moderately active for men. If you’re currently sedentary, start around 300 and build up. If you close 500 easily every day, move up in 25–50 calorie steps.
Is 600 or 700 calories a good Move goal?
600 is a moderately active target for women under 50, and a step above lightly active for men. 700 is moderately active for men under 50, or very active for women over 50. Both are good goals if you train most days. They’re too high if you’re missing them more often than you close them.
What Move goal equals 10,000 steps?
About 280–360 active calories at a moderate pace for an average-sized adult, and roughly 320–400 at a brisk pace. A Move goal of 300–400 is therefore close to a 10,000-step day. Taller and heavier people burn more per step, so check your own number with a steps-to-calories calculator.
What are Move calories on Apple Watch?
Move calories are active calories: the energy you burn through movement on top of what your body uses at rest. Walking, climbing stairs, housework and workouts all count. Resting calories, the energy used just to keep your body running, show separately in the Health app and don’t count toward your Move ring.
Should older adults lower their Move goal?
Only slightly, if at all. At the same weight and activity level, the goal for someone in their 70s is about 10–15% lower than in their 20s. Choose your number from your activity level first. A 65-year-old who walks daily and strength trains can reasonably use the same column as a younger adult.
Get Your Personal Move Goal
Charts use averages. Enter your own age, sex, height, weight and activity level for a Move goal based on you.
Sources: [1] Mifflin MD, St Jeor ST, et al. A new predictive equation for resting energy expenditure in healthy individuals. Am J Clin Nutr. 1990. [2] Pontzer H, Yamada Y, et al. Daily energy expenditure through the human life course. Science. 2021. CDC/NCHS, Anthropometric Reference Data, US adults, August 2021–August 2023. Apple Support: Set up Apple Watch for a family member; Get the most accurate measurements using your Apple Watch; Adjust your Activity ring goals on Apple Watch.
