Guide for choosing the best walking pad for your needs and budget. Information on walking desk benefits, buying tips (budget vs non-budget, warranties), treadmill maintenance and repair, and other helpful products to go with your walking desk.
Use the Walking Pads Comparison Tool to find the best walking pad based on your preferences and budget. It compares walking desk / treadmill desk brands like Urevo, WalkingPad, KingSmith, Xiaomi, CitySports, Vitalwalk, GoPlus, Superfit, and more.
See Recommended Walking PadsWalking at a treadmill desk increases your oxygen levels, blood flow, and endorphins throughout the day. This improves alertness, focus, and mood - and keeps them consistent. Those who use treadmill desks report not only improved energy, but focus. It's common to reduce caffeine intake, because false energy is no longer needed - you're generating natural energy.
Walking desks are especially helpful for ADHD, because they satisfy jitters & fidgets. Treadmills are recommended over bikes and steppers, as the manual engagement of the latter occupies the mind (bad); while the automatic engagement of the former (set a speed and keep up) quiets the mind (good).
Obviously you'll lose weight at a walking desk. You burn more calories compared to sitting or standing. I lost 15 pounds when I started. And depending on your speed, incline, and fitness goals, you can eliminate the gym. This save time and money. The CDC recommends 10k steps per day; my average day is 20k. At my best I've clocked 320 active zone minutes (Fitbit) in one day - 5.3 hours of "true workout".
Walking posture is better than standing posture, which is in turn better than sitting. Our ancestors weren't sitting all day, goes the saying, but nor were they standing. They were walking. I can vouch for the back-pain difference between standing and sitting, as I alternate often.
Besides weight-loss and posture, you improve overall health and wellness. You improve your cardiovascular and pulmonary systems; your sleep; and you stave off neurodegeneration. Trust me, dear reader, if you work at a desk all day - you should be walking.
If you do choose a walking pad with <2yr warranty, buy one. Some treadmills offer one through their website, Amazon offers Asurion. Motors don't last forever - the motor will die - and sooner with the budget treadmills. With the warranty, there's nothing to worry about.
What's it like to use a warranty? Very easy. I've never had issues getting a return or refund, either brand or Asurion. I've used them 4 times in 8 years, thus I haven't lost any money. It's usually a few quick email exchanges and sending a video of the problem. They rarely want the dead mill back, so you have to dispose of it yourself.
While horsepower is on paper the strongest indicator of motor quality, it tends to be fudged a lot with budget models. See walking pad motor ratings. You're looking for Continuous Horsepower (CHP) rather than Peak Horsepower. If the model lists any of CHP, Peak, watts, volts, amps - any information which can derive CHP - then that's a very good sign. And if CHP can be derived, then higher is better.
Continuous Horsepower (CHP) signals how much sustained power the motor can deliver. Merely listing CHP or the data to derive it is a positive transparency signal. Higher CHP is better, but disclosure is weighted the most.
But if they only list "horsepower", then (1) ensure it's >1.5HP; then (2) ensure it's a brushless motor. These are higher quality, longer-lasting, more efficient motors. Usage in budget mills is relatively new, and rare, so if you see one - that's a good sign.
5 stars on Amazon, winner winner? Nope. There's a system (follow along with this screenshot):
Budget ($100-$900): Budget walking pads deal less effectively with heat, especially with continuous use (1+ hours). To mitigate this, follow the walking pad maintenance guide. Expect 2 years from them; if less, it's ether a bum brand or insufficient maintenance. Compared to premium treadmills which can last 8-10 years. I personally take the trade-off - I don't know where I'll be in 2 years, nor how the next gen will improve the tech. And with a strong warranty, who cares.
Premium ($1k-$2k): LifeSpan & Unsit. These can run continuously for much longer (6-9hrs). Their motors are more durable. When you do have problems, they come with long warranties and you'll typically have a service rep come fix it. They're much larger and heavier than budget mills, so they'll be more a permanent fixture than a wheel-away. Do still follow the maintenance guide. Don't be fooled, they're not maintenance-free, just maintenance-forgiving.
Ultra-Premium ($1k-$6k): manual treadmills are the only walking pads that don't require maintenance, because they lack a motor. But boy-howdy will you pay top-dollar for that perk!
This section has moved to Maintenance & Repair
This section has moved to Essential Purchases