How Many Squats Should You Do a Day?
The right daily bodyweight squat number by level and goal — toning, endurance, or strength — plus how to split it and when to make squats harder instead of doing more.
For most people, 50–100 bodyweight squats a day, split into sets of 15–25, is the sweet spot. Beginners start at 30; people who’ve been at it a while go to 150–200 or, better, make the squats harder. Below is how to pick your number, by level and by goal.
By level
Test: one set of good squats (thighs to parallel, heels down) until form fades.
| Your max set | Daily total | Split | Progress every week |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 20 | 30–40 | 3 × 10–13 | +5 per day |
| 20–40 | 50–80 | 4 × 12–20 | +5–10 per day |
| 40–70 | 80–150 | 5 × 16–30 | +10 per day |
| 70+ | 150–200, or go harder | 5 × 30–40 | Add difficulty, not reps |
Bodyweight is a ceiling — past a 70+ max, more reps mostly builds more endurance. That’s fine if endurance is the goal; if you want stronger or bigger legs, the answer stops being “more” and becomes “harder” (see below).
By goal
Toning / general fitness: 50–100 a day. Enough to firm the quads and glutes, low enough to do daily indefinitely.
Endurance / a big number: 150–250 a day, and run the 30-day squat challenge to get there safely.
Strength or size: 40–80 a day, but make them hard — split squats, Bulgarian split squats, jump squats, slow tempo, or a pistol-squat progression. Count those reps the same way; a daily number of hard reps is still a daily number.
Knee or hip health, older adults: 20–40 a day, to a chair (sit down, stand up). Sit-to-stand reps are one of the best-evidenced daily exercises for staying independent, and they count.
Every day or not?
Bodyweight squats every day is fine at these volumes. Sore for the first week, then not. Two guardrails: don’t take sets to failure, and take one light day a week (half). Loaded squats — barbell, heavy dumbbells — need rest days; that’s a different plan.
Splitting the number through the day
Squats fit anywhere. Common splits that people actually stick to:
- 3 × 20 = 60: wake up, after lunch, before bed.
- 5 × 20 = 100: every time you make coffee or tea.
- 10 × 10 = 100: top of every hour at a desk. Best posture fix there is.
Count them, or the number drifts
“I do squats every day” reliably turns into 40 on the days you’re tired and 0 on the days you forget. The fix is dumb and effective: a daily target and a count. Notebook, sticky note, or a counter app. I use RepTrend — tap +10 after a set, watch the goal bar, keep the streak — because the count on the Home Screen widget shames me into the last set. Use whatever you’ll look at.
Making squats harder instead of doing more
When 100 regular squats a day is easy, add difficulty rather than reps:
- Tempo squats: 4 seconds down, pause 1, up. Halves the number you need.
- Split squats: rear foot on the floor, then on a chair (Bulgarian). Count each leg.
- Jump squats: 3 sets of 10–15. Explosive, big calorie cost.
- Pistol progression: box pistols → assisted pistols → full. 5 a side is a lot.
- Add load: a backpack with books works.
Any of these at 40–80 reps a day beats 250 regular squats for strength.
Frequently asked questions
Is 100 squats a day good?
Yes — it's a solid daily number for most people, split into 4–5 sets. It builds leg endurance, firms glutes and quads, and is sustainable indefinitely. Past a 70-rep max, make them harder rather than doing more.
Is 50 squats a day enough?
For a beginner or for maintenance, yes. 50 a day in sets of 12–17 will improve leg strength and endurance noticeably in a month. Increase to 80–100 as it gets easy.
Will 100 squats a day make my bum bigger?
It will firm and slightly grow the glutes, especially if you go to full depth and squeeze at the top. Significant growth needs load — split squats, hip thrusts, or weight.
How many squats a day to lose weight?
Squats alone won't do it — 100 squats is 30–40 calories. Do them for muscle and habit, and handle weight loss with diet and daily walking.