Under Desk Ellipticals and Under Desk Bikes: How to Choose

An under desk elliptical keeps your legs moving while you sit

An under desk elliptical is a small pedal machine you use sitting down. It sits on the floor under your desk, you rest your feet on two pedals, and you push them in a flat oval while you work. No standing desk, no belt, nothing to step onto.

An under desk bike is the same idea with a round pedal stroke, like a bicycle without the bicycle. Listings call these an under desk cycle, a desk cycle, a mini exercise bike or a pedal exerciser. This site keeps ellipticals and bikes on one page, because the questions are the same: does it fit under your desk, and does it fit you.

Step count: these are the most office-friendly machines in the whole Home Fitness section. You stay in your chair, at your normal desk, in your normal meeting. Nobody on the call needs to know your feet are busy. (I've sat through meetings that could have been an email. My feet have opinions about those meetings now.)

Elliptical or bike: the motion decides the fit

Makers sell two kinds, and the table shows which as product type:

• Under desk elliptical. Feet glide in a flat oval. Knees rise only a little.
• Under desk bike or pedal exerciser. Feet go around in a circle. Knees rise higher at the top.

The motion matters more than it sounds. Because your knees rise higher on a bike, a bike usually needs more room under the desk than an elliptical. If your desk is low, or has a keyboard tray, an elliptical's flatter stroke is the easier fit.

Some pedal exercisers can be used on a tabletop for your arms, as the maker states. If that's something you want, check the listing for it. We don't assume it.

Motorized or manual

Most under desk machines move only when you push. Some are motorized: the pedals move on their own at a speed you set, usually with a remote, as the maker describes. Motorized units need power, and a manual unit may still use a battery for its screen, as the listing states. The controls column shows remote, app and power, as stated.

Measure your desk before you look at any listing

This is my one opinion for this page: measure your desk height and the room under it before buying an under desk elliptical or bike. The unit's height in the listing is the number that decides whether your knees hit the desk.

Here's how:

1. Floor to underside. Measure from the floor to the lowest point under your desk: the desktop, a drawer, a crossbar or a keyboard tray.
2. Your knee height seated. Sit in your work chair with your feet flat, and measure from the floor to the top of your knee.
3. Add the unit's height. The table shows height as the maker states it. Your knee rises by about that much when your foot is on top of the pedal.
4. Add the stroke. On a bike, your knee rises more at the top of each circle. Leave extra room.

If your knee height plus the unit's height, plus some room for the stroke, is less than the floor-to-underside measurement, it fits. If not, look for a lower unit, raise the desk, or lower the chair. A simple test: stack books to the unit's stated height, rest your foot on top and see if your knee clears the desk.

Depth matters too. You'll sit a little farther back than usual so your feet reach the pedals at a comfortable angle. Check that your arms still reach the keyboard.

What to look at on an under desk elliptical listing

The table uses the same columns for every unit. Blank means the maker doesn't state it. There's no belt, so there's no safety key column. The columns that never stay blank are max user weight, intended use and the maker's safety warnings; if the maker gives nothing, they say "Not stated by the maker".

Height: the maker's figure, not the box

Height is the unit's height as the maker states it. Shipping box dimensions show up in a lot of listings, and they're always bigger than the machine. We use the maker's figure only, and leave the cell blank if that's all there is.

Max user weight, or a user height range

Max user weight is the maker's stated limit, shown in pounds. When the maker gives only kilograms, the table converts with NIST's factor of 0.4535924 kg per pound and keeps the original unit in view. Seated units sometimes state a user height range instead of a weight limit. If the maker doesn't state a weight limit, the cell says "Not stated by the maker". Stay within what the maker states.

Resistance levels

Resistance levels shows the number of levels and the type, like magnetic or friction, as the maker states. More levels give you finer steps between easy and hard. A maker that says "adjustable" without a number gets no number from us.

Noise, as stated

Noise shows the maker's wording, and a decibel (dB) figure only when there is one. "Quiet" claims are common on these machines; numbers are rare. At a desk, the sound comes from the flywheel, the pedals and the floor. A mat under the unit helps keep it from sliding and protects the floor.

Controls and display

Controls covers remotes, apps and power, as stated. On a motorized unit, you'll want the remote on the desk, not on the floor under it. Display lists what the screen tracks: time, distance, speed, strides, sometimes calories. Those readouts are the machine's own estimates. A screen on the floor under your desk is hard to read while you work, so check whether the maker offers an app or a separate display. We list what the display shows, never its numbers.

Size and weight

Dimensions and product weight come from the maker, never the shipping box. If you'll slide the unit out of the way after work, or carry it between rooms, the weight matters. Some units have a handle for carrying, as the maker states.

What makers say about health

Seated pedal machines are often marketed with health words: circulation, joints, rehab, recovery. We don't repeat those as facts, and we don't call any unit a therapy device. Where a maker's wording helps explain what the unit is for, it appears in quotes as the maker's words. No unit on this site comes with a calorie figure or a health result from us. If you're thinking about one for recovery from an injury or for a health condition, talk to your doctor or therapist about what's right for you.

Setting up an under desk elliptical

• A chair that doesn't roll. Pushing the pedals can push a rolling chair back. Lock the wheels or use a fixed chair.
• A mat under the unit. It keeps the base from sliding forward and protects the floor.
• Sit back a little. Your feet should reach the pedals without stretching.
• Check knee clearance at the top of the stroke. Slowly, before your first meeting.
• Start at low resistance. Raise it in small steps.
• Cords out of the way. On motorized units, run the cord along the wall, not under your feet.

At Thursday soup, Margo has one rule about this machine. It does not go under her kitchen table. "That table is for soup. Pedal upstairs."

The page's safety line asks you to keep kids and pets away from moving parts. On a pedal machine, that's the pedal arms and the flywheel area, and on a motorized unit it means the pedals can keep moving without your feet on them. Stop it and switch it off when you step away. Before you buy, look up the brand and model on the CPSC recalls and warnings page.

Hard floors and thick rugs both cause trouble. On a hard floor, the unit can creep forward with every push; on a deep rug, it can rock. A thin, firm mat solves both, and keeps the unit at the height you measured for.

Under desk elliptical vs under desk treadmill vs mini stepper

Three machines, three ways to move near a desk:

• Under desk elliptical or bike. You sit at a normal desk. Easiest to use during real work.
• Under desk treadmill. You walk at a standing desk. Needs a desk that rises and clear floor behind the belt.
• Mini stepper. You stand and step, usually between calls, not while typing.

If your desk doesn't stand, the choice is mostly made: an elliptical or bike. The CDC's guideline for adults is 150 minutes a week of moderate activity, such as brisk walking, and it says activity can be broken into smaller chunks. A seated pedal machine isn't a replacement for that kind of activity, and we don't claim it is. It's a way to keep moving through a seated day.

Who should skip an under desk elliptical

Skip it if your knees won't clear the desk at the top of the stroke and you can't raise the desk or lower the chair. Skip it if your only chair rolls and the wheels don't lock. Skip it if you already stand to work; a walking pad suits a standing desk better.

Skip a motorized unit if you want the machine to move only when you do. And skip any unit whose maker doesn't state a weight limit, if that's the number you need.

If one fits, the work-from-home setup page covers the rest of the desk, and the work-from-home gifts page has these for someone else.