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You bought a power meter, rode a hard 20 minutes and got 210 watts. Is that good? It depends on your age, your weight and which chart you’re holding.
Short answer: a recreational man in his 40s typically holds 2.2 to 2.7 W/kg of FTP, or about 155 to 190 watts at 70 kg. A recreational woman in her 40s sits near 1.7 to 2.2 W/kg. Riders who train and test on apps run higher: the median is 4.00 W/kg for men in their 40s.
Average FTP by age and gender
FTP is the power you can hold for about an hour. Most riders estimate it from a shorter test. The table below shows two kinds of numbers side by side. The recreational ranges come from sport-calculator.com’s FTP chart, updated in 2026. The trained medians come from an analysis of 1,710 riders with power meters who ran structured tests, with data through August 2026.
Watts in parentheses assume a 70 kg man and a 60 kg woman. Swap in your own weight to get your own target.
| Age | Men, recreational | Men, trained median | Women, recreational | Women, trained median |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Under 30 | 2.5-3.0 (175-210 W) | 4.95 (346 W) | 2.0-2.5 (120-150 W) | 4.07 (244 W) |
| 30s | 2.4-2.9 (168-203 W) | 4.30 (301 W) | 1.9-2.4 (114-144 W) | 3.57 (214 W) |
| 40s | 2.2-2.7 (154-189 W) | 4.00 (280 W) | 1.7-2.2 (102-132 W) | 3.48 (209 W), ages 40+ |
| 50s | 2.0-2.5 (140-175 W) | 3.63 (254 W) | 1.5-2.0 (90-120 W) | 3.48 (209 W), ages 40+ |
| 60+ | 1.8-2.3 (126-161 W) | 3.23 (226 W) | 1.3-1.8 (78-108 W) | 3.48 (209 W), ages 40+ |
All figures are W/kg unless noted. Read the trained column with care. These riders chose to buy a meter and test, so they skew fitter than your neighborhood group ride. The top 10% of men under 30 in that sample hit 5.77 W/kg. For men 60 and over, the top 10% starts at 4.18 W/kg.
I’d use the recreational column as your first benchmark. If you land inside the range for your age, you’re an average club-level rider. If you beat the trained median, you’re strong for any age.
Turning W/kg into watts
W/kg is your FTP divided by your body weight in kilograms. It’s what predicts how you climb. A 70 kg rider holding 210 watts and a 90 kg rider holding 270 watts both sit at 3.0 W/kg. On a long hill they’d ride side by side.
On flat roads the heavier rider usually wins, because raw watts matter more against wind. Our power-to-weight ratio calculator guide walks through the math with your own numbers.
| W/kg | At 60 kg | At 70 kg | At 80 kg |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2.0 | 120 W | 140 W | 160 W |
| 2.5 | 150 W | 175 W | 200 W |
| 3.0 | 180 W | 210 W | 240 W |
| 3.5 | 210 W | 245 W | 280 W |
| 4.0 | 240 W | 280 W | 320 W |
Weigh yourself before you compare. A bathroom scale is the cheapest cycling upgrade there is.
Cycling power by age group
Power peaks in the 20s and 30s for most riders. After that the slide is slow, and it depends heavily on how much you keep riding.
In your 20s and 30s, a 3.0 W/kg FTP puts a man above the recreational range and a woman well above hers. In your 40s, the numbers hold up for riders who train on a plan. Many 40-something riders are the fastest people in their local group because they’ve stacked years of base miles. If you’re wondering how far riders typically go at each age, see our piece on the average cycling distance by age.
The 50s and 60s bring a bigger change. Muscle mass drops faster unless you lift. Recovery between hard days takes longer. But the riders who keep intensity in their week often hold 2.5 W/kg or more well into their 60s. If you’re in this group and want a structured restart, the 8-week cycling training plan for seniors is a gentle place to begin.
Men vs. women
Men produce more absolute watts. They carry more muscle and, on average, a larger body. That’s why FTP charts for women sit lower in raw watts.
In W/kg the gap narrows, but how much depends on the dataset. Cycling Analytics reported in 2018 that men and women among its power-meter users had the same median 20-minute effort, 3.80 W/kg. The 2026 A Faster You sample puts women about 0.5 to 0.9 W/kg below men at the median. Women made up only about 11% of that sample, so treat the women’s medians as softer numbers than the men’s.
The takeaway for you: compare yourself with your own age and gender row, then watch your trend. A rider who moves from 2.2 to 2.8 W/kg has made a bigger gain than any chart can show.
How much does FTP drop with age?
A common rule of thumb is a drop of 5 to 8% per decade after the mid-30s. The sample medians for men fit that pattern, and then some. From the 30s to the 40s the median falls from 4.30 to 4.00 W/kg, about 7%. From the 40s to the 50s it falls to 3.63, about 9%. From the 50s to 60 and over it falls to 3.23, about 11%.
Between under-30 and 60-plus, the male median falls by 1.72 W/kg, roughly 35%. Remember this compares different people at different ages, not one rider over time. Many older riders in the sample also train less than the younger ones.
Training slows the slide. Masters athletes who keep up structured work lose aerobic fitness more slowly than sedentary people. The riders who hold their numbers keep a few hard sessions in the week and lift weights twice. Skip those and the decline speeds up, especially after 55 or 60.
How to test your FTP
You can’t compare yourself with a chart without a number. There are two common ways to get one.
The 20-minute test
Warm up well, then ride as hard as you can hold evenly for 20 minutes. Multiply your average power by 0.95. That’s your FTP. Pace it. Going out too hard in the first five minutes is the usual mistake, and it wrecks the result.
The ramp test
Power steps up every minute until you can’t continue. Zwift and TrainerRoad take 75% of your best one-minute power as your FTP. If you have a strong sprint relative to your endurance, the ramp can overstate your threshold. Riders with a big aerobic engine and a modest sprint may see it understate.
Either test works better when you repeat it under the same conditions. Retest every 6 to 8 weeks. For a deeper look at the physiology behind thresholds, read our guide to the lactate threshold test and training.
Gear you need
You need a power source: power meter pedals or cranks on the bike, or a smart trainer indoors. Power meter pedals are the easiest to move between bikes. The Favero Assioma Duo lists at $499 and measures both legs. The Wahoo KICKR CORE 2 smart trainer lists at $549.99. Prices as of October 2026.
Pick one device and stick with it. A trainer and a pedal meter rarely read the same, and that makes retests hard to compare. If you’re still deciding, we plan to cover every power meter option in a separate guide.
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How to raise your FTP at any age
Most of the gain comes from a few hard sessions a week, done consistently. Threshold intervals, such as two 20-minute blocks just under your FTP, raise the number you can hold. Short, hard efforts build your ceiling. Our list of VO2 max workouts for cyclists has sessions to try.
Strength work matters more every decade. Squats and hip hinges keep the muscle that produces watts. Our piece on the benefits of deadlifts for cyclists explains how to start safely. Sleep and easy days matter just as much. Riders over 50 usually need an extra rest day between hard sessions.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a good FTP for a 50-year-old?
For a recreational man in his 50s, 2.0 to 2.5 W/kg is typical, or 140 to 175 watts at 70 kg. For a recreational woman it’s 1.5 to 2.0 W/kg, or 90 to 120 watts at 60 kg. Trained riders test higher. The median in the 2026 sample is 3.63 W/kg for men in their 50s.
Is 3 W/kg good?
Yes, for most riders. It’s above the recreational range for every age band in the table, for both men and women. It’s below the trained median for men in every band except 60 and over, where the median is 3.23 W/kg. At 3 W/kg, you’d climb well in a local group ride.
What is a good FTP for a beginner?
Start by finding the low end of the recreational range for your age and gender. A first test below that is normal. Beginners often see quick gains in the first months, so retest every 6 to 8 weeks and track your own trend.
What exactly is FTP in cycling?
FTP, or functional threshold power, is the highest average power you can hold for about an hour. Few riders test for a full hour, so most estimate it. Take 95% of a hard 20-minute effort, or 75% of your best minute in a ramp test.
Does cycling power always go down as you get older?
Usually yes, but slowly. A drop of 5 to 8% per decade after the mid-30s is a common estimate. Riders who keep training, lift weights and rest well lose less. Riders who stop riding hard lose more.
How do men and women compare in cycling power?
Men produce more raw watts. Per kilogram the gap is smaller, and it varies by dataset. One 2018 power-meter sample showed identical medians of 3.80 W/kg. A 2026 sample showed women 0.5 to 0.9 W/kg lower.
