Benchmarks & standards
What Is a Good FTP?
A good FTP depends on your weight, age, and goals — but here is what the numbers actually mean. Check yours, then see where it lands.
Not sure? Estimate it with the FTP calculator first.
Your category
Strong Amateur
An FTP of 250 W (250–300 W) — Dedicated amateur with consistent training, competitive in spirited group rides.
These are absolute-power bands. Because rider weight matters too, your watts per kilogram tells the rest of the story — see below.
The short answer
For most amateur men, an FTP of 200–250 W is a solid intermediate level, 250–300 W is strong, and 300 W and upis competitive. Newer riders often sit below 150 W and climb quickly from there. Women's ranges run lower at each level, and older riders naturally trend down too.
But here is the catch that makes “what is a good FTP?” a trickier question than it looks: raw watts ignore body weight. A 250 W FTP is excellent for a 60 kg climber and merely average for a 95 kg rider. So the honest answer is that a good FTP is the one that is trending upward for you — and that, compared fairly, means looking at power-to-weight too.
The fair comparison
W/kg = FTP ÷ body weight (kg)
Run your number through the W/kg calculator and check it against the W/kg chart to see your power-to-weight category — that is the figure cyclists actually compare.
What a good FTP looks like, by level
A simple, evergreen guide to absolute FTP in watts for amateur men. These are orientation ranges, not exact science — most riders sit comfortably between two of them, and women’s ranges run lower at each level.
| Category | FTP |
|---|---|
| Beginner | Under 150 W |
| Recreational | 150–200 W |
| Intermediate | 200–250 W |
| Strong Amateur | 250–300 W |
| Competitive | 300–350 W |
| Elite | 350 W+ |
For a fuller breakdown by rider type — and where your watts place you — see the FTP benchmarks page.
Why “good” depends on you
The same FTP can be brilliant or unremarkable depending on three things the headline number leaves out:
- Body weight. Power-to-weight decides climbing and relative fitness. Two riders with a 250 W FTP — one at 70 kg (3.6 W/kg), one at 95 kg (2.6 W/kg) — are a full category apart on any climb. See what counts as a good W/kg for that side of the picture.
- Age.FTP tends to peak in the 20s and 30s and ease down from the late 30s onward. A “good” FTP for a masters rider is rightly judged against their peers, not against a 25-year-old's numbers — see FTP by age.
- Goals.The FTP that makes you competitive in a local race is far above the FTP that makes social rides enjoyable. A “good” number is the one that serves what you actually want to do on the bike.
A better question than “is my FTP good?”
The most useful benchmark is your own history. For nearly every amateur, an FTP that is steadily climbing matters far more than hitting any particular threshold — because that is the number you control. Beginners can add 20–40 W in a few months; trained riders fight for 5–10 W over the same span, and that smaller gain is just as much of a win.
What separates riders who improve is rarely the cleverest workout — it is consistency and good fatigue management. A plan you actually finish beats an ambitious one you abandon, so consistency beats perfect training weeks almost every time.
How to find — and improve — your FTP
If you don't yet have a number, the FTP calculator estimates it from a 20-minute test. Once you have it, the cycling power zone calculator turns it into a full set of training zones — so the work you do to raise your FTP lands exactly where it should.
Frequently asked questions
- What is a good FTP in watts?
- For most amateur men, an FTP around 200–250 W is a solid intermediate level, 250–300 W is strong, and 300 W and up is competitive. New riders often start below 150 W. But watts alone ignore body weight, so the same FTP can be average for a big rider and excellent for a small one — power-to-weight (W/kg) is the fairer comparison.
- Is 200 FTP good?
- A 200 W FTP is a respectable recreational-to-intermediate figure that handles most social and endurance rides comfortably. For a lighter rider around 65–70 kg that is close to 3 W/kg, which is genuinely strong; for a heavier rider it is more of a starting point. Either way, it is a perfectly good base to build from.
- Is 250 FTP good?
- Yes — 250 W is a strong-amateur FTP that holds the pace on most fast group rides. Whether it is "good" for you depends on weight: 250 W is about 3.6 W/kg at 70 kg but only 2.6 W/kg at 95 kg, and those two riders perform very differently on climbs.
- What is a good FTP for a beginner?
- Beginners commonly test somewhere between 120 and 180 W, and that is completely normal. The good news is that FTP rises fastest at the start — a newer rider can add 20–40 W over a few months of consistent training. Your trend matters far more than the first number you record.
- Does a good FTP depend on age and sex?
- Yes. FTP tends to peak in the 20s and 30s and decline gradually from the late 30s, and women’s ranges generally run lower than men’s at each level. So a "good" FTP for a 55-year-old or for a female rider is naturally different from the figures often quoted for younger men. Compare yourself against similar riders, and above all against your own past results.
More on FTP
Keep going with the rest of the FTP guides.
Related tools
Find your number, then turn it into training.
FTP Calculator
Estimate your FTP from a 20-minute test and get your seven cycling power zones in watts.
W/kg Calculator
Turn FTP and body weight into watts per kilogram and see where you sit against performance categories.
Cycling Power Zone Calculator
Generate a full training-zone table from your FTP — percentages, watt ranges, and what each zone trains.
SmarterTraining builds each session around your current FTP and recovery, then adapts as you improve — so a good FTP keeps getting better.