Toputure 12% Incline Walking Pad Review: A Cheap Climb

The Toputure 12% incline walking pad is a £239.99 under-desk treadmill with a trick most budget walking pads don't have: the deck can be propped up to a 6% or 12% gradient, and a fold-down handrail extends to 115cm so you've got something to hold on the climb. Our Toputure walking pad review comes down to this: it's a good incline walking machine for the money, but the incline is manual, the belt is small, and anyone hoping to run on it will be disappointed.

That's not the same machine as the Toputure 6-in-1 folding treadmill we covered in our Toputure folding treadmill review. That one costs around £400, hits 16km/h and is the better pick for beginner runners. This cheaper model trades speed for a lower price and a more adjustable handrail, which tells you who Toputure built it for: walkers who want hills.

Who it is for

Buy this if you want to walk most days at home, you'd like the option of a steep incline to make those walks harder, and you've got limited floor space. At 127.3cm long and 13cm tall, it slides under a sofa or bed when you're done. The handrail also makes it a sensible choice for older users or anyone returning from injury who wants a hand on something while they walk.

Don't buy it as a running treadmill. A 40x100cm running area is narrow and short (a full-size home treadmill usually gives you 130 to 150cm of belt length), so a proper running stride will feel cramped. We cover the general limits in more depth in our guide on whether you can run on a walking pad, and the same reasoning applies here.

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The incline: useful, but manual

The 12% setting is the main reason to choose this over a flat walking pad. Walking uphill makes your legs work much harder at the same speed: in a PMC-published study of treadmill walking at 0%, 5% and 10% incline, metabolic cost climbed with gradient, and the activity of the calf (soleus) and thigh (vastus lateralis) muscles predicted most of that rise. In plain terms, a 12% walk at 4 or 5km/h turns a gentle stroll into proper cardio without the impact of running.

Toputure's listing says the incline can boost "fat burning efficiency by 70%". We can't find anything to back that exact number, and we'd ignore it. The real benefit is simpler: harder work per minute at a speed your joints can tolerate.

What you need to understand before buying is how the incline works. It isn't motorised. You get three fixed positions, and switching between them means stopping the belt, stepping off and resetting the deck. For a steady 30-minute uphill walk that's no problem at all. If you were picturing hill intervals where you raise and lower the gradient every couple of minutes, this machine won't do it, and you'd need a treadmill with powered incline (our best incline treadmill UK guide covers those, at higher prices).

Handrail, belt and build

The handrail is the second thing that sets it apart. Many walking pads either have no rail or a short fixed one that leaves taller users hunched over. This rail adjusts from 82cm to 115cm and tilts between 95° and 105°, so most adults should be able to set it at a comfortable height. Folded down, the machine becomes a flat under-desk pad again.

The belt is where the price shows. Toputure lists a 7-layer anti-slip belt over 8 silicone shock absorbers and 2 rubber pads, which is reasonable cushioning for walking. But 40cm wide by 100cm long is small. At walking pace that's fine; at a jog you'll find yourself watching your feet. Pair that with a 12km/h ceiling and the 2.5HP motor rating (budget pads usually quote peak rather than continuous horsepower), and you've got a machine that's honest about being for walking.

The 130kg user limit is generous for this category, though we'd treat it as a ceiling rather than a target. Our article on walking pad weight limits explains why heavier users and steep incline settings both add strain to the motor and belt over time.

App, display and everyday use

The LED display shows time, speed, distance and calories, and the remote handles speed changes while you're walking. There's also a Bluetooth link to a sport app for logging sessions, plus a device holder that Toputure says has a wider clip to stop tablets sliding off. None of this is unusual at the price; it's tracking rather than coaching, and plenty of owners will never open the app.

Day to day, the appeal is how little friction it adds. Two front wheels let you tip it and roll it out, there's no assembly, and a 30-minute walk on it covers a fair chunk of the NHS target of 150 minutes of moderate activity a week. If you're unsure the format suits you at all, our piece on whether walking pads are worth it is a good place to start.

Value against the older Toputure

The comparison with the Toputure 6-in-1 is the clearest way to decide. Around £400 gets you that model's 16km/h top speed, so if jogging and beginner running matter, it's worth the extra. If you'll only ever walk, this one saves roughly £160 and adds the taller, tilting handrail, and the 12% incline gives you the same headline gradient for less. For most walkers, that's the better deal.

See the Toputure incline walking pad on Amazon

Recommended reads

• Are walking pads worth it?
• Can you run on a walking pad?
• Walking pad weight limits explained
• Toputure 6-in-1 folding treadmill review
• All treadmill reviews and guides