Moderate evidence
Does exercise help depression?
Is exercise an effective treatment for depression, and which kinds work best?
Bottom line
Across 218 randomised trials with 14,170 people, walking or jogging, yoga and strength training each produced moderate reductions in depression compared with control conditions1. More intense exercise worked better2.
A 2024 network meta-analysis in the BMJ pooled 218 randomised trials, with 14,170 participants who met clinical cut-offs for major depression, and compared exercise with psychotherapy, antidepressants and control conditions3.
Compared with active controls such as usual care or a placebo tablet, there were moderate reductions in depression for walking or jogging, yoga, strength training, mixed aerobic exercise, and tai chi or qigong. Walking or jogging showed the largest effect1.
The benefit grew with the intensity prescribed2. Strength training and yoga appeared to be the easiest for people to stick with4.
The authors concluded that exercise is an effective treatment for depression and could be considered alongside psychotherapy and antidepressants as a core treatment5. But the quality of the trials limits confidence: only one study met strict criteria for low risk of bias, and confidence was rated low for walking or jogging and very low for the other forms6.
What this does not show
- Most trials had a high risk of bias, and participants usually knew they were exercising, which can inflate effects.
- The trials studied people with major depression. This page is not medical advice; anyone with depression should talk to a health professional before changing treatment.
Claims and sources
Compared with active controls, moderate reductions in depression were found for walking or jogging (Hedges' g -0.62), yoga (g -0.55), strength training (g -0.49), mixed aerobic exercises (g -0.43), and tai chi or qigong (g -0.42).
- Noetel M, Sanders T, Gallardo-Gómez D, Taylor P, et al. (2024). Effect of exercise for depression: systematic review and network meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials. BMJ. doi:10.1136/bmj-2023-075847
The effects of exercise were proportional to the intensity prescribed.
- Noetel M, Sanders T, Gallardo-Gómez D, Taylor P, et al. (2024). Effect of exercise for depression: systematic review and network meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials. BMJ. doi:10.1136/bmj-2023-075847
The network meta-analysis included 218 unique randomised trials with 495 arms and 14,170 participants meeting clinical cut-offs for major depression.
- Noetel M, Sanders T, Gallardo-Gómez D, Taylor P, et al. (2024). Effect of exercise for depression: systematic review and network meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials. BMJ. doi:10.1136/bmj-2023-075847
Strength training and yoga appeared to be the most acceptable modalities.
- Noetel M, Sanders T, Gallardo-Gómez D, Taylor P, et al. (2024). Effect of exercise for depression: systematic review and network meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials. BMJ. doi:10.1136/bmj-2023-075847
The authors concluded that exercise is an effective treatment for depression and that these forms of exercise could be considered alongside psychotherapy and antidepressants as core treatments.
- Noetel M, Sanders T, Gallardo-Gómez D, Taylor P, et al. (2024). Effect of exercise for depression: systematic review and network meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials. BMJ. doi:10.1136/bmj-2023-075847
Only one study met the Cochrane criteria for low risk of bias; confidence in the evidence was low for walking or jogging and very low for other treatments.
- Noetel M, Sanders T, Gallardo-Gómez D, Taylor P, et al. (2024). Effect of exercise for depression: systematic review and network meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials. BMJ. doi:10.1136/bmj-2023-075847
Version 1. First published , updated . Approved by The Human First editors on . Sources last verified 2026-10-24. Machine-readable version.