Each foot has 26 bones
Each foot has 26 bones, 52 in both feet. They are the 7 tarsal bones of the ankle and heel, the 5 metatarsals of the middle of the foot and the 14 phalanges of the toes. The big toe has two phalanges and each of the other four toes has three.
Frequently asked questions
Are the sesamoid bones under the big toe counted?
Usually not. There are two small sesamoid bones under the base of the big toe, but they are left out when the 206 bones are counted.
Which is the largest bone of the foot?
The calcaneus, the heel bone. It forms the heel and passes body weight to the ground when standing.
How many bones are in both hands and feet together?
106: 54 in the hands and 52 in the feet, more than half of the 206 bones of the body.
The bones counted
- Talus
- Calcaneus
- Navicular bone of foot
- Cuboid bone
- First metatarsal bone
- Proximal phalanx of big toe
- Sesamoid bone of foot
Related counts
Other bone counts
- Bones in the human body
- Axial and appendicular skeleton
- Bones of the skull
- Bones of the spine
- Cervical vertebrae
- Thoracic vertebrae
- Lumbar vertebrae
- Number of ribs
- Bones of the arm
- Carpal bones
- Bones of the pelvis
Skeleton
Read more
Related reading
- Sarcopenia: what to measure, and what to do, when muscle and strength decline
- What getting up from a chair says about how your body is ageing
- Why ageing bone marrow turns to fat, and a PEMF study in mice
- PEMF and whole-body vibration: two rhythms that reach the body
- Myokines: the signals working muscle sends to the body
- Ageing parents: the changes families notice first
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