Coldplay has announced its new, eco-friendly world tour will be partly powered by the kinetic energy of fans as they dance, along with electricity-generating bicycles.

However, frontman Chris Martin admitted to the BBC that they risked criticism from fans and environmentalists, given the band still enjoyed the use of private jets.

"The people [who] give us backlash for that kind of thing, for flying, they're right. So we don't have any argument against that," Martin said.

But he said that the band still wanted "to tour and we want to meet people and connect with people, so [the band tries to] do it in the cleanest way possible".

The tour was announced a day ahead of the release of the band's new album, Music of the Spheres, on Friday.

Kicking off in March, the tour will take in Central and North America, Europe, and end in Rio de Janeiro in September, with more dates on the way.

No Australian dates have been set yet.

The announcement came with a list of "sustainability initiatives", including a plan to cut their overall emissions in half compared with their last tour in 2016-17.

During this latest tour, kinetic flooring will generate electricity as fans move.

"You know when the frontman says, 'We need you to jump up and down'? When I say that, I literally really need you to jump up and down. Because, if you don't, then the lights go out," Martin told the BBC.

It's not clear how much of the band's show will be powered by punter-generated electricity, but Coldplay's website also says the show will rely on renewables and batteries, avoiding fossil fuels as much as possible.

The band will also plant a tree for every ticket sold.

Some 5.4 million people bought tickets to their last tour.

In 2019, Martin said that Coldplay were taking a break from globe-trotting concerts in order "to work out how our tour can not only be sustainable [but also] how can it be actively beneficial".

"We've spent the last two years consulting with environmental experts to make this tour as sustainable as possible and, just as importantly, to harness the tour's potential to push things forward," the band said on their website on Thursday.

"We won't get everything right, but we're committed to doing everything we can and sharing what we learn."