Running Pace Chart
A running pace chart converts one number into four others. Give it a pace per mile and it tells you the equivalent pace per kilometer, plus your projected finish time at 5K, 10K, half marathon, and marathon distance. It’s the same arithmetic any Pace Calculator handles live, but a printed chart is faster to scan when you’re standing at the start line or trying to figure out what treadmill speed maps to your easy pace.
The relationship between pace and time is just multiplication. Pace is how long it takes you to cover one unit of distance, so finish time equals pace multiplied by the number of units in the race. A 7:00/mile pace held for 26.2188 miles produces a marathon time of 3:03:32. Speed is the reciprocal expression of the same idea, measured in miles per hour or kilometers per hour, and it’s what treadmills show on their display.
Per-mile pace is the dominant unit in the United States and the United Kingdom. Most of the rest of the world trains and races in kilometers, which is why most training plans, race results sites, and watch settings have both options. A useful conversion to memorize: 1 mile is 1.60934 kilometers, so pace per kilometer is pace per mile divided by 1.60934. Eight minutes per mile is just under five minutes per kilometer.
The tables below cover the ranges most recreational and competitive runners actually use. If you need a pace or time not listed, the Pace Calculator handles arbitrary inputs in either unit.
Pace per mile to finish times
| Pace/mi | Pace/km | 5K | 10K | Half | Marathon |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5:00 | 3:06 | 15:32 | 31:04 | 1:05:33 | 2:11:06 |
| 5:30 | 3:25 | 17:05 | 34:11 | 1:12:06 | 2:24:12 |
| 6:00 | 3:44 | 18:38 | 37:17 | 1:18:39 | 2:37:19 |
| 6:30 | 4:02 | 20:12 | 40:23 | 1:25:13 | 2:50:25 |
| 7:00 | 4:21 | 21:45 | 43:30 | 1:31:46 | 3:03:32 |
| 7:30 | 4:40 | 23:18 | 46:36 | 1:38:19 | 3:16:38 |
| 8:00 | 4:58 | 24:51 | 49:43 | 1:44:53 | 3:29:45 |
| 8:30 | 5:17 | 26:24 | 52:49 | 1:51:26 | 3:42:52 |
| 9:00 | 5:36 | 27:58 | 55:55 | 1:57:59 | 3:55:58 |
| 9:30 | 5:54 | 29:31 | 59:02 | 2:04:32 | 4:09:05 |
| 10:00 | 6:13 | 31:04 | 1:02:08 | 2:11:06 | 4:22:11 |
| 10:30 | 6:31 | 32:37 | 1:05:15 | 2:17:39 | 4:35:18 |
| 11:00 | 6:50 | 34:11 | 1:08:21 | 2:24:12 | 4:48:24 |
| 11:30 | 7:09 | 35:44 | 1:11:27 | 2:30:45 | 5:01:31 |
| 12:00 | 7:27 | 37:17 | 1:14:34 | 2:37:19 | 5:14:38 |
The middle of this table is where most runners live. A sub-2:00 half marathon requires roughly 9:09/mile (5:41/km). A sub-4:00 marathon needs about 9:09/mile too, which is the same per-mile pace held about twice as long. A sub-3:00 marathon sits between the 6:30 and 7:00 rows, and the gap between those two numbers represents about thirteen minutes over 26.2 miles, a useful reminder of how much small pace differences compound at marathon distance.
Pace per km to finish times
| Pace/km | Pace/mi | 5K | 10K | Half | Marathon |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3:30 | 5:38 | 17:30 | 35:00 | 1:13:50 | 2:27:41 |
| 4:00 | 6:26 | 20:00 | 40:00 | 1:24:23 | 2:48:47 |
| 4:15 | 6:50 | 21:15 | 42:30 | 1:29:40 | 2:59:20 |
| 4:30 | 7:15 | 22:30 | 45:00 | 1:34:56 | 3:09:53 |
| 4:45 | 7:39 | 23:45 | 47:30 | 1:40:13 | 3:20:26 |
| 5:00 | 8:03 | 25:00 | 50:00 | 1:45:29 | 3:30:58 |
| 5:15 | 8:27 | 26:15 | 52:30 | 1:50:46 | 3:41:31 |
| 5:30 | 8:51 | 27:30 | 55:00 | 1:56:02 | 3:52:04 |
| 6:00 | 9:39 | 30:00 | 1:00:00 | 2:06:35 | 4:13:10 |
| 6:30 | 10:28 | 32:30 | 1:05:00 | 2:17:08 | 4:34:16 |
| 7:00 | 11:16 | 35:00 | 1:10:00 | 2:27:41 | 4:55:22 |
| 7:30 | 12:04 | 37:30 | 1:15:00 | 2:38:14 | 5:16:28 |
If you train by kilometer, the per-km chart is the one you actually want to glance at mid-run. The 4:15/km row crosses the symbolic sub-3:00 marathon threshold (just barely, at 2:59:20). The 5:00/km row is roughly equivalent to an 8:00/mile pace, which is what many recreational runners target as a long-term goal pace for the marathon distance.
Speed (mph and kph) conversions
| mph | kph | pace/mi | pace/km |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5.0 | 8.05 | 12:00 | 7:27 |
| 5.5 | 8.85 | 10:55 | 6:47 |
| 6.0 | 9.66 | 10:00 | 6:13 |
| 6.5 | 10.46 | 9:14 | 5:44 |
| 7.0 | 11.27 | 8:34 | 5:20 |
| 7.5 | 12.07 | 8:00 | 4:58 |
| 8.0 | 12.87 | 7:30 | 4:40 |
| 8.5 | 13.68 | 7:04 | 4:23 |
| 9.0 | 14.48 | 6:40 | 4:09 |
| 10.0 | 16.09 | 6:00 | 3:44 |
Treadmills almost always display speed rather than pace, which is why this conversion matters. If a workout calls for 8:00/mile threshold reps, you set the belt to 7.5 mph. Some newer treadmills let you toggle the display to pace, but plenty still don’t, and most international treadmills are calibrated in kph rather than mph. The conversion is the same idea either way: speed is distance over time, pace is time over distance, and one is the reciprocal of the other.
How to read this chart for your race
For race pace, find your goal finish time in the rightmost column for your distance and work backwards to the pace you need to hold. A 1:45:00 half marathon goal lands you between the 4:45/km and 5:00/km rows, so you’re targeting roughly 4:58/km or 8:00/mile. The Race Time Predictor goes the other direction: feed it a recent race result and it estimates achievable finish times across the standard distances.
For training pace, race pace is the wrong reference point. Easy days for most runners should be 60-90 seconds per mile slower than goal marathon pace, threshold work is faster than marathon pace but slower than 5K pace, and intervals are run close to 3K-5K race pace. The VDOT Calculator takes a recent race result and outputs five training zones (Easy, Marathon, Threshold, Interval, Repetition), each derived from the same physiological framework rather than guesswork.
For goal-setting, the chart shows what a one-minute-per-mile improvement actually means in race terms. Dropping from 9:00/mile to 8:00/mile cuts about twenty-six minutes off a marathon. That’s not a small change, and it’s not realistic over a few months; it represents a genuine fitness shift over a year or more of consistent training.
For pacing within a race, the Race Split Planner generates a mile-by-mile or km-by-km split sheet for any goal time, with optional negative split adjustment so the second half runs slightly faster than the first.
When the chart breaks down
The chart assumes a flat course, ideal conditions, and a perfectly even pace from gun to finish. None of those hold in real races.
Hills add seconds per mile that grade-adjusted pace estimates try to normalize, but a hilly course is still genuinely harder than a flat one of the same distance. Heat and humidity above about 60°F cost roughly 20-30 seconds per mile per ten degrees of warming, more once dehydration sets in. Wind is unpredictable. And almost no runner holds even splits without deliberate effort; the natural tendency is to go out faster than goal pace and slow down progressively.
Most marathoners finish 1-3% slower than their chart-perfect pace would predict, even when their training suggested they could hit the number. That’s not a flaw in the math; it’s the difference between predicted and actual performance, which is what races are for. For a deeper breakdown of how to actually execute a marathon at goal pace, see the marathon pacing strategy guide.
Pacesmith’s free browser tools cover pace conversions, VDOT training zones, race time predictions, and split planning without an account or login. If you want all of it on your phone working offline at the start line, Pacesmith for iOS is a one-time $1.99 purchase, no subscription.