min/km to km/h — and km/h to min/km
Divide 60 by your pace in minutes to get the speed in km/h. 5:00 min/km becomes 60 ÷ 5 = 12.0 km/h. The other direction is exactly the same sum: 60 ÷ 12 = 5:00 min/km.
If your pace has seconds, convert them to decimals first. 5:30 is 5.5 minutes, and 60 ÷ 5.5 = 10.9 km/h.
The formula, both ways
- min/km to km/h: 60 ÷ pace in minutes = km/h
- km/h to min/km: 60 ÷ km/h = pace in minutes
The two are the same formula. Pace and speed are inverses of each other: multiply them together and you always get 60.
The trap: seconds are not decimals
5:30 min/km is not 5.30 minutes but 5.5 — because 30 seconds is half of the minute, not thirty hundredths of it. Divide the seconds by 60 before you go any further. This single detail is why mental arithmetic lands a few tenths off.
From min/km to km/h
From 3:00 to 8:00 min/km in five-second steps. The 5K and 10K finish times are included so you do not have to look in two places.
| Pace | km/h | 5 km | 10 km |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3:00 min/km | 20.0 | 15:00 | 30:00 |
| 3:05 min/km | 19.5 | 15:25 | 30:50 |
| 3:10 min/km | 18.9 | 15:50 | 31:40 |
| 3:15 min/km | 18.5 | 16:15 | 32:30 |
| 3:20 min/km | 18.0 | 16:40 | 33:20 |
| 3:25 min/km | 17.6 | 17:05 | 34:10 |
| 3:30 min/km | 17.1 | 17:30 | 35:00 |
| 3:35 min/km | 16.7 | 17:55 | 35:50 |
| 3:40 min/km | 16.4 | 18:20 | 36:40 |
| 3:45 min/km | 16.0 | 18:45 | 37:30 |
| 3:50 min/km | 15.7 | 19:10 | 38:20 |
| 3:55 min/km | 15.3 | 19:35 | 39:10 |
| 4:00 min/km | 15.0 | 20:00 | 40:00 |
| 4:05 min/km | 14.7 | 20:25 | 40:50 |
| 4:10 min/km | 14.4 | 20:50 | 41:40 |
| 4:15 min/km | 14.1 | 21:15 | 42:30 |
| 4:20 min/km | 13.8 | 21:40 | 43:20 |
| 4:25 min/km | 13.6 | 22:05 | 44:10 |
| 4:30 min/km | 13.3 | 22:30 | 45:00 |
| 4:35 min/km | 13.1 | 22:55 | 45:50 |
| 4:40 min/km | 12.9 | 23:20 | 46:40 |
| 4:45 min/km | 12.6 | 23:45 | 47:30 |
| 4:50 min/km | 12.4 | 24:10 | 48:20 |
| 4:55 min/km | 12.2 | 24:35 | 49:10 |
| 5:00 min/km | 12.0 | 25:00 | 50:00 |
| 5:05 min/km | 11.8 | 25:25 | 50:50 |
| 5:10 min/km | 11.6 | 25:50 | 51:40 |
| 5:15 min/km | 11.4 | 26:15 | 52:30 |
| 5:20 min/km | 11.2 | 26:40 | 53:20 |
| 5:25 min/km | 11.1 | 27:05 | 54:10 |
| 5:30 min/km | 10.9 | 27:30 | 55:00 |
| 5:35 min/km | 10.7 | 27:55 | 55:50 |
| 5:40 min/km | 10.6 | 28:20 | 56:40 |
| 5:45 min/km | 10.4 | 28:45 | 57:30 |
| 5:50 min/km | 10.3 | 29:10 | 58:20 |
| 5:55 min/km | 10.1 | 29:35 | 59:10 |
| 6:00 min/km | 10.0 | 30:00 | 1:00:00 |
| 6:05 min/km | 9.9 | 30:25 | 1:00:50 |
| 6:10 min/km | 9.7 | 30:50 | 1:01:40 |
| 6:15 min/km | 9.6 | 31:15 | 1:02:30 |
| 6:20 min/km | 9.5 | 31:40 | 1:03:20 |
| 6:25 min/km | 9.4 | 32:05 | 1:04:10 |
| 6:30 min/km | 9.2 | 32:30 | 1:05:00 |
| 6:35 min/km | 9.1 | 32:55 | 1:05:50 |
| 6:40 min/km | 9.0 | 33:20 | 1:06:40 |
| 6:45 min/km | 8.9 | 33:45 | 1:07:30 |
| 6:50 min/km | 8.8 | 34:10 | 1:08:20 |
| 6:55 min/km | 8.7 | 34:35 | 1:09:10 |
| 7:00 min/km | 8.6 | 35:00 | 1:10:00 |
| 7:05 min/km | 8.5 | 35:25 | 1:10:50 |
| 7:10 min/km | 8.4 | 35:50 | 1:11:40 |
| 7:15 min/km | 8.3 | 36:15 | 1:12:30 |
| 7:20 min/km | 8.2 | 36:40 | 1:13:20 |
| 7:25 min/km | 8.1 | 37:05 | 1:14:10 |
| 7:30 min/km | 8.0 | 37:30 | 1:15:00 |
| 7:35 min/km | 7.9 | 37:55 | 1:15:50 |
| 7:40 min/km | 7.8 | 38:20 | 1:16:40 |
| 7:45 min/km | 7.7 | 38:45 | 1:17:30 |
| 7:50 min/km | 7.7 | 39:10 | 1:18:20 |
| 7:55 min/km | 7.6 | 39:35 | 1:19:10 |
| 8:00 min/km | 7.5 | 40:00 | 1:20:00 |
From km/h to min/km
The other direction, in whole steps: the speed you set on a treadmill or read off a display, translated into the pace you think in.
| Speed | Pace | 10 km | Marathon |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6.0 km/h | 10:00 min/km | 1:40:00 | 7:01:57 |
| 7.0 km/h | 8:34 min/km | 1:25:43 | 6:01:40 |
| 8.0 km/h | 7:30 min/km | 1:15:00 | 5:16:28 |
| 9.0 km/h | 6:40 min/km | 1:06:40 | 4:41:18 |
| 10.0 km/h | 6:00 min/km | 1:00:00 | 4:13:10 |
| 11.0 km/h | 5:27 min/km | 54:33 | 3:50:09 |
| 12.0 km/h | 5:00 min/km | 50:00 | 3:30:59 |
| 13.0 km/h | 4:37 min/km | 46:09 | 3:14:45 |
| 14.0 km/h | 4:17 min/km | 42:51 | 3:00:50 |
| 15.0 km/h | 4:00 min/km | 40:00 | 2:48:47 |
| 16.0 km/h | 3:45 min/km | 37:30 | 2:38:14 |
| 17.0 km/h | 3:32 min/km | 35:18 | 2:28:55 |
| 18.0 km/h | 3:20 min/km | 33:20 | 2:20:39 |
| 19.0 km/h | 3:09 min/km | 31:35 | 2:13:15 |
| 20.0 km/h | 3:00 min/km | 30:00 | 2:06:35 |
The conversions people ask for most
- 10 km/h is 6:00 min/km — 1:00:00 for 10K
- 12 km/h is 5:00 min/km — 50:00 for 10K
- 14 km/h is 4:17 min/km — 42:51 for 10K
- 5:00 min/km is 12.0 km/h — 3:30:59 for a marathon
- 5:30 min/km is 10.9 km/h — 3:52:04 for a marathon
- 6:00 min/km is 10.0 km/h — 4:13:10 for a marathon
What does "min per km" mean?
min/km reads "minutes per kilometre" and is the time you spend covering one kilometre. A lower number means faster running — the opposite of km/h, where a higher number is faster. Min per kilometre, min/km and pace all mean the same thing.
Why two units for the same thing?
Pace in min/km answers the question runners actually ask themselves mid-race: how long will the next kilometre take? Speed in km/h answers a question machines ask: how far do I get in an hour? That is why your watch shows pace and the treadmill shows speed — and why you keep having to convert between them.