5K pace chart
A 25:00 5K is 8:03 per mile (5:00/km) and a 20:00 5K is 6:26 (4:00/km). Every finish time from 15:00 to 40:00, with mile and kilometre splits.
| Finish | /mi | /km |
|---|---|---|
| 15:00 | 4:50 | 3:00 |
| 16:00 | 5:09 | 3:12 |
| 17:00 | 5:28 | 3:24 |
| 18:00 | 5:48 | 3:36 |
| 19:00 | 6:07 | 3:48 |
| 20:00 | 6:26 | 4:00 |
| 21:00 | 6:46 | 4:12 |
| 22:00 | 7:05 | 4:24 |
| 23:00 | 7:24 | 4:36 |
| 24:00 | 7:43 | 4:48 |
| 25:00 | 8:03 | 5:00 |
| 26:00 | 8:22 | 5:12 |
| 27:00 | 8:41 | 5:24 |
| 28:00 | 9:01 | 5:36 |
| 29:00 | 9:20 | 5:48 |
| 30:00 | 9:39 | 6:00 |
| 31:00 | 9:59 | 6:12 |
| 32:00 | 10:18 | 6:24 |
| 33:00 | 10:37 | 6:36 |
| 34:00 | 10:57 | 6:48 |
| 35:00 | 11:16 | 7:00 |
| 36:00 | 11:35 | 7:12 |
| 37:00 | 11:55 | 7:24 |
| 38:00 | 12:14 | 7:36 |
| 39:00 | 12:33 | 7:48 |
| 40:00 | 12:52 | 8:00 |
Checkpoints are even-pace clock times for the 5K (5 km / 3.11 mi), on mile markers or kilometre markers to match the toggle. Underlined times open that goal's page, with every split.
Your exact pace
The chart moves in fixed steps. Enter the 5K time you actually want.
- Per mile
- 8:03
- Per km
- 5:00
- Speed
- 7.46 mph
average pace
average pace
on a treadmill
Checkpoints at even pace
- 1 mi
- 8:03
- Half
- 12:30
- 2 mi
- 16:06
- 3 mi
- 24:08
The same goal as a 1% negative split
- First half
- 12:38
- Second half
- 12:23
8:08 /mi
7:58 /mi
Pace band: every mile, ready to print
Band
5K 25:00 · 1% negative split · per mile
- 18:08
- 216:11
- 324:09
- 3.125:00
Even-pace arithmetic: goal seconds × distance covered ÷ race distance. It assumes you can hold the pace, which is the part training decides.
A plan for the time you picked
Your plan · free preview
10-week 5k plan
Beginner · 3 runs a week
Starts next Monday
Level
Length
- Longest run
- 6.2mi
- Biggest week
- 12mi
- Whole plan
- 75mi
Train for this in Runsy
$12.99/mo or $79.99/yr after a free first week. iPhone and iPad.
The app builds your own plan when you set it up; this preview is a guide.
Week by week · 10 weeks · in miles
| Week | Phase | Sessions | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | base |
| 5.6mi |
| 2 | base |
| 6.8mi |
| 3 | base |
| 7.5mi |
| 4 | cutback |
| 5.6mi |
| 5 | build |
| 9.3mi |
| 6 | peak |
| 9.9mi |
| 7 | peak |
| 12mi |
| 8 | taper |
| 7.5mi |
| 9 | taper |
| 4.3mi |
| 10 | race |
| 6.2mi |
How to read this chart
Find your goal time on the left, then read across for the pace you need per mile and per kilometre. The remaining columns are your even-pace splits at 1 mile, halfway, 2 miles and 3 miles, or at 1K, 2K, 3K and 4K if you switch the chart to kilometres.
At this distance the splits are worth memorising rather than glancing at. A 5K is short enough that a single kilometre run 15 seconds too fast is not recoverable. Two common goals have their own split pages: 25-minute 5K pace and sub-20 5K pace.
The 5K inverts the usual pacing advice
For a marathon the guidance is to start conservatively. For a 5K it is nearly the opposite: the race is short enough that a cautious first kilometre is time you simply never get back, because there is no long middle section in which to make it up.
What works is even to very slightly negative. Hit your goal pace in the first kilometre — not faster — hold it through the second and third, which is where the race hurts most and where most people drift 10–15 seconds off target, then spend whatever is left over the final kilometre.
The second and third kilometres are the whole race. They feel disproportionately hard relative to how far you have gone, and they are where the difference between your goal time and your actual time is decided.
Choosing a target
A parkrun or time-trial from the last month is the only input worth using. Aim 30–60 seconds faster than your recent best for a genuine goal; anything more is a wish rather than a target.
If you have never raced 5K, run one at a comfortably hard effort first and use that as your baseline. Picking a number off a chart before you have a reference produces a first kilometre that ruins the other four.
Put this calculator on your site
Free for race, club and coaching sites. Paste this into any page that accepts HTML: no account, and it stays up to date.
<iframe src="https://www.runsy.ai/embed/pace-calculator/5k" title="5K pace calculator" width="100%" height="800" style="border:0;max-width:720px;border-radius:16px" loading="lazy"></iframe>
<p style="font:13px/1.4 system-ui,sans-serif;margin:6px 0 0">5K pace calculator by <a href="https://www.runsy.ai/tools/pace-chart/5k">Runsy</a></p>
<script>addEventListener("message",function(e){if(e.origin==="https://www.runsy.ai"&&e.data&&e.data.type==="runsy:embed-height"){document.querySelectorAll("iframe").forEach(function(f){if(f.contentWindow===e.source)f.style.height=e.data.height+"px"})}})</script>Get faster over 5K
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The plans, pace charts and calculators on this site are free on any phone, with no account.
$12.99/mo or $79.99/yr after a free first weekiPhone and iPad
$12.99/mo or $79.99/yr after a free first weekiPhone and iPad
Everything under this page
- Sub-20 5K paceA 20-minute 5K is 4:00 per km or 6:26 per mile, through 1 mile in 6:26 and 3K in 12:00. Every split, the arithmetic, and how to train for sub-20.18:00–22:00
- 25-minute 5K paceA 25-minute 5K is 5:00 per km or 8:03 per mile, a treadmill speed of 7.46 mph (12 km/h). Every split, the arithmetic, and how to train for it.23:00–27:00
Fair questions
What pace is a 25-minute 5K?
5:00 per kilometre, or 8:03 per mile — splits of 5:00, 10:00, 15:00 and 20:00.
What pace is a 30-minute 5K?
6:00 per kilometre, or 9:39 per mile — an even 6:00 per kilometre the whole way.
What pace do I need to break 20 minutes for 5K?
4:00 per kilometre, or 6:26 per mile. You need to pass 1K at 4:00 and 4K at 16:00.
Is a 25-minute 5K good?
Yes — it is a solid recreational time and comfortably faster than the median finisher at most parkruns and community 5Ks.