Sub-20 5K pace

A 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.

6:26

Pace per mile

4:00

Pace per km

6:26

1 mile split

9.32 mph

Speed

Every split for 20:00

Cumulative clock time at each mile or kilometre marker on even pace, for 0:19:00, 0:20:00 and 0:21:00. Switch units with the toggle. Formula: goal seconds × distance covered ÷ race distance.

Splits per

Mile	19:00	20:00	21:00
1	6:07	6:26	6:46
2	12:14	12:52	13:31
3	18:21	19:19	20:17
3.11	19:00	20:00	21:00

Cumulative clock time at each mile marker, at perfectly even pace over 5 km. Nobody runs even splits and nobody should try to; use these as the line you are measuring drift against, not as an instruction. The difference between the number here and the number on your watch is information — a minute up at 15 km is a race you are about to lose.

Your exact pace

The chart moves in fixed steps. Enter the 5K time you actually want.

hours

min

sec

Units

Per mile: 6:26
Per km: 4:00
Speed: 9.32 mph

Checkpoints at even pace

1 mi: 6:26
Half: 10:00
2 mi: 12:52
3 mi: 19:19

The same goal as a 1% negative split

First half: 10:06
Second half: 9:54

Pace band: every mile, ready to print

Band

16:30
212:57
319:19
3.120:00

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 a 20:00 5K

Your plan · free preview

10-week 5k plan

Advanced · 5 runs a week

Starts next Monday

Level

Length

Race date

Week 1Race week

Longest run: 6.2mi
Biggest week: 16mi
Whole plan: 99mi
Goal pace: 6:26/mi

Goal pace is arithmetic: 20:00 ÷ 3.1 mi. It is not a training zone.

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Week by week · 10 weeks · in miles

10-week 5k plan, week by week
Week	Phase	Long run	Total
1	base	3.1	7.5
2	base	3.7	9.3
3	base	4.3	9.9
4	cutback	3.1	7.5
5	build	5	12
6	peak	5.6	13
7	peak	6.2	16
8	taper	4.3	9.9
9	taper	2.5	6.2
10	race	3.1	7.5

The pace, and the arithmetic

A 20-minute 5K is 6:26 per mile, or 4:00 per kilometre, held for 3.1 miles (5 km). On even pace you pass 1 mile at 6:26 and 3 km at 12:00. To finish under 20:00, run 6:25 per mile, which finishes in 19:56.

How the numbers are worked out

20:00 is 1,200 seconds.
Per mile: 1,200 ÷ 3.1069 miles = 386.2 s = 6:26.
Per kilometre: 1,200 ÷ 5 km = 240.0 s = 4:00.
At 1 mile: 1,200 × 1 ÷ 3.1069 = 386.2 s = 6:26.
At 3 km: 1,200 × 3 ÷ 5 = 720.0 s = 12:00.
At 2 miles: 1,200 × 2 ÷ 3.1069 = 772.5 s = 12:52.
Speed: 3.1069 miles ÷ 0.333333 h = 9.32 mph (15.00 km/h).

Every split on this page uses one formula: goal seconds × distance covered ÷ race distance, rounded to the nearest second. A mile is 1.609344 km, so the 5K is 3.1069 miles. The 5K pace chart applies the same formula to every realistic finish time.

Checkpoints

Finish	/mi	/km	1 mi	Half	2 mi	3 mi
18:00	5:48	3:36	5:48	9:00	11:35	17:23
19:00	6:07	3:48	6:07	9:30	12:14	18:21
20:00	6:26	4:00	6:26	10:00	12:52	19:19
21:00	6:46	4:12	6:46	10:30	13:31	20:17
22:00	7:05	4:24	7:05	11:00	14:10	21:15

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.

Where 20:00 sits in the field

RunRepeat's finish-time percentiles (35M results across 28,000+ races, as printed on our average 5K time page) place 20:00 between the fastest 1% (18:40) and the fastest 10% (25:20) of all finishers. For men it sits between the fastest 1% (17:30) and the fastest 10% (23:26); for women, faster than the 21:39 that marks the fastest 1%.

Read the other way: sub-20 beats more than 90% of all 5K finishers in that data, and a woman running it is faster than the 21:39 that marks the fastest 1% of women. Our 5K standards page explains why 5K marks sit slow: it is the distance where new runners start.

One step back, 25-minute 5K pace is 8:03 per mile.

How to train for a sub-20 5K

Check the goal before you train for it. Riegel's formula, T2 = T1 × (D2 ÷ D1)^1.06 (Riegel, American Scientist 69(3), 1981), says 20:00 for the 5K is worth:

10K: 1,200 × (10 ÷ 5)^1.06 = 2,502 s = 41:42.
Half marathon: 1,200 × (21.0975 ÷ 5)^1.06 = 5,520 s = 1:32:00.

Our VDOT calculator puts a 20:00 5K at VDOT 49.8. Riegel is most reliable over a short jump like 5K to 10K; the half figure assumes you have the endurance for it. Run your own recent result through the race time predictor, and use the VDOT calculator to turn it into training paces.

Then pick a plan. Sub-20 is the advanced end of the 5K: it asks for an established base and two quality sessions a week, which is what the advanced level assumes. The free 8-week advanced 5K plan is 5 runs a week with two quality sessions, peaking at 20 km, with cutback weeks and a taper. If you are earlier in the climb, the intermediate 8-week plan runs four days a week.

Even splits are the reference line, not the plan

Nobody runs a perfect even split, and the opening of a 5K feels easy at almost any pace. Use these times as the line you measure drift against: if you are well ahead early, you are spending the end of the race at the start.

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Fair questions

How many people can do a sub 20 5K?

Fewer than 10% of race finishers. RunRepeat's finish-time percentiles (35M results) put the fastest 10% of 5K finishers at 25:20 or better and the fastest 1% at 18:40, so 20:00 falls between them. For men the fastest-10% mark is 23:26; for women the fastest-1% mark is 21:39, so a sub-20 woman is in the top 1%.

Is running a sub 20 5km good?

Yes. It beats more than 90% of 5K finishers in RunRepeat's data. Age-graded, a 50-year-old man's 2025 WMA 5K standard is 14:36 (876.4 s), so his 20:00 grades at 876.4 ÷ 1,200 = 73.0%, which the WMA bands call regional class (70% and up).

What is a good 5K time by age?

Age grading is the fair comparison: it scores your time against the world standard for your exact age and sex. On the 2025 WMA road tables a 25:00 5K by a 50-year-old man grades at 58.42%, and most runners who train seriously score between 50% and 65%. Our age grading calculator does the arithmetic for any age.

What is sub-20 5K pace per km?

4:00 per km exactly (1,200 s ÷ 5 km = 240 s). Per mile it is 6:26 (1,200 ÷ 3.1069 = 386.2 s). Run 6:25 per mile and you finish in 19:56.