Walking Time for Mile, 5K, 10K, Half-Marathon, Marathon, and More (2024)

Walking

By

Wendy Bumgardner

Walking Time for Mile, 5K, 10K, Half-Marathon, Marathon, and More (1)

Wendy Bumgardner

Wendy Bumgardner is a freelance writer covering walking and other health and fitness topics and has competed in more than 1,000 walking events.

Learn about our editorial process

Updated on August 10, 2022

Reviewed

Verywell Fit articles are reviewed by nutrition and exercise professionals. Reviewers confirm the content is thorough and accurate, reflecting the latest evidence-based research. Content is reviewed before publication and upon substantial updates. Learn more.

by

Michele Stanten, ACE-GFI

Walking Time for Mile, 5K, 10K, Half-Marathon, Marathon, and More (2)

Reviewed byMichele Stanten, ACE-GFI

Michele Stanten is a walking coach, certified group fitness instructor, and running coach. She is the author of Walk Off Weight and The Walking Solution.

Walking Time for Mile, 5K, 10K, Half-Marathon, Marathon, and More (3)

Table of Contents

View All

Table of Contents

  • Distances and Times

  • Different Paces

  • Finishing Times

  • Training

Whether you are walking for fitness or you have registered or a charity walk or competition, it helps to know long it will take you to walk a mile at different walking paces. You also want to translate that into common race and event distances such as the 5K, 10K, marathon, or half-marathon and look at typical finishing times.

Distances and Common Times

Here is some basic information for common race distances:

  • Kilometer: A kilometer is 0.62 miles, which is also3281.5 feet, or 1000 meters. It takes 10 to 12 minutes to walk at a moderate pace.
  • Mile: A mile is 1.61 kilometers or 5280 feet. It takes 15 to 20 minutes to walk 1 mile at a moderate pace.
  • 3K: 3 kilometers equals 1.85 miles, or 9842.5 feet, or just a little less than 2miles. This is a common distance for charity walks, especially those with accessible routes. It takes 30 to 37 minutes to walk 3K at a moderate pace.
  • 5K: 5 kilometers equals 3.1 miles. This is a common race distance for charity walks and fun runs (although competitive runners also participate in 5Ks and run them at a fast pace). It takes about an hour to walk5K at a moderate pace.
  • 10K: 10kilometers equals 6.2 miles. This is a common distance for fun runs, which may or may not be walker-friendly. It takes about two hours to walk 10K at a moderate pace.
  • Half-Marathon: 13.1 miles or 21 kilometers. It can take up to 4 or 4.5 hours to walk a half-marathon without stopping, but some walkers can finish the distance in 3–4 hours.
  • Marathon: 26.2 miles or 42 kilometers. It can 6.5 to 8 hours or more to walk a marathon at a moderate pace, depending on your pace and how often you stop.
  • Ultramarathon: These races can be any distance above 42 kilometers or 26 miles. The most common distances for these events are50 kilometers (31 miles) 100 kilometers (62 miles), 50 miles (80.5 kilometers), and 100 miles (161 kilometers).

Walking at Different Paces

The charts below will help you to translate walking event distances into time, kilometers, and miles at various fitness-walking paces. While there is no standardized criteria for pace categories, studies have indicated that a moderate walking pace is roughly 3–5 miles per hour.

  • Fast: 7 minutes per kilometer or 11 minutes per mile
  • Moderate: 10 minutes per kilometer or 15 minutes per mile
  • Easy: 12.5+ minutes per kilometer or 20+ minutes per mile

These paces may seem fast, but it is typical for people to walk faster than usual when at a group event or competition. An easy pace will put you at the back of the pack, while at the fast pace you will be with some of the runners and run/walkers.

There are several ways to measure or calculate your walking speed, including phone apps and GPS watches, as well as low-tech options using a known distance (such as around a running track) and a stopwatch. To determine your pace, try a calculator.

Note:

The charts below were developed using the pace calculator above.

Kilometer Chart

Kilometers Miles Fast WalkModerate WalkEasy Walk
10.620:070:100:13
21.240:140:200:25
31.860:210:300:38
42.480:280:400:50
53.110:350:501:25
63.730:421:001:15
74.350:491:101:27
84.970:561:201:40
95.591:031:301:53
106.211:101:401:55
116.831:171:502:18
127.451:242:002:30
138.071:312:101:43
148.691:382:201:55
159.321:452:303:08
169.941:522:403:20
1710.561:592:503:32
1811.182:063:003:45
1911.802:133:103:58
2012.422:203:204:10

Half-Marathon:

Kilometers Miles Fast WalkModerate WalkEasy Walk
2113.12:273:304:23

Marathon:

Kilometers Miles Fast WalkModerate WalkEasy Walk
4226.24:547:009:00

Miles Chart

Miles Kilometers Fast WalkModerate WalkEasy Walk
11.60:110:150:20
23.20:220:300:40
34.80:330:451:00
46.40:441:001:20
58.10:551:151:40
69.71:061:302:00
711.31:171:452:20
812.91:282:002:40
914.51:392:153:00
1016.11:502:303:20
1117.72:012:453:40
1219.32:123:004:00

Half-Marathon:

Miles Kilometers Fast WalkModerate WalkEasy Walk
13.121.12:233:154:20

Marathon:

Miles Kilometers Fast WalkModerate WalkEasy Walk
26.242.24:486:408:44

With these charts, you should be able to geta rough estimate of how long it will take you to walk a given distance at a fitness walking pace without making stops. You'll have to add in more time if you have to wait at intersections for the crossing signal, make rest stops, stop to take photos, play Pokemon Go, etc.

Pacing and Finishing Time

Timing yourself over a mile can help you predict your finish time for an organized walking event up to 10 kilometers. Sometimes a race will want to know yourpace in minutes per mile when you register. It's best to warm up and then walk a mile nonstop at your best pace to time it. Do this three times to find an average.

Before you register for a longer race or event that has a cutoff time, you will want topredict your finish time. It's important that you only enter events that you know you can complete under the time limit.

For a half-marathon prediction, add 20 seconds per mile to the pace you were able to do to finish a 10K. For a marathon prediction, multiply your 10 kilometers finish time by five.

How to Predict Race Finish Times

Training for Different Distances

Training can do wonders. By gradually building your walking distance and paying attention to your posture and walking form, you will be able to walk faster and longer.

It's always a good idea to build up your walking time steadily from shorter to longer distances. By adding a longer walk each week, you will build your muscles and stamina. You will also toughen the skin on your feet, which helps prevent blisters.

Start with the distance you are able to walk comfortably.

Add a mile to that distance each week, which will be between 15 and 20 more minutes of steady walking. Try a30-day quick-start walking plan to begin building your walking mileage, whether you just want to walk a mile,enjoy a 5-kilometer charity walk, or even begin training for a half-marathon or marathon.

Beginner Walking Plan and Schedule

1 Source

Verywell Fit uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

  1. Hanson S, Jones A. Is there evidence that walking groups have health benefits? A systematic review and meta-analysis. Br J Sports Med. 2015;49(11):710-5. doi:10.1136/bjsports-2014-094157

Walking Time for Mile, 5K, 10K, Half-Marathon, Marathon, and More (4)

By Wendy Bumgardner
Wendy Bumgardner is a freelance writer covering walking and other health and fitness topics and has competed in more than 1,000 walking events.

See Our Editorial Process

Meet Our Review Board

Was this page helpful?

Thanks for your feedback!

What is your feedback?

Related Articles

How Long Does It Take to Walk a Mile, 5 Miles, or More?How and Why to Use a Running Pace CalculatorHow Many Calories Do You Burn Walking Per Mile?Predict Running Race Finish TimesWalking a 5KHow to Know How Fast You Are Walking10K Walk Training Schedule for BeginnersHow Long Will It Take You to Run a 5K?
How Far a Healthy Person Can Walk With No TrainingHow Long Does It Take to Run a Marathon?How to Count and Track Calories Burned WalkingAre You Allowed to Walk During a Running Race?10K Races and Training PlansTraining for Half-Marathon in a MonthHow Many Steps Are in a Mile?Beginner Walking Plan and Schedule

We Care About Your Privacy

We and our 1609 partners store and/or access information on a device, such as unique IDs in cookies to process personal data. You may accept or manage your choices by clicking below, including your right to object where legitimate interest is used, or at any time in the privacy policy page. These choices will be signaled to our partners and will not affect browsing data.

We and our partners process data to provide:

Store and/or access information on a device. Use limited data to select advertising. Create profiles for personalised advertising. Use profiles to select personalised advertising. Create profiles to personalise content. Use profiles to select personalised content. Measure advertising performance. Measure content performance. Understand audiences through statistics or combinations of data from different sources. Develop and improve services. Use limited data to select content.

Walking Time for Mile, 5K, 10K, Half-Marathon, Marathon, and More (2024)
Top Articles
Latest Posts
Article information

Author: Mrs. Angelic Larkin

Last Updated:

Views: 6016

Rating: 4.7 / 5 (67 voted)

Reviews: 82% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Mrs. Angelic Larkin

Birthday: 1992-06-28

Address: Apt. 413 8275 Mueller Overpass, South Magnolia, IA 99527-6023

Phone: +6824704719725

Job: District Real-Estate Facilitator

Hobby: Letterboxing, Vacation, Poi, Homebrewing, Mountain biking, Slacklining, Cabaret

Introduction: My name is Mrs. Angelic Larkin, I am a cute, charming, funny, determined, inexpensive, joyous, cheerful person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.