Belt speed ↔ running pace

Treadmill Pace Calculator

Convert the number on the treadmill into min/km or min/mile, or enter pace to find the matching belt speed and distance.

Pace and distance

Calculate your treadmill session

Values stay in your browser and are never sent to us.

Enter your session and choose Calculate to see results.

How it works

Choose Speed or Pace first, then choose metric or imperial units. Distance is belt speed multiplied by elapsed time; incline does not change belt distance.

Formula

Pace in min/km = 60 ÷ km/h. Pace in min/mile = 60 ÷ mph. Unit conversion uses exactly 1 mile = 1.609344 kilometers.

Source: NIST Guide to the SI conversion factors.

Example

10 km/h equals 6:00 min/km. A 30-minute session at that speed covers 5 km. In imperial units, 6 mph equals 10:00 min/mile.

FAQ

Does incline change pace?

It changes effort, not the belt's distance calculation. Use the incline tool to compare estimated metabolic demand at the same speed.

Treadmill pace chart: mph to min/mile and min/km

Find your belt speed in the left column to read the matching pace per mile, pace per kilometer, and how long a 5K takes at that speed. Every row uses the same conversion as the calculator above, so the chart and the tool always agree.

Treadmill speed to pace conversion (flat belt)
mph	km/h	min/mile	min/km	5K time
3.0	4.8	20:00	12:26	1:02:08
3.5	5.6	17:09	10:39	53:16
4.0	6.4	15:00	9:19	46:36
4.5	7.2	13:20	8:17	41:25
5.0	8.0	12:00	7:27	37:17
5.5	8.9	10:55	6:47	33:54
6.0	9.7	10:00	6:13	31:04
6.5	10.5	9:14	5:44	28:41
7.0	11.3	8:34	5:20	26:38
7.5	12.1	8:00	4:58	24:51
8.0	12.9	7:30	4:40	23:18
8.5	13.7	7:04	4:23	21:56
9.0	14.5	6:40	4:09	20:43
9.5	15.3	6:19	3:55	19:37
10.0	16.1	6:00	3:44	18:38

Reading the chart for a workout

Pick your goal pace first, then look up the belt speed to type into the console. For a 10:00 min/mile easy run, set 6.0 mph. For a 5K in under 25 minutes, you need about 7.5 mph, which is 8:00 min/mile.

Interval sessions work the same way: look up one speed for the fast repeats and a slower speed for the recovery jogs, and write both down before you start.

Why the same pace can feel different

Pace on a treadmill is set by the belt, so it stays perfectly even. Outdoors you push against air and change speed on hills and corners, which is why an outdoor run at the same pace often feels a little harder.

Many runners add a small incline, often 1%, to make flat treadmill running feel closer to running outside. This changes effort but not the belt distance or the pace shown in the chart.

Is my treadmill speed accurate?

Consoles are not always calibrated, and a watch indoors guesses distance from arm swing because GPS cannot follow a run that stays in one place. When the two disagree, neither number is automatically right.

To check a machine, mark the belt, measure its full length, then count how many times the mark passes in one minute at a set speed. Belt length times revolutions per minute gives the real speed.