5K Pace Calculator

Free 5K pace calculator. Enter your 5K time to get VDOT-based Easy, Tempo, Threshold, and Interval training paces plus a printable pace chart.

Use a recent 5K result to generate science-backed training paces for easy runs, tempo efforts, thresholds, and intervals.

VDOT-style training zones from your 5K time
Easy, Tempo, Threshold, Interval, Long Run paces
Works in min/km or min/mile

How to calculate your 5K training paces

Enter your 5K distance and finish time to get personalized training zones for easy runs, tempo runs, thresholds, and intervals.

Enter 5K distance: Set the distance to 5.0 km (or 3.1 miles).
Enter your finish time: Type your most recent 5K time (HH:MM:SS).
Calculate training zones: Generate Easy, Tempo, Threshold, and Interval paces.

Frequently asked questions

What is a good 5K pace?

A "good" 5K pace depends on experience and age. The useful thing is consistency: use your current 5K time to set training paces you can repeat week after week.

Should easy pace feel slow for 5K training?

Yes. Easy pace should feel conversational. It builds aerobic fitness and lets you recover so you can hit your harder workouts.

How often should I update my 5K training paces?

Any time you run a meaningful PR or your fitness changes (often every 4-8 weeks in a training block).

Training pace reference

Training paces by recent 5K time (min/km)
5K time	VDOT	Easy	Marathon	Threshold	Interval	Rep
15:00	69.6	3:45–4:30	3:23–3:42	3:15	2:56	2:32
17:30	58.2	4:20–5:12	3:54–4:17	3:46	3:23	2:56
20:00	49.8	4:54–5:53	4:26–4:51	4:16	3:51	3:19
22:30	43.4	5:29–6:34	4:57–5:25	4:46	4:18	3:43
25:00	38.3	6:03–7:14	5:28–5:59	5:16	4:45	4:06
27:30	34.2	6:37–7:53	5:59–6:33	5:46	5:13	4:30
30:00	30.8	7:11–8:32	6:30–7:06	6:16	5:40	4:54
32:30	28.0	7:44–9:10	7:01–7:39	6:46	6:07	5:17
35:00	25.6	8:17–9:48	7:31–8:12	7:15	6:34	5:41

More pacing guides

Method and sources

The numbers on this page are computed with the same code as the TrainPace calculators, from these published methods. They are training guidance, not medical advice.

Daniels, J. Daniels' Running Formula. Human Kinetics — VDOT, training zones, and equivalent race times.
Daniels, J. & Gilbert, J. (1979). Oxygen Power: Performance Tables for Distance Runners — the oxygen-cost and %VO2max equations behind VDOT.

Other TrainPace tools

For AI agents

Every public page on this site has a Markdown mirror at the same path with a .md suffix (for example /calculator.md), and honors an Accept: text/markdown request header on the HTML URL. The calculations here are also available as callable tools through a free public MCP server — no account or API key.