5K pace chart: pace and splits for your goal time

Find your goal time for the even pace and splits to run it, per kilometre and per mile, then see what the research says about pacing the start and the finish of a 5K.

By RunFast · Updated 11 October 2026 · 13 min read

A 5K pace chart turns a goal finish time into the pace to run and the times to expect on the way. Find your goal finish time in the first column: its row gives the even pace per km and per mile, and your time at 1, 2, 3 and 4 km, or at 1, 2 and 3 miles. The tables below cover finish times from 15:00 to 45:00 in 30-second steps, by kilometre and by mile.

Every pace in the chart is an even pace, the same from start to finish, because that is what a chart can show. In one trial of 11 moderately trained women running 5 km, an even start and starts 3% or 6% faster than their baseline pace over the first 1.63 km gave overall 5 km times that were not different.¹ And a 2026 meta-analysis of 24 studies of endurance time trials found no consistent performance advantage of any imposed pacing strategy over self-selected pacing, in which athletes set their own.²

The 5 km trials behind this guide were small, with 11, 22 and 16 runners, and were time trials rather than races.^{1, 3, 4} The meta-analysis pooled time trials in healthy athletes in sports such as cycling, running and swimming, not 5K races.² So the chart’s numbers are exact arithmetic, while the best way to pace a 5K is not settled.

5K pace chart by kilometre

Paces and times are rounded to the whole second. Each split is worked out from the exact pace, not the rounded one, so a rounded pace multiplied by a distance can be a few seconds off the row: at most about 2.5 s over 5 km, because rounding moves a pace by no more than half a second per km.

5K pace chart by mile

If your watch shows miles, here is the same 5K pace chart in miles. The 3 mi marker is at 4.828 km, so the last 0.172 km to the finish is not shown.

How to use the chart

Find the row for your goal finish time. If your goal falls between two rows, the pace changes by about 6 s per km (10 s per mile) for every 30 seconds of finish time, so you can estimate between them. For an exact time, a time outside 15:00 to 45:00 or another distance, use the pace calculator. A course may not measure exactly what your watch shows, so check your splits at the course’s kilometre or mile markers rather than against the watch alone.

Choose the row from a recent race, not from the time you would like to run. The pace calculator’s equivalent race times show what a recent 10K or half marathon predicts for 5 km.

Use the 1 km and 2 km times (1 mi and 2 mi) to check your start against the plan, and 4 km (3 mi) to see how you are holding the pace late in the race. The marathon is a different race with its own research: see the marathon pace chart.

If your pace is off the chart

The chart assumes you hold one pace all the way. The table below runs the whole 5 km 5, 10 or 15 seconds per kilometre slower than the chart’s pace for a goal time. It is arithmetic, not a prediction.

What the research says about pacing a 5K

The chart shows an even pace. Whether to run one is a question for the research: what it found, in whom, and how sure it is. Each claim below links to its source, and our editorial standards say how each one is checked.

Starting a 5K

In one trial, 11 moderately trained women distance runners first ran two 5 km time trials on a treadmill to set their baseline times.¹ They then ran the first 1.63 km of 5 km at their baseline average pace, 3% faster or 6% faster.¹ Overall 5 km times were not different between the three: on average 21:11, 20:52 and 20:39.¹ For 8 of the runners the fastest time came in the 6% trial, and for the other 3 in the 3% trial.¹ The authors concluded that the first 1.63 km of a 5 km race can be run 3 to 6% faster than current average race pace without hurting performance.¹ That is one small trial, in women on a treadmill rather than in a race, so read it as the authors’ finding, not as a rule to start faster.¹

Trials that impose a pace ask a wider question: does telling athletes how to pace beat letting them choose? A 2026 systematic review and network meta-analysis pooled 24 studies with 302 participants, healthy athletes in endurance time trials in sports such as cycling, running and swimming.² Each study compared at least one imposed strategy, fast-start, even or slow pacing, with a self-selected or alternative strategy.² It found no consistent performance advantage of any imposed pacing strategy over self-selected pacing.² In those time trials, prolonged slow starts were associated with impaired performance.² Its abstract doesn’t say how long a prolonged slow start was, or how many of the studies were 5 km runs, so it is no reason on its own to avoid an easy first kilometre.

What helps and what didn’t

In a randomised crossover trial, 22 recreational male runners ran a 5 km treadmill time trial with no feedback, distance-only feedback and full feedback.³ There was no significant difference in performance between the feedback conditions.³ Ratings of perceived exertion and heart rate rose progressively through the trials.³

In a randomised trial of 16 male recreational long-distance runners, half did 4 weeks of high-intensity interval training (HIIT).⁴ The training did not alter pacing strategy or overall performance in a 5 km running trial.⁴ That is one short programme in a small group of men, not evidence that training can’t change how you pace.⁴

In a trial of 15 male runners of national and regional standard, who ran three 5000 m time trials in a counterbalanced order, light-guided pacing did not change performance.⁵ In the same study, drafting behind a cyclist had a large effect.⁵

How elite 5000 m races are paced

An analysis of men’s world records looked at the time for each kilometre in 32 world records at 5000 m, set from 1922 to 2004.⁶ In world records at 5000 m and 10,000 m, the first and final kilometres were faster than the middle ones, giving an overall even pace.⁶

A 2021 review says elite runners’ pacing differs depending on race distance.⁷ In championship 5000 m and 10,000 m races, it says, runners adopted a negative pacing strategy, getting faster through the race, with microvariations of pace.⁷

Where the evidence is thin or mixed

The 5 km trials are small: the start trial had 11 women on a treadmill, and two others had 22 and 16 recreational men, all in time trials rather than races.^{1, 3, 4} None of the studies here tested pacing in a mass-participation 5K race.

The meta-analysis pooled endurance sports such as cycling, running and swimming, in middle- and long-duration events, so it speaks to pacing in general, not to 5 km in particular.² Its abstract doesn’t say how many of its studies were in runners.

World-record and championship races are elite racing, not a recreational runner’s 5K.^{6, 7} Treat their pacing as context, not a plan.

None of the sources here gives a figure for how much to allow for hills or heat, or a target for a negative split, so this guide gives none.

Common questions

What pace do I need for a 20, 25 or 30-minute 5K?

For 20:00, run 4:00 /km (6:26 /mi): 4 km in 16:00 and 3 mi in 19:19. For 25:00, it is 5:00 /km (8:03 /mi), with 4 km at 20:00 and 3 mi at 24:08. For 30:00, it is 6:00 /km (9:39 /mi), with 4 km at 24:00 and 3 mi at 28:58. To run under 20, 25 or 30 minutes, aim a little faster than the row for that time: the 24:30 row, for example, is 4:54 /km (7:53 /mi).

How do I work out my 5K pace?

Divide your goal finish time by the distance: 5 km for a pace per km, or 3.107 miles for a pace per mile. A 25:00 goal, for example, works out at 5:00 /km or 8:03 /mi. For an exact time, use the pace calculator, and choose the goal from a recent race rather than from the chart.

Should I start fast in a 5K?

The research doesn’t settle it. In one trial of 11 women on a treadmill, starting the first 1.63 km 3% or 6% faster than baseline pace gave 5 km times that were not different from an even start, and the authors concluded such a start did not hurt performance.¹ Across 24 studies of endurance time trials, no imposed pacing strategy was consistently better than self-selected pacing, and prolonged slow starts were associated with impaired performance.² In elite racing, 5000 m and 10,000 m world records had a faster first and final kilometre with an even pace overall, and championship races showed a negative pacing strategy.^{6, 7} In practice, plan the chart’s even pace, check your start at 1 km and 2 km, and don’t treat a start a touch faster or slower than the chart as right or wrong.

Does it matter what feedback my watch gives?

In one randomised crossover trial of 22 recreational men on a treadmill, 5 km performance did not differ significantly with no feedback, distance-only feedback or full feedback.³ In a trial of 15 male runners of national and regional standard, light-guided pacing did not change 5000 m performance.⁵

This guide is general information, not medical advice. If you have an injury, a health condition or are pregnant, ask a doctor or physiotherapist before changing how you train or eat.

Related guides

• Marathon pace chart: pace and splits for your goal timeFind your goal time for the even pace and splits to run it, per kilometre and per mile, then see what the research says about holding that pace over 42.195 km.
• Half marathon pace chart: pace and splits for your goal timeFind your goal time for the even pace and splits to run it, per kilometre and per mile, then see what the research says about holding that pace over a half marathon.
• How a marathon training plan is builtA marathon training plan combines rising weekly distance, a long run, easy and hard running, lighter weeks and a taper. The research backs some of these parts and says little about how to combine them.

Sources

1. Gosztyla AE, Edwards DG, Quinn TJ, Kenefick RW. The impact of different pacing strategies on five-kilometer running time trial performance. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. 2006. doi:10.1519/r-19275.1
2. Ramos-Campo DJ, Foster C, Andreu-Caravaca L, Rubio-Arias JÁ, Rosenblat MA. Comparative Effects of Pacing Strategies on Endurance Performance: A Systematic Review and Network Meta-Analysis. Sports Medicine. 2026. doi:10.1007/s40279-025-02367-3
3. de Brito LHG, Macedo AG, da Silva Júnior AJ, de Almeida TAF, Massini DA, Pessôa Filho DM, Higino WP. Effects of Visual Feedback Availability on Aerobic Performance and Pacing Strategy During a 5 km Running Time Trial. Sports. 2026. doi:10.3390/sports14070278
4. Silva R, Damasceno M, Cruz R, Silva-Cavalcante MD, Lima-Silva AE, Bishop DJ, Bertuzzi R. Effects of a 4-week high-intensity interval training on pacing during 5-km running trial. Brazilian Journal of Medical and Biological Research. 2017. doi:10.1590/1414-431x20176335
5. Casado A, Hornillos A, Foster C, Ranieri LE, Renfree A, Domínguez R. Performance and Psychophysiological Effects of Light-Guided Pacing During a 5000-m Run. International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance. 2025. doi:10.1123/ijspp.2024-0202
6. Tucker R, Lambert MI, Noakes TD. An analysis of pacing strategies during men's world-record performances in track athletics. International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance. 2006. doi:10.1123/ijspp.1.3.233
7. Casado A, Hanley B, Jiménez-Reyes P, Renfree A. Pacing profiles and tactical behaviors of elite runners. Journal of Sport and Health Science. 2021. doi:10.1016/j.jshs.2020.06.011