A 5K is 5 kilometers, or 3.11 miles. That part never changes. What changes from person to person is the time it takes, and for a beginner that range is wide: from under half an hour to over an hour.
How many miles is a 5K?
A 5K is 3.107 miles, usually rounded to 3.1. The mile is defined as exactly 1,609.344 meters (NIST), so 5,000 meters works out to 3 miles plus about 188 yards.
Some other ways to picture the same distance:
| Measure | 5K equals |
|---|---|
| Miles | 3.107 |
| Kilometers | 5.0 |
| Laps of a 400 m track | 12.5 |
| Yards | about 5,468 |
| City blocks (20 per mile, a rough US average) | about 62 |
How long does it take to run a 5K?
At a steady pace, a 5K takes 28 minutes at a 9:00 mile, 37 minutes at 12:00 and 47 minutes at 15:00. Every extra minute per mile adds about 3 minutes and 6 seconds to the finish, because the race is 3.107 miles long.
Six common beginner paces are below; the pace chart has every pace from 9:00 to 18:30 with the same formula.
If your pace falls between two rows, the pace converter gives the exact finish time for any pace, speed or target.
How long does it take to walk a 5K?
Walking a 5K takes about 56 minutes at a brisk 18:00 mile (3.3 mph), 59 minutes at 19:00, and 62 minutes at 20:00 (3.0 mph). A relaxed stroll is slower still, so an hour and a quarter is not unusual.
Brisk walking counts as moderate activity. The CDC’s talk test puts moderate effort at the point where you can talk but not sing, and that is the same effort most beginner run/walk plans aim for in their walking breaks.
How long does a run/walk 5K take?
Mixing running and walking lands between the two tables above. Running 3 minutes and walking 1, at a 13:00 running pace and an 18:00 walking pace, averages about 13:58 per mile and finishes a 5K in roughly 43 minutes. One minute running and one minute walking at the same speeds averages about 15:06 per mile, a 47-minute finish.
Our guide to the run/walk method has the full table of ratios and speeds.
Why doesn’t 30 minutes of running equal 5K?
Because 30 minutes only covers 5K at a pace of about 9:39 per mile. At a 13:00 mile, 30 minutes is 2.31 miles; at 15:00 it is exactly 2.00 miles. A beginner plan that ends with a 30-minute run is measured in time, not distance. At paces between 12:00 and 15:00 per mile, that last run ends 0.6 to 1.1 miles short of 5K.
That gap is normal and it is closed by adding minutes, not speed. See why the plan can end short of 5K for how many minutes to add at your pace, and the distance table for what every session of the plan covers.
How long does it take to get ready for a first 5K?
The common beginner route is a 9-week plan of three sessions a week, 27 in total, starting with eight 1-minute runs and ending with 30 minutes without stopping. Each session takes 28 to 40 minutes including a 5-minute walk at each end. You can see every session on the 9-week plan page.
If you have a health condition or haven’t exercised in a long time, check with a doctor before starting.
What should you expect on the day?
Expect the first mile to feel easier than the last, and plan to start slower than you think you need to. Your finish time on a first 5K says more about your pacing than your fitness. Most beginners who walk part of the course still finish within the times in the tables above, and every one of those times is a complete 5K.