Health & Fitness
Treadmill Pace Converter - Speed to Pace, mph to km/h
Convert treadmill speed (km/h or mph) to running pace (min/km or min/mile) and back. Includes incline grade-adjusted pace calculation.
Enter 0 for flat. Negative values = downhill.
Show calculation steps
- Speed: 10 mph
- Speed: 16.09 km/h · 10 mph
- Pace = 3600 / speed
- Pace: 3:44 /km · 6:00 /mile
Speed and pace explained
Speed is how fast you travel (distance per time), measured in km/h or mph. Pace is how long it takes to cover one unit of distance, measured in minutes per kilometre or minutes per mile.
They are reciprocals: Pace (sec/km) = 3600 / Speed (km/h)
Common treadmill speeds
- 6 km/h (3.7 mph): Brisk walk: 10:00/km · 16:06/mile
- 8 km/h (5 mph): Easy jog: 7:30/km · 12:04/mile
- 10 km/h (6.2 mph): Moderate run: 6:00/km · 9:39/mile
- 12 km/h (7.5 mph): Tempo run: 5:00/km · 8:03/mile
- 16 km/h (9.9 mph): Fast run: 3:45/km · 6:02/mile
Grade-adjusted pace (GAP)
Running uphill costs more energy than flat running. Grade-adjusted pace estimates what your flat-equivalent effort would be at a given incline.
A simplified model adds approximately 10 seconds per km per 1% incline (uphill) and subtracts 7 seconds per km per 1% decline (downhill).
Heart rate training zones
Training zones are typically defined as a percentage of maximum heart rate (HRmax, estimated as 220 − age). Approximate treadmill speeds at each zone:
| Zone | % HRmax | Approximate speed | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zone 1 (easy) | 50–60% | 4–5 km/h (walk) | Recovery, warm-up |
| Zone 2 (aerobic base) | 60–70% | 6–8 km/h | Fat burning, aerobic capacity |
| Zone 3 (tempo) | 70–80% | 8–10 km/h | Improve lactate threshold |
| Zone 4 (threshold) | 80–90% | 10–13 km/h | Race-pace training |
| Zone 5 (VO₂ max) | 90–100% | 13+ km/h | Short high-intensity intervals |
Actual speeds vary significantly with individual fitness level. Use a heart rate monitor for accurate zone-based training rather than relying on speed alone.
Calorie burn estimate
A rough calorie estimate can be calculated using MET (Metabolic Equivalent of Task) values:
Calories/hour = MET × weight (kg) × 1.05
| Activity | MET value |
|---|---|
| Flat walking at 5 km/h | 3.5 |
| Brisk walking at 6.5 km/h | 5.0 |
| Jogging at 8 km/h | 7.0 |
| Running at 10 km/h | 9.5 |
| Running at 12 km/h | 11.0 |
| Running at 16 km/h | 14.5 |
Incline conversion note
Treadmill incline is displayed as a grade (percentage), not degrees. Grade is calculated as rise ÷ run × 100. A 1% grade is approximately 0.57°, which is a barely perceptible slope.
A 1% treadmill incline is commonly recommended for outdoor runners because it compensates for the lack of air resistance on a treadmill. At typical jogging speeds, running at 1% incline closely approximates the energy cost of running on flat outdoor ground.