Treadmill Pace Converter

Treadmills show speed, but runners think in pace. Convert between km/h, mph, minutes per km and minutes per mile, and see when a 1% incline is supported by a study of outdoor running energy cost.

Your details

Convert from
km/h

Type a pace as minutes and seconds, for example 5:30.

Your results

Enter a treadmill speed or a pace to convert it.

How to use it

  1. Choose km or miles, then whether you're starting from a treadmill speed or a pace.
  2. Enter the speed (for example 10 km/h) or the pace (for example 5:30).
  3. Read the conversion, your 5K and 10K times at that pace, and the table of common treadmill speeds.

How it's calculated

Speed to pace. Pace is the time for one unit of distance, so it’s 60 divided by speed:

pace (minutes per km) = 60 ÷ speed (km/h)

10 km/h gives 6:00 per km. The same works for mph and minutes per mile. One mile is 1.609344 km, so a pace per mile is 1.609 times your pace per km.

The 1% incline. Treadmill running removes the air resistance from moving forward outdoors. Jones and Doust (1996) measured oxygen use in nine trained runners at six speeds, on a level road and on a treadmill at 0%, 1%, 2% and 3%. A 1% grade approximated road running energy cost across the six speeds tested from 2.92 to 5.0 m/s (10.512 to 18 km/h).

Limits. At the slowest speeds they tested, road running wasn’t different from a flat treadmill either, because air resistance is small at low speed. The study used trained men and runs of about 6 minutes, so the 1% rule is a good default, not an exact match for everyone.

Sources

  1. Jones, A. M., & Doust, J. H. (1996). A 1% treadmill grade most accurately reflects the energetic cost of outdoor running. Journal of Sports Sciences, 14(4), 321–327.

Questions

How do I convert km/h to pace per km?

Divide 60 by the speed. At 10 km/h, 60 ÷ 10 = 6 minutes per km. For mph to pace per mile, it works the same way.

Should I run with an incline on the treadmill?

A 1% incline is a starting point within the study’s speed range. The study used short bouts with trained men, and a flat treadmill also matched the road at the two slowest speeds tested.

Is treadmill pace the same as outdoor pace?

The speed conversion is the same. In the study, the difference in energy cost depended on speed and incline.

Why doesn't my watch match the treadmill?

Wrist watches estimate treadmill distance from your arm swing and cadence, and treadmills can drift out of calibration. Trust the treadmill's speed for pacing, but don't be surprised if the two differ by a few percent.

Updated November 9, 2026.