How Long Does it Take to Walk a Mile?

By Becky Kleanthous. Last update: August 2, 2023

Typically, adults walk at a speed of 3 to 4 miles per hour, and therefore walk a mile in around 15 to 20 minutes. Some people will be faster or slower than this, and walking speed is influenced by age and gender, as well as fitness level.

Whether you're planning a journey, a day out, or preparing for a sponsored walk or 10,000 step challenge, you may want to calculate how many minutes it takes to walk a mile. An individual's health will of course have an impact on how long it takes to walk a mile, but more general factors such as age, gender and pace can be accounted for in your planning.

In this article, we'll look at how you calculate walking speed, how walking speed varies by age and how long it takes to walk a mile by based upon age and walking speed. Let's get started...

On this page:

• Walking speed by age
• How long to walk a mile by age
• Accounting for different walking speeds
• How long would it take to walk X miles?
• World record for walking a mile
• In summary

Walking speed by age

Let's begin by taking a look at how walking speed varies by age. And, no, we don't mean the incredible phenomenon by which it takes three hours to walk just two blocks with a toddler (so many interesting cracks in walls to look at!)

You might be surprised to learn that sprightly twenty-somethings actually tend to walk at a slower pace than their older thirty-something and forty-something counterparts. It's true. Then, once we reach our fifties, our walking speed slows down again.

So at just 2.1 mph, it would take an average 80-year-old nearly half an hour to walk a mile (28 minutes and 34 seconds), while a 23-year-old is likely to walk at a speed of 3 mph, taking only 20 minutes to walk a mile.

According to research published in 2011, your walking speed decreases at a rate of about 0.0037 m/s per year as your age increases. This means you'll take around 1 minute and 56 seconds longer to walk a mile when you're 60 years old compared to when you're 20. 1

How long to walk a mile by age

The table below shows average walking speeds by age along with the calculated time to walk a mile. 2

Accounting for different walking speeds

In all age categories, men walk faster than women. This could be because they tend to have slightly longer legs. Or perhaps they're more likely to be running late for something...

There is, however, one more important factor to consider when you calculate how long it takes to walk a mile: are you strolling, walking or steaming down the street? You'll walk at a different pace when you're enjoying the country air compared to when you're worried you'll miss the train.

Studies on walking speeds

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans suggest a leisurely walking speed to be around 2 mph, moderate-intensity walking to be in the range of 2.5 to 3.5 mph and fast walking to be around 4.5 to 5 mph. 3

In addition to this, a study published in the British Medical Journal defines 100 steps-per-minute as a minimum moderate-intensity walking speed for adults of 60 years and under. This equates to around 3 mph. 4 And a 2021 analysis of thirty-five studies between 1970 and 2019 identified average walking speeds from 1.8 mph for a slow pace to 3.8 mph for a fast (brisk) pace. 5

From this information, we can extrapolate the following walking speeds:

Is a 15-minute mile a good walking pace?

To walk a mile in 15 minutes, you will need to walk at a brisk walking speed of around 4 mph. Walking 4 mph on a level, firm surface equates to a MET score of 5.0 in the Compendium of Physical Activities. A MET score of 1 indicates the amount of energy used when someone is resting and sitting quietly. The MET score of 5.0 for walking at 4mph represents a moderate intensity activity. 6

Due to the fact that people use energy at different rates, the amount of energy consumed by one person during a 15-minute-mile walk won't be the same as another. Factors such as age, gender, body weight, fitness level and genetics need to be factored in to determine the fitness impact of the walk. MET scores therefore have their limitations, but are a useful guide and starting point for discussions about exercise.

How long would it take to walk X miles?

Check out the miles chart below to get an idea of how long it would take to walk a set number of miles at a relaxed, moderate or brisk pace. If you want to calculate how long it will take you to walk a mile for your specific biological sex and height, it's well worth checking out our steps and miles calculation tool.

The final entry in our table above is a fun one to finally give an answer to the question: "How long would it take the Proclaimers to walk 500 miles?" (from their hit song). The answer is 167 hours (10,000 minutes) at a moderate walking pace. Please be sure to let them know!

World record for walking a mile

Now, you might be wondering - what's the fastest anyone has ever walked a mile? Well, we've looked into it and here's the answer...

In July 2017 at the London Anniversary Games, Tom Bosworth smashed the world record for the fastest one-mile walk ever recorded. He hit the mile marker in a time of five minutes and 31.08 seconds. If you're wondering what speed that equates to, it's an astonishing 10.87 mph.

In summary

Let's summarize what we've learned. Adults typically walk at a moderate speed of between 3 and 4 mph, meaning that a mile is covered in around 15 to 20 minutes with around 2,250 steps taken per mile.

This, of course, is a generalized average because people walk at varying speeds based upon their biological sex, age, height, weight, level of physical fitness and other factors, such as whether they're late for a train (or being chased by a bear). The quoted figures also assume that you walk at a constant rate throughout your journey.

Nevertheless, the figures we've featured, which come from studies on the subject, can give you a rough idea of how long it might take you to walk a mile based upon your average walking speed. And, if you want to work out a more accurate calculation for your biological sex and height, we have a miles to steps calculator to help you calculate your steps in a mile and how many minutes it might take (assuming a constant speed).

As an extra, fun article you can also find out how long it would take to walk around the world.

Finally, if you want to work out how fast you should walk to aid your personal fitness levels or lose weight, this article at Verywell Fit might be helpful for you.

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References

1. Sex-Specific Correlates of Walking Speed in a Wide Age-Ranged Population. National Library of Medicine.
2. Average walking speed by age. Healthline.
3. Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans. CDC.
4. How fast is fast enough? Walking cadence (steps/min) as a practical estimate of intensity in adults: a narrative review. BMJ.
5. Outdoor Walking Speeds of Apparently Healthy Adults: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. National Library of Medicine.
6. MET Scores for Walking. Compendium of Physical Activities.