How Fast Can Humans Run?
The average human walking speed is in the neighborhood of 3 mph (4.8 km/h). How fast do you think you could run at a full sprint? 10 mph? 15 mph? What speed could you average over 26.2 miles?
Below, I have taken several men's and women's world records and calculated the runners' average speed. Usain Bolt has averaged over 23 miles per hour in both the 100 and 200 meter events.
Men's World Records Translated Into Average Speeds
| Event | Record | Athlete | mph | ft/s | km/h | m/s |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 60 m (indoor) | 6.39 s | Maurice Green | 21.00 | 30.81 | 33.80 | 9.39 |
| 100 m | 9.58 s | Usain Bolt | 23.35 | 34.25 | 37.58 | 10.44 |
| 200 m | 19.19 s | Usain Bolt | 23.31 | 34.19 | 37.52 | 10.42 |
| 400 m | 43.18 s | Michael Johnson | 20.71 | 30.38 | 33.34 | 9.26 |
| 800 m | 1:41.11 | Wilson Kipketer | 17.69 | 25.95 | 28.48 | 7.91 |
| 1000 m | 2:11.96 | Noah Ngeny | 16.96 | 24.87 | 27.29 | 7.58 |
| 1500 m | 3:26.00 | Hicham El Geerrouj | 16.28 | 23.88 | 26.21 | 7.28 |
| Mile | 3:43.13 | Hicham El Geerrouj | 16.13 | 23.65 | 25.96 | 7.21 |
| 5000 m | 12:37.35 | Kenenisa Bekele | 14.76 | 21.65 | 23.76 | 6.60 |
| 10000 m | 26:17.53 | Kenenisa Bekele | 14.18 | 20.80 | 22.82 | 6.34 |
| Half Marathon | 58:23 | Zersenay Tadese | 13.47 | 19.76 | 21.68 | 6.02 |
| Marathon | 2:03:59 | Haile Gebrselassie | 12.69 | 18.61 | 20.42 | 5.67 |
| 110 m hurdles | 12.87 s | Dayron Robles | 19.10 | 28.02 | 30.74 | 8.54 |
| 400 m hurdles | 46.78 s | Kevin Young | 19.13 | 28.05 | 30.78 | 8.55 |
| 4x100 m relay | 37.10 s | Nesta Carter, Michael Frater, Usain Bolt, Asafa Powell |
24.12 | 35.37 | 38.81 | 10.78 |
| 4x200 m relay | 1:18.68 | Michael Marsh, Leroy Burrell, Floyd Heard, Carl Lewis |
22.75 | 33.37 | 36.61 | 10.17 |
| 4x400 m relay | 2:54.29 | Andrew Valmon, Quincy Watts, Butch Reynolds, Michael Johnson |
20.54 | 30.12 | 33.05 | 9.18 |
| 4x800 m relay | 7:02.43 | Joseph Mutua, William Yiampoy, Ismael Kombich, Wilfred Bungei |
16.96 | 24.87 | 27.29 | 7.58 |
Womens's World Records Translated Into Average Speeds
| Event | Record | Athlete | mph | ft/s | km/h | m/s |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 60 m (indoor) | 6.92 | Irina Privalova | 19.39 | 28.44 | 31.21 | 8.67 |
| 100 m | 10.49 s | Florence Griffith Joyner | 21.32 | 31.27 | 34.31 | 9.53 |
| 200 m | 21.34 s | Florence Griffith Joyner | 20.96 | 30.74 | 33.73 | 9.37 |
| 400 m | 47.60 s | Marita Koch | 18.79 | 27.60 | 30.24 | 8.40 |
| 800 m | 1:53.28 | Jarmila Kratochvílová | 15.79 | 23.16 | 25.42 | 7.06 |
| 1000 m | 2:28.98 | Svetlana Masterkova | 15.01 | 22.01 | 24.16 | 6.71 |
| 1500 m | 3:50.46 | Qu Yunxia | 14.56 | 21.36 | 23.44 | 6.51 |
| Mile | 4:12.56 | Svetlana Masterkova | 14.25 | 20.90 | 22.93 | 6.37 |
| 5000 m | 14:11.15 | Tirunesh Dibaba | 13.13 | 19.26 | 21.13 | 5.87 |
| 10000 m | 29:31.78 | Wang Junxia | 12.62 | 18.50 | 20.30 | 5.64 |
| Half Marathon | 1:06:25 | Lornah Kiplagat | 11.83 | 17.36 | 19.04 | 5.29 |
| Marathon | 2:15:25 | Paula Radcliffe | 11.61 | 17.03 | 18.68 | 5.19 |
| 100 m hurdles | 12.21 s | Yordanka Donkova | 18.32 | 26.87 | 29.48 | 8.19 |
| 400 m hurdles | 52.34 s | Yuliya Pechonkina | 17.09 | 25.07 | 27.50 | 7.64 |
| 4x100 m relay | 41.37 s | Silke Gladisch, Sabine Rieger, Ingrid Auerswald, Marlies Göhr |
21.63 | 31.73 | 34.81 | 9.67 |
| 4x200 m relay | 1:27.46 | LaTasha Jenkins, LaTasha Colander- Richardson, Nanceen Perry, Marion Jones |
20.45 | 29.99 | 32.90 | 9.14 |
| 4x400 m relay | 3:15.17 | Tatyana Ledovskaya, Olga Nazarova, Mariya Pinigina, Olga Bryzgina |
18.34 | 26.90 | 29.52 | 8.20 |
| 4x800 m relay | 7:50.17 | Nadezhda Olizarenko, Lyubov Gurina, Lyudmila Borisova, Irina Podyalovskaya |
15.23 | 22.34 | 24.52 | 6.81 |
It's interesting to note that the 60 meter race has a slower average speed for both men and women than the 100 meter race. This must be because accelerating at the start of a race takes some time.
These world records were last updated on May 5, 2010.
August 19, 2008
12:23 AM
chart shows average speed for each..
what would top or final speed, for instance, in the 100m dash?
thx
August 19, 2008
6:04 AM
John –
I’ve heard that the peak speed for the best 100-meter sprinters is in the neighborhood of 27-30 mph. This will typically be achieved about 2/3 of the way into the race, then the speeds will drop again slightly. Even the best athletes can’t maintain that kind of speed for any distance.
Often when you’re watching the end of a race it will look like one runner surges out in front of another runner, but in fact both are likely to be slowing down. It’s just that one of them is slowing down faster.
August 19, 2008
8:55 AM
i had pondered that with an ‘average’ of 22-23, that the final/peak was 44-46!! thanx for your prompt reply..
September 25, 2008
8:06 PM
Humans an NOT run at 45 mph.
November 20, 2008
1:19 PM
I was watching this show that answers questions that most men want to know. One of them was how fast can you go for your muscles to fall off. they said it was about 26.5 mph. Is that true?
January 10, 2009
2:09 AM
Michael Johnson peaked at 27mph while sprinting…
April 21, 2009
5:15 PM
how fast does the average 6th grader run if he were to run the 100 meter dash at full sprint?
August 7, 2009
1:14 PM
can Usain Bolt run up to 30mph
August 17, 2009
6:49 PM
With a pair of jet shoes I can run at 100 kph (62.15 mph)
August 17, 2009
6:54 PM
I wanna say as my comrade Willie E. Coyote, you know, he uses a lot of technology, Is my comrade, my amigo.
October 29, 2009
1:27 PM
Why don’t we have downhill runs for 68 km/h?
December 9, 2009
1:21 AM
2 differant timees some friends and i have ran past a speedometer for about 100 yards and my top speed was 19 mph. none of my other friends could not break 17 mph i think thats pretty good for a 18 year old 5’9 and 150 lbs and no training for running just surfing
January 3, 2010
8:57 PM
I can run 16 mph and i’m 13 1/2 years old. i’m 5’9 to.
January 3, 2010
8:59 PM
i’m 14 and i can run 14 mph. i’m 6’0 and 180lbs.
January 13, 2010
3:49 PM
i’m 16 and i once ran 18 mph-5’4 and 107 lbs :D
January 14, 2010
8:27 AM
Over summer vacation in 2009 i ran 15.25781mph
January 24, 2010
5:05 PM
Usain Bolt fastest run is 28 MPH same as Carl Lewis. Bolt is a faster accelerator.
March 4, 2010
4:07 PM
That is fast dag.
April 6, 2010
11:08 PM
i ran 17 mph in 6th grade and have now went to 5 state championships in high school.
April 19, 2010
7:58 PM
With a bunch of my friends and one more crazier than the others we made him run at a speed of 35 mph. How we did it? We accelerated a car to that speed, then he jumped out of the backdoor and continued running. Ofcourse he didnt maintain that speed, but for a brief amount of time he did run 35 mph… I tried that too, but I fell down at a measly speed of 20 mph. My friend is the son of priest so he might have had some “outside” help :)
May 22, 2010
1:45 PM
i can run 18 miles per hour and i am only 10. plus i won 1st place at track and field three times. dont belive me? i can prove it.
May 22, 2010
4:33 PM
i’m 6’1, 235 lbs, barely turned 14 years old, and my average speed is 13.9, but my fastest speed is 17.5 mph. i start off slow, then in the middle of the race i reach my top speed for about 4 seconds, then i slow back down to about 13 mph lol.
May 27, 2010
10:45 AM
I feel slow now. Quality work brandi, I belive (sic) you. How could you prove it? No camera is fast enough.
Sparks, maybe you could run back to English class between races.
June 18, 2010
4:45 PM
Im 13 years old and i can run 20 mph im 5FT 5
June 22, 2010
11:08 AM
i have been training for a 5k i am not very fast but for short periods or down hill i can run super fast. i carry a GPS with me to track it, well this morning it said my top speed was 24.3 mph well i didn’t think it was possible till i looked it up. i wish i could keep the speed going. Interesting
July 9, 2010
10:37 PM
Even after a dozen years, it is amazing to watch Michael Johnson’s World Record!
July 11, 2010
1:26 PM
i can run 20.5mph 33km/h with the gps in my mout that way it mesured it prprley
July 11, 2010
1:46 PM
i did it today again and i got 21mph whawho
July 15, 2010
1:18 AM
How do you find out how fast you can run in mph? I’m 19 and 6’3, I once raced my friends car and kept up with him at about 19/20 mph, but i cant get anything to really tell me.
August 15, 2010
12:25 AM
hey my name is vandy kanneh i am only 13 years of age and i ran 11.6sec in the 100m and 24.29sec in the 200m
September 27, 2010
12:16 AM
Im 16 and can run at 34 mph.
Don’t believe me ? I can prove it.
October 5, 2010
3:36 PM
I was running and threw my GPS one time and when i got done, it said that my top speed was 39 MPH.
October 7, 2010
4:55 PM
im 12 i can run at average of 15 mph when i sprint 19 mph fastest kid at my school i ran the 50 yard dash in 5.60 sceconds
November 1, 2010
10:54 AM
i am 14 and can run 23 mph i am the best in the school should i go further
November 1, 2010
10:55 AM
i tried again today 16 mph :)
November 2, 2010
1:06 PM
I am interested in endurance running, marathon; apparently the Native Americans had message runners who could do truly amazing things like run up the coast from California to B.C. in record times; it is endurance I value over the short flashy sprint.
November 12, 2010
6:57 PM
Today i just ran a 5.14 40 yard dash at an average speed of 15.9 mph. i’m fast. oh and i’m 14 years old
November 26, 2010
2:09 AM
i think this information is interesting to know, im a jr in high school i run a 2 min flat 800 so thats 15mph but the fastest 800 witch is 19 seonds faster than mine is only a mare 3mph faster.
December 13, 2010
7:48 PM
I am 14 and run 17 mph,to you ten year old i bet you a million dollars you cant run 19 mph.idiot,some of yall just dont know
December 21, 2010
5:34 PM
Elite Feet-
When would a runner reach the peak of their speed in a 1500 metre race?
Thank you.
January 19, 2011
12:02 PM
I can run 25.67 mph punks=)
January 28, 2011
2:38 PM
im a freshman in highschool training for the 400 and 800 so far i run a 52 and a 2.04 what do i do to get faster?
water, mechanics, and eating right but i feel like in a dead sprint people can just go faster why?
February 23, 2011
12:14 AM
I’m 15, 190 lbs. I can sprint at 17 mph. I also squat 480
March 2, 2011
7:07 AM
Can someone tell me that what we do for run Fast?
Thank you
March 6, 2011
10:58 AM
hi i’m jans….i ran 100 m at 10.9 what is my average speed in mph?
thnks….
March 10, 2011
7:53 PM
I’m over 40 and I don’t run – bad for the knees.
March 27, 2011
12:46 AM
When I was 13 I did the 100m in just over 17 seconds so about 13 MPH/21 KPH. I have not done it since then and I’m 17 now. But I know I am a lot faster now so probably under 14 seconds is my time. My standing vertical is 21 Inch and average male is 19.5. I hear this is connected to sprint speed but who knows? And I’m 5’11″ and weigh 143 and when I was 13 I was way shorter than average but I had a big growth spurt at 15 so my legs are way longer now :D
March 30, 2011
1:07 PM
Im 14 years old and i was thinking can yall come and track my average sprint please i believe that i can sprint at most 16 mph
April 13, 2011
7:48 AM
I ran at 125mph! Ok I had jumped from a plane and was more falling then running, but during my sky dive I “ran” for a brife moment and as terminal volcity is 125mph that’s how fast I was running!
April 24, 2011
8:22 PM
i ran so fast the ground melts under me
April 25, 2011
11:57 PM
I’m 14 and can run at 24mph with injured knees and a pulled groin
April 25, 2011
11:59 PM
Oh, and I’m 6’3 and weigh 140lbs
April 28, 2011
12:39 AM
I Once ran 17mph… On my
Hands… Backwards… Up a hill… In 40 degrees celsius.. With a 100 pounds between my legs.. Oh ya, I’m 8,
And weight 225 pounds with 5 percent bodyfat. Is that good
For my age?
May 6, 2011
1:21 PM
youre to young for that kind of weight
May 10, 2011
1:22 AM
I’m 22 run a 10.2 100m a 21.6 200 and a 4.33 40 yard dash I run track and at FB for Ohio State. And I
White!
May 11, 2011
5:06 AM
i can run quicker than usain bolt!!
May 26, 2011
11:49 AM
my cat can run 409,786,342,865,986 mph
June 6, 2011
8:53 PM
i hold the fastest 40 yard dash for a 14 year old kid in the state of ohio at 4’6 so half u guys are full of it cuz there are 3 kids tht run faster than i do and number 1 runs a 4.52
June 12, 2011
2:26 PM
my dog can run 154254545748152156100000
June 12, 2011
2:28 PM
my dog can run faster than iny of those 125465000 beat that
June 15, 2011
9:39 PM
Hold the records I run 23mph I’m 12 4’10ft tall time exactally and I’m not lying 3.9seconds what now
June 15, 2011
9:40 PM
In th 40 yard dash
June 16, 2011
4:00 AM
well here is some thing for you who here thinks they can out run a d-linemen from the NFL btw the average d-linemen forty yard dash is 4.4-4.6 sec. you kids who are 4ft have no chance to run that speed so no need to respond to this its physicly impossible for a 4ft person to run a forty at that time
June 23, 2011
4:08 PM
i once ran a 9.66 sec 100m back in 2006 when that was a world record my top speed was 23.1 mph i was 16 6 ft 1 in and 150 lbs !!!!!!!!!!
July 3, 2011
5:24 AM
Im 38th in the world 3 years ago when i was in the Olympics. I retired cause of an injury.
July 8, 2011
12:50 PM
I am 4 years old and I ran 22 mph for 2 miles, I can prove it. What a bunch of losers on this site.
July 14, 2011
8:47 PM
Fastest I ever ran was about 20 miles per hour. Though you have to take into consideration that I had just hiked 10 miles up a mountain, and on the way down I ran the last 3 miles. But usually I can hit a dead sprint at about 15-17 miles per hour on flat ground. I was 16 at the time but I’m not even close to as fast as my dad.
July 16, 2011
8:39 AM
I just ran 100 metres in 10 flat……….. Backwards, with flip flops, eyes shut eating a Jam sandwich!!!
July 18, 2011
3:47 PM
I’m 21 years old , I had a full ride in 2008 for track but did not go because of a girl that was preg and now we live hours away so I wish I would of went. I run 4.4 or 4.3 40 yard dash still run a 22 in the 200meter dash . I run a 49 or 50 in the 400 meter dash . still high jump 6.0 or more . I got 5 in state in the 400 meter dash in 2007 2a .. And went back to stare in 2008 . Got 9th because of a bad take off and then I pasted 2 runners in the 4/4 to break our school record . Anyways if anyone reads this and has any info on walk ons in track or football . I also was a very good coner back and kick returner and reciver / running back . I am 5,11 190 right now and still gaining mass . Thank you Adam , and I give anything to be able to run or play football again or both .
July 18, 2011
3:50 PM
also I can sprint over 20 mph in any sprint I do and stay over 20 mph as I run the whole race .
July 21, 2011
6:10 PM
I can run at 99 mph and I am 2 years old, I can prove it as well so don’t go hating
July 26, 2011
3:10 AM
I’m 10 and I can run 24 mph! HA HA HA HA HA!!!!!!!!!!
July 26, 2011
3:14 AM
I can also run a 4.99 in the 40 yard dash!!!!!
August 15, 2011
12:50 PM
i know if u read this ur not gonna believe it but im 12 and my top speed is 20
August 15, 2011
12:52 PM
and i wasnt running on a track
August 16, 2011
10:32 PM
the cops ran after me once about 30 years ago i out ran them felt like 25 mph
August 24, 2011
6:15 AM
I agree with isiah davis I’m 13 and can run 20 mph . Imagine than what we can do when we grow up i dubout that 23 is the limit . I read the fastest man goes 45mph
August 25, 2011
10:47 AM
hi im 18 and 5.11″ and i can run 26.4 mph… n i have tested it several times … n this time i will compete in olympics
August 26, 2011
11:02 PM
I’m 6’0″, 150 lbs, and I can run 20 MPH for about a quarter of a mile.. I get drained too quickly after that though. Haha
August 26, 2011
11:02 PM
Oh, I’m 16 btw.
September 10, 2011
6:51 AM
how can run fast. please give me any easy hint.
September 11, 2011
9:48 AM
interesting during the atlanta games we were getting radar gun read outs of the mens long jump top speed on the run way on our australian telecast… Carl Lewis was hitting over 43kph he was actually faster in a 100m and his relay final dash beleive it or not he would actually run away from Bolt! not by much but his relay splits are actually quicker due to not needing to get up out of the blocks he actually ran away by 5mtres on D. Bailey at the texas relays when bailey was at the peak of his powers after the 96 games, of coures 10metres from thew line he grabbed his leg an claimed cramp LOL ps im not from the USA I just like sprinting. ps bolts top speed is the same as lewis long jump topspeed he just accelerates so much quicker than lewis… interesting
September 11, 2011
1:20 PM
a Georgia running back playing Boise st this year ran over 33 mph maybe faster in a 82 yard run for td
September 14, 2011
11:10 AM
hi yall are very fast
September 18, 2011
11:30 PM
I did 19.7 in high school.
October 5, 2011
8:59 AM
Hey everybody can you answer this question in human runs on 25 kilometers what time it will take?
October 14, 2011
6:15 PM
I am 7 years old and I topped out at 21mph.
October 18, 2011
2:11 AM
At the age of 27 years, while at SIUC McAndrew Stadium, IL, I clocked 10.8 sec 100 meters, slightly wind aided. What was my speed in mph?
October 19, 2011
9:53 PM
when i waz in 6th grade i could run 18.8 mph when i waz in 7th grade i could run 20.2 now that im in 8th grade i can run a top speed of 21.8 when im in high school i could easly be the fastest man im only 13 and i can run faster than my brother that is 16 and my brothers friend jacob and sam and there all 16
October 21, 2011
3:50 PM
Im 10 and i can run at 12.5 mph and i am 5’3
November 3, 2011
12:07 AM
The only time I was timed for my max was when I was 14, I did 50 m in 7 seconds. If you do the math that 16 mph. I was 6″0″, 150 lb and probably around 15% bf.
November 14, 2011
8:55 PM
yo orpheus i think u are full of it bruh
November 19, 2011
3:58 PM
I can run about 70 mph thats me connor
November 27, 2011
8:36 PM
i am 12 and i can run 16.5 mph
December 1, 2011
12:32 AM
It amazing. I’ve always been proud of my 5 min mile in the military and we run daily. That’s 12 mph. So far I’m the slowest on this sight. Amazing.
December 10, 2011
11:16 PM
I am 2 and a half, and I can run…and typ!
January 1, 2012
3:09 AM
So far my fastest running time is 18.64mph. 100m in 12 seconds, when I was 15, i’m 20 now, haven’t sprinted competitively in a while.
January 6, 2012
8:15 PM
While doing sprints on a tar path outside I carry my running GPS and I will get around 20 mph give or take 1 mph either way. I think its pretty accurate considering the GPS was 300 dollars.
January 6, 2012
8:18 PM
And im 20 years old, 6’6″ and 220 pounds if that matters. But i also play college baseball so we are constantly lifting and doing sprints
January 15, 2012
9:57 PM
i ran the 100 meter dash in 15 seconds for a meet last year and this year in practice i ran the 100 meter in 12 seconds and i am 14 years old in 8th grade
January 21, 2012
6:25 PM
My farts come out at 31.3 mph and I’m 6’1 200 lbs.