Running Cadence Calculator - Steps per Minute and Stride

Running cadence from pace and step length, or from a 30-second count

Is 170 steps per minute low for a 10-minute mile? This running cadence calculator answers with your own numbers. Give it your pace and step length, or the steps you counted for 15, 30 or 60 seconds, and it returns your cadence; it also works out step length from pace and cadence, or pace from cadence and step length. Every result adds what a 5% and 10% higher cadence would mean at the same pace, in miles and inches or in kilometers and centimeters.

Quick start. A 9:00 mile with a 40 in step is 176 steps per minute and 1,584 steps per mile. Raising cadence by 5% at the same pace means 185 steps per minute and a step of 38.1 in.

Picking the mode and filling it in

What to work out - cadence from pace and step length, cadence from a step count, step length from pace and cadence, or pace from cadence and step length.
Units - pace per mile with the step in inches, or pace per kilometer with the step in centimeters.
Pace - minutes in one box, seconds in the other: 9:30 is 9 and 30. In count mode the pace is optional and adds the step length and a table.
Step length or cadence - from your watch summary. Garmin and others label the step as "stride length"; it is the distance from one foot landing to the other.
Count - for the count mode, the steps you counted, for how many seconds, and whether you counted every step or one foot only. Then read the cadence, the +5% and +10% tiles and the table.

Seven runs and the cadence behind each

An easy run, read off the watch

Situation: 10:00 min/mi, step 37 in
Result: 171 steps per minute, 1,712 steps per mile.

A 5% increase at this pace is 180 steps per minute with a 35.2 in step: the speed stays at 6.0 mph, only the steps get shorter.

No watch, one foot counted

Situation: 44 right-foot strikes in 30 s, 10:00 min/mi
Result: 176 steps per minute and a 36.0 in step.

Counting one foot is easier at speed; the calculator doubles it. Without the pace you still get the cadence and the +5% and +10% targets.

A treadmill count, every step

Situation: 42 steps in 15 s, 11:00 min/mi
Result: 168 steps per minute, a 34.3 in step.

A 15-second count is quick but coarse: one step more or less moves the answer by 4 steps per minute. Thirty seconds halves that.

How long are my steps at marathon pace?

Situation: 8:00 min/mi, 175 spm
Result: a 45.3 in step and 1,400 steps per mile.

A runner at 165 who wants to try +5%

Situation: 10:00 min/mi, 165 spm
Result: a 38.4 in step today; at 173 steps per minute the same pace takes a 36.6 in step.

A metronome app set to 173 is the usual way to practice the new rhythm on easy runs.

What pace is 180 steps per minute?

Situation: 180 spm, step 38 in
Result: 9:16 min/mi, or 6.5 mph.

The same 180 with a 44 in step is an 8:00 mile. Cadence alone never fixes the pace.

Metric, from a European watch

Situation: 5:00 min/km, 179.6 spm
Result: a 111 cm step and 898 steps per km.

Step length in inches by pace and cadence

Find your pace on the left and your cadence across the top. At a fixed pace a higher cadence always means a shorter step; the product of the two is the speed.

Pace (speed)	160 spm	170 spm	180 spm
7:00 min/mi (8.6 mph)	56.6 in	53.2 in	50.3 in
8:00 min/mi (7.5 mph)	49.5 in	46.6 in	44.0 in
9:00 min/mi (6.7 mph)	44.0 in	41.4 in	39.1 in
10:00 min/mi (6.0 mph)	39.6 in	37.3 in	35.2 in
11:00 min/mi (5.5 mph)	36.0 in	33.9 in	32.0 in
12:00 min/mi (5.0 mph)	33.0 in	31.1 in	29.3 in

The well-known 180 is a number from elite racing, not a rule for every pace. In a study of runners at a 100 km world championship the average was 182 steps per minute, but individual runners ranged from 155 to 203, ran with a higher cadence when they went faster, and taller runners used a lower one. A 12-minute mile at 180 would need steps of only 29.3 in, which is why one fixed cadence for every pace makes little sense.

How precise a step count is

A count is always a whole number, so the answer moves in fixed jumps. The third column is how much one step more or less changes the cadence; the last column is the same 168 spm reached each way.

Counting	For	One step is worth	Count for 168 spm
Every step	15 s	4 spm	42 steps = 168 spm
Every step	30 s	2 spm	84 steps = 168 spm
Every step	60 s	1 spm	168 steps = 168 spm
One foot	15 s	8 spm	21 strikes = 168 spm
One foot	30 s	4 spm	42 strikes = 168 spm
One foot	60 s	2 spm	84 strikes = 168 spm

Cadence questions from runners

What is a good running cadence?

There is no single good number. Cadence rises with speed, so compare readings taken at similar paces, not your easy run with someone's race. If you have recurring knee pain, an increase of 5% at the same pace is the change that research has looked at, and the result shows that number for you.

Can you calculate cadence from my height?

Not reliably, so this calculator does not. Height does affect cadence on average, but pace changes it more, and the formulas that circulate online give one number for a person regardless of how fast they run. Counting your steps for 30 seconds on a normal run gives your real cadence in less time than looking up a chart.

How do I raise my cadence without running faster?

Keep the pace and shorten the step. Set a metronome to the +5% number from the result, run part of an easy run to it, and let the speed stay where it was. The table shows how much shorter each step gets.

Is stride length the same as step length?

In running science a stride is two steps, from one foot landing to the same foot landing again. Many watches and apps, though, show the single-step distance and call it stride length. This calculator uses the single step, which matches the watch numbers.

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