How Many Steps in a 5K – Walking Steps vs Running steps

Written by Gareth Chapman

On average there are 6,600 steps walking 5k, however this drops down to around 4,700 when running 5k.

The number of steps in a 5k varies based on several factors such as your height and speed. See how many steps in a mile calculator to get your own personal estimate of 5k steps, based on your height and speed.

Below are more details and examples of steps in 5k.

how many steps in 5k

How long is 5k?

5K is 5,000 Meters, or 3.1 miles.

Running round an Olympic track it would take you 12.5 circuits to complete 5k. If you were to walk it at a leisurely pace, 5K will take around an hour. For more on distance, read How many miles is 5000 steps. 

Factors affecting number of steps in 5k

A number of different things affect how many steps you take in a 5k.
The two biggest factors are your height and walking / running speed.

The taller you are, the longer your stride length, and hence the fewer steps required to cover 5k. Additionally given the same walking speed and height, a man’s stride is slightly longer than a woman’s. 

Even at the same height, women take a few more steps to walk 5k than men do. Kids will take even more steps to walk a 5k. For more on kids and walking, have a look at how many steps in a mile for a child? 

As you move faster from walking into running and then the faster you run, the longer your stride length becomes. So again the faster you move, the fewer steps are required to cover 5k. If you’re a runner and are considering a treadmill, read the NoblePro Elite E8i Treadmill review

How many steps is 5 km?

Steps for a woman to walk 5k

This table shows, based on height, an estimate of the number of steps a woman takes walking 5k at a leisurely pace.

Height

Steps walking 5k at a leisurely pace

4’ 10”

7,339

4’ 11”

7,295

5’ 0”

7,251

5’ 1”

7,207

5’ 2”

7,163

5’ 3”

7,119

5’ 4”

7,075

5’ 5”

7,031

5’ 6”

6,986

5’ 7”

6,942

5’ 8”

6,898

5’ 9”

6,854

5’ 10”

6,810

5’ 11”

6,766

6’ 0”

6,722

6’ 1”

6,678

6’ 2”

6,634

Steps for a man to walk 5k

This table shows, based on height, an estimate of the number of steps a man takes walking 5k at a leisurely pace.

Height

Steps walking 5k at a leisurely pace

5’ 0”

7,148

5’ 1”

7,104

5’ 2”

7,060

5’ 3”

7,016

5’ 4”

6,971

5’ 5”

6,927

5’ 6”

6,883

5’ 7”

6,839

5’ 8”

6,795

5’ 9”

6,751

5’ 10”

6,707

5’ 11”

6,663

6’ 0”

6,619

6’ 1”

6,575

6’ 2”

6,531

6’ 3”

6,487

6’ 4”

6,443

6’ 5”

6,399

6’ 6”

6,355

6’ 7”

6,311

6’ 8”

6,266

Running a 5K in 40 mins

This table shows an estimate of steps taken to run a 5k in 40 minutes, based on your height.

 

Height

Steps walking 5k at a leisurely pace

4’ 10”

6,685

4’ 11”

6,642

5’ 0”

6,600

5’ 1”

6,558

5’ 2”

6,516

5’ 3”

6,474

5’ 4”

6,432

5’ 5”

6,389

5’ 6”

6,347

5’ 7”

6,305

5’ 8”

6,263

5’ 9”

6,221

5’ 10”

6,178

5’ 11”

6,136

6’ 0”

6,094

6’ 1”

6,052

6’ 2”

6,010

6’ 3”

5,967

6’ 4”

5,925

6’ 5”

5,883

6’ 6”

5,841

6’ 7”

5,799

6’ 8”

5,757

Running a 5K in 35 mins

This table shows an estimate of steps taken to run a 5k in 35 minutes, based on your height.

 

Height

Steps walking 5k at a leisurely pace

4’ 10”

5,967

4’ 11”

5,924

5’ 0”

5,882

5’ 1”

5,840

5’ 2”

5,798

5’ 3”

5,756

5’ 4”

5,713

5’ 5”

5,671

5’ 6”

5,629

5’ 7”

5,587

5’ 8”

5,545

5’ 9”

5,503

5’ 10”

5,460

5’ 11”

5,418

6’ 0”

5,376

6’ 1”

5,334

6’ 2”

5,292

6’ 3”

5,249

6’ 4”

5,207

6’ 5”

5,165

6’ 6”

5,123

6’ 7”

5,081

6’ 8”

5,038

Running a 5k in 30 mins

This table shows an estimate of steps taken to run a 5k in 30 minutes, based on your height.

 

Height

Steps walking 5k at a leisurely pace

4’ 10”

5,249

4’ 11”

5,206

5’ 0”

5,164

5’ 1”

5,122

5’ 2”

5,080

5’ 3”

5,038

5’ 4”

4,996

5’ 5”

4,953

5’ 6”

4,911

5’ 7”

4,869

5’ 8”

4,827

5’ 9”

4,785

5’ 10”

4,742

5’ 11”

4,700

6’ 0”

4,658

6’ 1”

4,616

6’ 2”

4,574

6’ 3”

4,531

6’ 4”

4,489

6’ 5”

4,447

6’ 6”

4,405

6’ 7”

4,363

6’ 8”

4,321

Running a 5k in 25 mins

This table shows an estimate of steps taken to run a 5k in 25 minutes, based on your height.

 

Height

Steps walking 5k at a leisurely pace

4’ 10”

4,531

4’ 11”

4,488

5’ 0”

4,446

5’ 1”

4,404

5’ 2”

4,362

5’ 3”

4,320

5’ 4”

4,278

5’ 5”

4,235

5’ 6”

4,193

5’ 7”

4,151

5’ 8”

4,109

5’ 9”

4,067

5’ 10”

4,024

5’ 11”

3,982

6’ 0”

3,940

6’ 1”

3,898

6’ 2”

3,856

6’ 3”

3,813

6’ 4”

3,771

6’ 5”

3,729

6’ 6”

3,687

6’ 7”

3,645

6’ 8”

3,603

Running a 5k in 20 mins

This table shows an estimate of steps taken to run a 5k in 20 minutes, based on your height.

 

Height

Steps walking 5k at a leisurely pace

4’ 10”

3,813

4’ 11”

3,770

5’ 0”

3,728

5’ 1”

3,686

5’ 2”

3,644

5’ 3”

3,602

5’ 4”

3,560

5’ 5”

3,517

5’ 6”

3,475

5’ 7”

3,422

5’ 8”

3,391

5’ 9”

3,349

5’ 10”

3,306

5’ 11”

3,264

6’ 0”

3,222

6’ 1”

3,180

6’ 2”

3,138

6’ 3”

3,095

6’ 4”

3,053

6’ 5”

3,011

6’ 6”

2,969

6’ 7”

2,927

6’ 8”

2,885

Summary

  • For an average person there are 6,600 steps walking 5k
  • The amount of steps decrease the faster you run
  • The taller you are, the fewer steps in a 5k