Swim Pace Calculator
Find the pace/100 m required for your target time over a swimming distance, or calculate your finish time from your average swim pace.
1500m in 0:25:00
Required Pace 1:40 /100m
How it works
Select Pool, Open Water or Custom distance to see common distances. Choose whether to calculate finish time from pace/100 m or pace/100 m from total time. The table updates automatically as you change your selections.
What to keep in mind
This assumes a constant pace and does not automatically convert 25 m pool pace to 50 m pool pace. For that, use the Swim Course Converter. In open water, waves, currents, sighting, drafting and wetsuit use can substantially change your actual pace. Account for these factors and use a realistic average pace.
Methodology & sources
Formula: pace /100 m = (time / distance in metres) × 100. Pool distances: 50 m, 100 m, 200 m, 400 m, 800 m and 1500 m, following recognised World Aquatics freestyle distances. Open Water: 5 km and 10 km, following World Aquatics. Triathlon: Sprint 750 m and Standard (Olympic) 1500 m, following World Triathlon. IRONMAN: 1.9 km for IRONMAN 70.3 and 3.8 km for IRONMAN.
Last updated: 16 June 2026
From the pool to race day.
Your pool pace rarely translates directly into open-water race pace. Together, we will build a plan that emphasises sighting, drafting and conserving energy for the bike and run legs that follow.