SUB-2 HALF · 9:09 PER MILE · 5:41 PER KM
2-hour half marathon pace
A 2-hour half marathon averages 9:09 per mile or 5:41 per km, which is 6.55 mph or 10.55 km/h. Holding 9:09 per mile finishes in 1:59:57 and 5:41 per km in 1:59:54; 9:10 per mile finishes in 2:00:10 and 5:42 per km in 2:00:15.
What the sub-2 pages leave out
We read the top 5 US results for “2 hour half marathon pace” on 25 September 2026. One says the pace is 9:09.6 per mile (it is 9:09.2), and Google's AI summary repeats it; another uses a 21.1 km half; a third publishes a negative-split plan whose slowest option adds up to 2:00:20. None shows the last 0.1094 mile (about a minute) as its own split or gives speed for a treadmill. Every table below uses 21.0975 km and ends at exactly 2:00:00.
Splits for a 2:00:00 half marathon
Even pacing holds one pace from start to finish. The negative plan starts 2% slower than average and finishes 2% quicker, so the first half takes 1:00:36 and the second 59:24. The 2% is this site's illustrative preset, not a coaching prescription. Both plans reach 2:00:00 to the second.
| Checkpoint | Even | Negative | Even /mi |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mile 1 | 0:09:09 | 0:09:19 | 9:09 |
| Mile 2 | 0:18:18 | 0:18:37 | 9:09 |
| Mile 3 | 0:27:28 | 0:27:53 | 9:10 |
| Mile 4 | 0:36:37 | 0:37:07 | 9:09 |
| Mile 5 | 0:45:46 | 0:46:20 | 9:09 |
| Mile 6 | 0:54:55 | 0:55:31 | 9:09 |
| Mile 7 | 1:04:05 | 1:04:40 | 9:10 |
| Mile 8 | 1:13:14 | 1:13:48 | 9:09 |
| Mile 9 | 1:22:23 | 1:22:54 | 9:09 |
| Mile 10 | 1:31:32 | 1:31:58 | 9:09 |
| Mile 11 | 1:40:41 | 1:41:01 | 9:09 |
| Mile 12 | 1:49:51 | 1:50:02 | 9:10 |
| Mile 13 | 1:59:00 | 1:59:01 | 9:09 |
| Half marathon (13.11 mi) | 2:00:00 | 2:00:00 | 9:09 |
| Checkpoint | Even | Negative | Even /km |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 km | 0:05:41 | 0:05:48 | 5:41 |
| 2 km | 0:11:23 | 0:11:35 | 5:42 |
| 3 km | 0:17:04 | 0:17:21 | 5:41 |
| 4 km | 0:22:45 | 0:23:07 | 5:41 |
| 5 km | 0:28:26 | 0:28:52 | 5:41 |
| 6 km | 0:34:08 | 0:34:37 | 5:42 |
| 7 km | 0:39:49 | 0:40:21 | 5:41 |
| 8 km | 0:45:30 | 0:46:04 | 5:41 |
| 9 km | 0:51:11 | 0:51:47 | 5:41 |
| 10 km | 0:56:53 | 0:57:29 | 5:42 |
| 11 km | 1:02:34 | 1:03:10 | 5:41 |
| 12 km | 1:08:15 | 1:08:51 | 5:41 |
| 13 km | 1:13:57 | 1:14:31 | 5:42 |
| 14 km | 1:19:38 | 1:20:10 | 5:41 |
| 15 km | 1:25:19 | 1:25:49 | 5:41 |
| 16 km | 1:31:00 | 1:31:27 | 5:41 |
| 17 km | 1:36:42 | 1:37:04 | 5:42 |
| 18 km | 1:42:23 | 1:42:41 | 5:41 |
| 19 km | 1:48:04 | 1:48:17 | 5:41 |
| 20 km | 1:53:45 | 1:53:53 | 5:41 |
| 21 km | 1:59:27 | 1:59:27 | 5:42 |
| Half marathon (21.0975 km) | 2:00:00 | 2:00:00 | 5:38 |
Whole-second paces that break 2:00:00
Watches and pace charts show whole seconds, and the one that looks right can land just over the goal. The highlighted row is the slowest pace per mile that finishes under 2:00:00. Here the exact average rounded to the nearest second, 9:09, is also the safe pace.
| Pace /mi | Finish | Against 2:00:00 |
|---|---|---|
| 9:05 | 1:59:04 | 0:56 under |
| 9:06 | 1:59:17 | 0:43 under |
| 9:07 | 1:59:30 | 0:30 under |
| 9:08 | 1:59:43 | 0:17 under |
| 9:09 | 1:59:57 | 0:03 under |
| 9:10 | 2:00:10 | 0:10 over |
| 9:11 | 2:00:23 | 0:23 over |
| Pace /km | Finish | Against 2:00:00 |
|---|---|---|
| 5:39 | 1:59:12 | 0:48 under |
| 5:40 | 1:59:33 | 0:27 under |
| 5:41 | 1:59:54 | 0:06 under |
| 5:42 | 2:00:15 | 0:15 over |
| 5:43 | 2:00:36 | 0:36 over |
If your watch reads long
Courses are measured along the shortest route a runner could take, so most runners cover a little more and their GPS watch shows more distance than the course. The finish clock counts only the course. This is the watch pace that still gets you under 2:00:00 on the clock:
| Reads long | Watch shows | Watch /mi | Watch /km |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0% | 13.11 mi | 9:09 | 5:41 |
| 0.5% | 13.17 mi | 9:06 | 5:39 |
| 1% | 13.24 mi | 9:03 | 5:37 |
| 1.5% | 13.31 mi | 9:01 | 5:36 |
| 2% | 13.37 mi | 8:58 | 5:34 |
Printable pace band for 2:00:00
The band below lists even splits every mile. Print this page with Ctrl+P (Cmd+P on a Mac) and only the band prints: a 40 × 240 mm strip with a 50 mm ruler to check the scale. For negative splits, run/walk or a different split spacing, open the pace band generator with 2:00:00 filled in.
Print at 100% (Actual size) with headers and footers off. The strip is 40 × 240 mm. Measure the 50 mm ruler before cutting; if it is not 50 mm, your printer rescaled the page. Tape it loosely around your wrist.
RACE PACE PLANNER
Half marathon · 2:00:00
Even splits · Continuous
| mi | Time |
|---|---|
| 1 | 0:09:09 |
| 2 | 0:18:18 |
| 3 | 0:27:28 |
| 4 | 0:36:37 |
| 5 | 0:45:46 |
| 6 | 0:54:55 |
| 7 | 1:04:05 |
| 8 | 1:13:14 |
| 9 | 1:22:23 |
| 10 | 1:31:32 |
| 11 | 1:40:41 |
| 12 | 1:49:51 |
| 13 | 1:59:00 |
| 13.11 | 2:00:00 |
Elapsed time includes stops. Targets, not predictions. racepaceplanner.com
Overlap and tape here
10K and 5K times that go with sub-2
Riegel's formula, in its usual form with the exponent 1.06, links a 2:00:00 half marathon to these times:
| Race | Equivalent time | Pace /mi |
|---|---|---|
| 5K | 26:05 | 8:24 |
| 10K | 54:23 | 8:45 |
| Marathon | 4:10:12 | 9:33 |
For shorter races the formula holds up: in 2,303 recreational runners, Vickers and Vertosick (2016) found it well calibrated for races up to the half marathon. So a 10K close to the equivalent above is a fair sign that sub-2 is in reach. The marathon row is another matter; the same study found Riegel at least 10 minutes too fast in the marathon for half of the runners, so do not base a marathon goal on a 2-hour half alone.
Common sub-2 mistakes
- Rounding to 9:10. It finishes in 2:00:10, and holding 5:42 per km finishes in 2:00:15.
- Using 21.1 km or 13.1 miles. A half marathon is 21.0975 km (13.1094 mi). A plan built on 13.1 miles runs out 0.0094 mile early and leaves about 5 seconds unaccounted for.
- Ignoring the last 0.1 mile. After mile 13 there is still 1:00 of running at goal pace; a mile-13 time of 2:00:00 is a minute too slow.
- Pacing off the watch. If your watch reads 1% long, it must show 9:03 per mile.
Plan a different goal
The half marathon pace chart lists every goal from the fastest times to walking pace, and the split calculator with 2:00:00 filled in adjusts the splits to any finish time.
Sources
- World Athletics: half marathon: half the marathon distance, 21.0975 km.
- NIST: unit conversion factors: 1 mile = 1.609344 km exactly.
- USATF: position on GPS used by runners: courses are measured on the shortest possible route; GPS usually reads longer.
- Riegel PS (1981), Athletic records and human endurance, American Scientist 69:285-290: the endurance formula behind the equivalents; the 1.06 exponent is the commonly used value.
- Vickers AJ, Vertosick EA (2016), BMC Sports Science, Medicine and Rehabilitation 8:26: 2,303 recreational runners; Riegel well calibrated to the half marathon, at least 10 min too fast in the marathon for half of runners.
Last checked 25 September 2026.