Speed Converters
20 converters, all running in your browser.
Metres per second is the SI form and the one physics uses. Kilometres per hour and miles per hour are what road signs use, and the conversion between them (1.609) is the same as for the distances themselves. Feet per second persists in ballistics and in some engineering. Knots are nautical miles per hour, used in aviation and shipping for the same reason nautical miles are: they map directly onto latitude.
A useful mental anchor: 1 m/s is 3.6 km/h, and 60 mph is 88 feet per second. The second is worth remembering because it makes stopping distances intuitive — at 60 mph a vehicle covers nearly 90 feet in the second it takes to react.
All 20 converters
- Meters per Second to Kilometers per Hour Converter
- Kilometers per Hour to Meters per Second Converter
- Meters per Second to Miles per Hour Converter
- Miles per Hour to Meters per Second Converter
- Meters per Second to Knots Converter
- Knots to Meters per Second Converter
- Meters per Second to Feet per Second Converter
- Feet per Second to Meters per Second Converter
- Kilometers per Hour to Miles per Hour Converter
- Miles per Hour to Kilometers per Hour Converter
- Kilometers per Hour to Knots Converter
- Knots to Kilometers per Hour Converter
- Kilometers per Hour to Feet per Second Converter
- Feet per Second to Kilometers per Hour Converter
- Miles per Hour to Knots Converter
- Knots to Miles per Hour Converter
- Miles per Hour to Feet per Second Converter
- Feet per Second to Miles per Hour Converter
- Knots to Feet per Second Converter
- Feet per Second to Knots Converter
Conversion factors
| From | To | Multiply by |
|---|---|---|
| Meters per Second | Kilometers per Hour | 3.6 |
| Meters per Second | Miles per Hour | 2.2369363 |
| Meters per Second | Feet per Second | 3.2808399 |
| Meters per Second | Knots | 1.9438445 |
| Kilometers per Hour | Meters per Second | 0.27777778 |
| Kilometers per Hour | Miles per Hour | 0.62137119 |
| Kilometers per Hour | Feet per Second | 0.91134442 |
| Kilometers per Hour | Knots | 0.5399568 |
| Miles per Hour | Meters per Second | 0.44704 |
| Miles per Hour | Kilometers per Hour | 1.609344 |
| Miles per Hour | Feet per Second | 1.4666667 |
| Miles per Hour | Knots | 0.86897624 |
| Feet per Second | Meters per Second | 0.3048 |
| Feet per Second | Kilometers per Hour | 1.09728 |
| Feet per Second | Miles per Hour | 0.68181818 |
| Feet per Second | Knots | 0.5924838 |
| Knots | Meters per Second | 0.51444444 |
| Knots | Kilometers per Hour | 1.852 |
| Knots | Miles per Hour | 1.1507794 |
| Knots | Feet per Second | 1.6878099 |
Pace Against Speed
Runners work in pace — minutes per kilometre or per mile — which is the reciprocal of speed. That inversion is why the conversion feels awkward: a faster pace is a smaller number.
| Pace per km | Pace per mile | Speed |
|---|---|---|
| 4:00 | 6:26 | 15.0 km/h |
| 5:00 | 8:03 | 12.0 km/h |
| 6:00 | 9:39 | 10.0 km/h |
| 7:00 | 11:16 | 8.6 km/h |
Stopping Distances
Speed converts linearly; stopping distance does not. Braking distance rises with the square of speed, so doubling from 30 to 60 mph roughly quadruples the distance needed to stop.
At 60 mph a vehicle covers 88 feet every second, which means a one-second reaction adds nearly 90 feet before the brakes engage at all. That is the number worth carrying, and it is why tailgating at motorway speed leaves no usable margin.