Steps to Kilometres Calculator

How to use it

1. Choose Calculate: Steps to distance or Distance to steps.
2. Enter the Steps or the Distance, and choose the Unit.
3. Type your Step length in centimetres, or measure it as the help text explains.
4. Read Distance covered or Steps needed, and check the Steps and distance table for common step counts.
5. For an energy estimate, choose a Pace, enter your Body weight and the Time walked or run, and read Energy used (estimate).

How steps become a distance

Distance equals the number of steps multiplied by the step length. The step length is the distance covered by one step, which is half a stride. The calculator converts centimetres to metres and then to kilometres or miles.

To go the other way, the distance in metres is divided by the step length and rounded to a whole step. One mile is exactly 1,609.344 metres, so a mile at 70 centimetres is about 2,299 steps.

distance (m) = steps × step length (m)
steps = distance (m) ÷ step length (m)
1 mile = 1,609.344 m

Measuring your step length

The step length is personal. It depends on height, leg length, pace and the surface, and it grows as you walk faster. The most reliable figure is one you measure yourself: count 20 steps along a measured stretch and divide its length by 20.

Use the same pace for the measurement as for the walk or run you want to convert. Running steps are usually longer than walking steps, so measure a running step length while you run.

How the energy estimate works

The energy estimate uses the MET method. A MET is the energy cost of an activity compared with resting, and one MET is defined as 1 kcal per kilogram of body weight per hour. Energy in kilocalories is therefore the MET value × body weight in kg × hours.

The MET values come from the 2024 Adult Compendium of Physical Activities, which lists walking and running at stated speeds. Walking values are for a level, firm surface. This is an estimate, not medical advice: real energy use depends on the person, the slope, the wind and the effort.

kcal = MET × body weight (kg) × hours

For 70 kg, brisk walking (MET 4.8) for 60 minutes: 4.8 × 70 × 1 = 336 kcal

What this calculator does not include

• Energy on slopes, stairs, in wind or on sand, and energy for cycling, swimming or any activity other than walking and running.
• Changes in step length on hills, stairs or sand, unless you measure a step length for that ground.
• Step counters that estimate their own step length; their figures can differ from a measured distance.

Frequently asked questions