How Long Is a Marathon? 42.195 km / 26.2 Miles Exact
A marathon is 42.195 km (26.2188 miles, or 26 miles 385 yards). Exact conversions, why it is 26.2, finish-time tables, and where to race.
· 8 min read · Rankings & Data
A marathon is 42.195 kilometres, or 26.2188 miles. In imperial units that is 26 miles and 385 yards. Race websites round it to 26.2 miles or 42.2K.
If you searched how long is a marathon, how many km is a marathon, or how far is a marathon, that is the whole answer. Everything below is the conversion, the reason it is not a round number, and what the distance feels like on the clock.
| Fact | Figure | | --- | --- | | Official distance | 42.195 km / 26.2188 miles | | Common rounding | 42.2 km / 26.2 miles | | Metres | 42,195 m | | Typical finish | about 4:30 | | World Athletics standard since | 1921 |
Marathon distance in km, miles and metres
| Unit | Exact | Common rounding | | --- | --- | --- | | Kilometres | 42.195 km | 42.2 km | | Miles | 26.2188 mi | 26.2 miles | | Metres | 42,195 m | 42,200 m | | Yards | 46,145 yd | 26 miles + 385 yards |
Certified courses are not allowed to be *short*. Measurers add a tiny buffer (up to 0.1%) so a GPS watch that reads 42.3 km on race day is normal. The course is still a marathon.
A half marathon is exactly half of that: 21.0975 km / 13.1094 miles. Full conversion: half marathon distance.
How long does a marathon take
Distance is fixed. Time is not.
Most recreational finishers land around 4 hours 30 minutes. Men average closer to 4:21, women closer to 4:48. Age-group breakdowns live on average marathon time. What counts as a strong result for *you* is on good marathon time.
| Finish time | Pace per km | Pace per mile | | --- | --- | --- | | 3:00 | 4:16/km | 6:52/mi | | 3:30 | 4:59/km | 8:01/mi | | 4:00 | 5:41/km | 9:09/mi | | 4:30 | 6:24/km | 10:18/mi | | 5:00 | 7:07/km | 11:27/mi | | 5:30 | 7:49/km | 12:35/mi |
The elite end of the same 42.195 km is about two hours. For every split from 3:00 to 5:30, use the marathon pace chart or the marathon pace calculator.
Why is a marathon 26.2 miles
The first modern Olympic marathon (Athens 1896) was about 40 km, not 42.195. Distances bounced around until the 1908 London Games, when the course ran 26 miles from Windsor Castle plus 385 yards so the finish sat in front of the royal box.
World Athletics (then the IAAF) locked that London length as the global standard in 1921. The short version of the royal story, and the Greek legend that started the event, is in why the marathon is 26.2 miles.
| Olympic year | Approx. distance | | --- | --- | | 1896 Athens | 40 km | | 1908 London | 42.195 km | | 1912 Stockholm | 40.2 km | | 1920 Antwerp | 42.75 km | | 1924 onward | 42.195 km |
Half marathon vs marathon distance
| Race | Exact distance | Common shorthand | | --- | --- | --- | | Half marathon | 21.0975 km / 13.1094 mi | 21.1K / 13.1 | | Marathon | 42.195 km / 26.2188 mi | 42.2K / 26.2 |
A 2:00 half and a 4:00 marathon share the same 5:41/km even pace on a flat course. Almost nobody holds half-marathon pace for the full 42.195 km without marathon-specific training. Build that with a marathon training plan, or start from a recent race using the race predictor.
Find races: Browse marathons worldwide. London is where 26.2 became the standard, if you want the origin story on the roads: races in London.
How long is a marathon FAQs
How long is a marathon in miles?
26.2188 miles, usually written as 26.2 miles. The official imperial wording is 26 miles and 385 yards.
How long is a marathon in km?
42.195 km. Race websites often say 42.2K.
How long is a marathon in metres?
42,195 metres.
How far is a marathon?
The same three numbers: 42.195 km, 26.2188 miles, 42,195 metres. That is the World Athletics standard used by Boston, London, Berlin, Tokyo, and every certified marathon.
How long does a marathon take?
Most finishers are around 4:30. Fast club runners chase 3:00 to 3:30. Walking and run-walk finishes often sit between 5:00 and 6:30, depending on the cutoff. See average marathon time.
Why is a marathon 26.2 miles, not 26 or 40 km?
The 1908 London Olympic course happened to be 26 miles 385 yards. That length was standardised in 1921. How the marathon began covers the royal finish and the Pheidippides legend.