Mile World Record: Men's and Women's Fastest Times
Current mile world records, the 4-minute barrier history, and how Josh Kerr's 3:42.66 in London ended Hicham El Guerrouj's 27-year reign.
· 9 min read · Rankings & Data
On a May afternoon in Oxford in 1954, Roger Bannister became the first man to run a mile in under four minutes. The mile world record has moved a long way since then - and the outdoor mark now belongs to Josh Kerr, who ran 3:42.66 at the London Diamond League on 18 July 2026.
Kerr broke Hicham El Guerrouj's legendary 3:43.13, set in Rome in 1999, by 0.47 seconds. The record had stood for 27 years. Kerr became the first man to break 3:43 and the seventh Briton to hold the outdoor mile world record. Read the full race report for splits and reaction.
Current mile world records
| Category | Time | Athlete | Date | Location | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Men (outdoor) | 3:42.66 | Josh Kerr | 18 Jul 2026 | London | | Men (indoor) | 3:45.14 | Jakob Ingebrigtsen | 13 Feb 2025 | Liévin | | Women (outdoor) | 4:07.64 | Faith Kipyegon | 21 Jul 2023 | Monaco | | Women (indoor) | 4:13.31 | Genzebe Dibaba | 17 Feb 2016 | Stockholm |
Outdoor and indoor records are separate categories. Wind, banked tracks, and pacing all affect which mark gets the headlines.
The 4-minute mile: how the barrier fell
| Year | Time | Athlete | Notes | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1954 | 3:59.4 | Roger Bannister | First sub-4:00 | | 1962 | 3:54.1 | Peter Snell | New Zealand dominance | | 1975 | 3:49.4 | Filbert Bayi | Tanzania | | 1981 | 3:46.32 | Sebastian Coe | British record era | | 1999 | 3:43.13 | Hicham El Guerrouj | Previous outdoor WR | | 2026 | 3:42.66 | Josh Kerr | Current outdoor WR |
Before Bannister, many experts believed the four-minute mile was physiologically impossible. Within six weeks of his 3:59.4, John Landy also broke four minutes. Once the barrier fell psychologically, the record dropped quickly through the 1960s and 1970s.
El Guerrouj's 3:43.13 stood for 27 years before Kerr broke it in London. El Guerrouj also holds the 1500m world record at 3:26.00 from 1998.
Men's all-time mile list (updated)
Kerr's 3:42.66 makes him the fastest man ever over the distance. The top of the all-time list now reads:
| Rank | Time | Athlete | Year | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | 3:42.66 | Josh Kerr | 2026 | | 2 | 3:43.13 | Hicham El Guerrouj | 1999 | | 3 | 3:43.40 | Hicham El Guerrouj | 1998 | | 4 | 3:43.73 | Jakob Ingebrigtsen | 2023 | | 5 | 3:43.83 | Yared Nuguse | 2024 |
Women's mile progression
Faith Kipyegon's 4:07.64 from the Monaco Diamond League on 21 July 2023 is the outdoor standard. She broke Sifan Hassan's previous mark of 4:12.33, set in 2019 at the same meeting. Kipyegon also ran 4:07.97 earlier in 2023, making the women's mile one of the most competitive distances in the sport.
The women's record has fallen multiple times since 2015 as depth and pacing operations improved. Sub-4:10 is now an elite club, not a once-in-a-generation feat.
What mile record pace means for road runners
Kerr's 3:42.66 equals roughly 2:18 per km - a pace most marathoners never touch even for a single kilometre in a race. The mile sits at the sharp end of middle-distance running, where lactate tolerance and tactical positioning matter as much as raw speed.
Recreational runners benefit from the mile differently: short track or road mile races are excellent fitness tests, and mile-paced intervals (roughly 3 to 5 minutes hard) build speed endurance that transfers to 5K and 10K racing.
Use the pace calculator to convert any mile time to min/km. For longer goals, see the 5K world record and half marathon pace chart.
Training toward a faster mile (at any level)
You do not need a track to improve. A 5K training plan with one weekly interval session - 4 to 6 repeats of 3 to 5 minutes at hard effort - builds the same energy systems elites use, scaled to your fitness.
Find races: Browse 5K races and 10K races, or search races in Eugene where several recent record attempts have been staged.