Miles to Kilometers
One mile is exactly 1.609344 kilometers. The factor has been fixed since 1959, when the international mile was defined as 1,760 yards of exactly 0.9144 meters each.
Files processed in your browser — never uploaded to our servers1 Miles (mi) = 1.609344 Kilometers (km)
1 Mile (mi) = 1.609344 Kilometer (km)
Quick Reference
| Mile (mi) | Kilometer (km) |
|---|---|
| 0.1 | 0.1609344 |
| 0.5 | 0.804672 |
| 1 | 1.609344 |
| 2 | 3.218688 |
| 5 | 8.04672 |
| 10 | 16.09344 |
| 20 | 32.18688 |
| 50 | 80.4672 |
Miles (mi) and Kilometers (km) explained
The statute mile is the road-distance unit of the United States and the United Kingdom, and it is the reason American and British road signs, car odometers and weather reports disagree with almost everyone else. It descends from the Roman mille passus, a thousand paces, later fixed at 1,760 yards by an Act of Parliament in 1593. The kilometer is a thousand meters and is the road unit of the rest of the world. Note that the nautical mile is a different unit entirely — 1,852 meters, defined as one minute of latitude — and is used in aviation and shipping, so a speed in knots does not convert with this factor.
Formula and worked examples
km = mi × 1.609344
Multiply miles by 1.609344. A 5-mile run is 8.05 km. The US interstate speed limit of 70 mph corresponds to 112.7 km/h. A marathon is defined in metric as 42.195 km, which works out to 26.219 miles — the famous "26.2" is a rounded figure, not the definition. To reverse the conversion, divide by 1.609344 instead.
Miles (mi) to Kilometers (km) conversion table
Common Miles (mi) values converted to Kilometers (km). Every figure uses the same conversion factor as the calculator above.
| Miles (mi) | Kilometers (km) |
|---|---|
| 1 | 1.609344 |
| 2 | 3.218688 |
| 5 | 8.04672 |
| 10 | 16.09344 |
| 20 | 32.18688 |
| 50 | 80.4672 |
| 100 | 160.9344 |
Where you will use this
Planning a road trip in the US
American road signs and rental car odometers read in miles. A 300-mile day is 482.8 km, which lets you judge fuel stops and driving hours against the distances you are used to at home.
Comparing running distances
US race listings use miles while training plans and track sessions are usually metric. A 10-mile race is 16.09 km, which sits between the 10K and the half marathon and needs pacing planned accordingly.
Reading a car or flight specification
Range figures for American cars and light aircraft are published in miles or statute miles. An electric car rated at 250 miles of range covers 402.3 km, which is the number to compare against a European rating measured on the WLTP cycle.
Pro tip
The Fibonacci sequence gives a surprisingly good mental shortcut: consecutive terms approximate the mile-to-kilometer ratio. 5 miles is about 8 km, 8 miles is about 13 km, 13 miles is about 21 km. Each is within half a percent of the true value, which is more than good enough for reading a road sign at speed.