Grade Adjusted Pace Calculator

You're faster than you think. Convert your elevation gain into flat-equivalent speed.

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Planning a new adventure?

Now that you know your effortless pace, use our Route Planner to estimate how long your next mountain run will take.

What is Grade Adjusted Pace (GAP)?

Grade Adjusted Pace estimates the equivalent pace on flat land for a given effort on hilly terrain. Running uphill requires significantly more energy than running flat, so your "real" pace is faster than your watch shows.

Conversely, running downhill is usually faster / easier (energetically), until the grade becomes too steep (-20%), at which point braking forces increase the energy cost again.

How is this calculated?

We use the Minetti (2002) energy cost formula, a standard in sports science. We analyze your GPX file segment by segment, calculating the gradient for each step, and applying an "Energy Cost Factor" multiplier to the distance.