Kilometres to Miles: Formula, Conversion Table and Mental Tricks
1 kilometre = 0.621371 miles. Learn the formula, a simple Fibonacci trick for quick mental conversion, and a full km to miles table for runners, drivers, and travellers.
Kilometres and miles are both units of distance but belong to different measurement systems. The US, UK (for roads), Myanmar, and Liberia use miles; the rest of the world uses kilometres. The conversion comes up constantly in travel, running, and navigation.
The Exact Formula
1 kilometre = 0.621371192 miles (exact) 1 mile = 1.609344 kilometres (exact, by international definition since 1959)
The Fibonacci Trick for Mental Conversion
This is one of the most elegant mathematical coincidences: the ratio of consecutive Fibonacci numbers (1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89...) approximates the mile-to-km conversion ratio (1.618... vs 1.609...).
- 5 miles ≈ 8 km (actual 8.047)
- 8 miles ≈ 13 km (actual 12.87)
- 13 miles ≈ 21 km (actual 20.92)
- 21 miles ≈ 34 km (actual 33.80)
Quick Reference Table
- 1 km = 0.62 miles
- 5 km = 3.11 miles
- 10 km = 6.21 miles
- 21.1 km = 13.1 miles (half marathon)
- 42.2 km = 26.2 miles (marathon)
- 100 km = 62.1 miles
Running Pace Conversion
Running pace also needs conversion. If you run at 5:30 min/km (minutes per kilometre): Pace per mile = pace per km × 1.60934 = 5:30 × 1.609 ≈ 8:51 min/mile.
Convert distances with our Length Converter tool.