Swimming a mile is a great endurance workout, and if you’re a triathlete, you’ll need to routinely swim a mile in training (if not more).
But, what is a good mile swim time? What is the average 1 mile swim time for men and what is the average 1 mile swim time for women?
In this guide, we will discuss how many laps a one mile swim race is, the average 1 mile swim times by age, sex, and level, and what constitutes a good mile swim time for women vs men by age.
Let’s jump in!
How Far Is a Mile Swim?
The length of many regulation competition swimming pools is 25 meters.
A full mile is 1609 meters, so a mile swim is about 64.5 lengths (one end to the other) or a little more than 32 complete laps (down and back).
If you are swimming in an Olympic-sized swimming pool that is 50 meters long, each length of the pool is 50 meters, so a 1 mile swim is 16 full laps down to the end and back.
What Is a Good Mile Swim Time?
There are various ways to assess what might be considered a good mile swim time.
For example, Swimming Level1Swimming Level – Swimming Calculator, Times and Standards. (n.d.). Swimminglevel.com. Retrieved November 13, 2023, from https://swimminglevel.com/is a site that has average swimming times based on age and ability for a number of distances, including a mile swim.
According to Swimming Level21 Mile Swim Times By Age And Ability – Swimming Level. (n.d.). Swimminglevel.com. https://swimminglevel.com/swimming-times/1-mile-times, a good mile swim time is 32:24. This is the average 1 mile swim time across all ages and sexes.
Looking at this data for the mile swim time by sex, the average mile swim time for men is 31:20 and the average mile swim time for women is 33:49.
What Is a Good Mile Swim Time for Men?
The table below shows the average 1 mile swim time for males by age, with the pace for every 100 yards.
| Age | Beginner | Novice | Intermediate | Advanced | Elite | |||||
| 1 Mile Swim Time | Pace per 100 yards | 1 Mile Swim Time | Pace per 100 yards | 1 Mile Swim Time | Pace per 100 yards | 1 Mile Swim Time | Pace per 100 yards | 1 Mile Swim Time | Pace per 100 yards | |
| 10 | 59:37 | 03:23.3 | 47:32 | 02:42.1 | 37:28 | 02:07.8 | 29:33 | 01:40.8 | 23:33 | 01:20.3 |
| 15 | 51:36 | 02:56.0 | 41:08 | 02:20.3 | 32:26 | 01:50.6 | 25:34 | 01:27.2 | 20:23 | 01:09.5 |
| 20 | 49:51 | 02:50.0 | 39:44 | 02:15.5 | 31:20 | 01:46.9 | 24:43 | 01:24.3 | 19:42 | 01:07.2 |
| 25 | 49:51 | 02:50.0 | 39:44 | 02:15.5 | 31:20 | 01:46.9 | 24:43 | 01:24.3 | 19:42 | 01:07.2 |
| 30 | 49:54 | 02:50.1 | 39:46 | 02:15.6 | 31:22 | 01:46.9 | 24:44 | 01:24.3 | 19:43 | 01:07.2 |
| 35 | 50:43 | 02:52.9 | 40:25 | 02:17.8 | 31:52 | 01:48.7 | 25:08 | 01:25.7 | 20:02 | 01:08.3 |
| 40 | 52:28 | 02:58.9 | 41:49 | 02:22.6 | 32:59 | 01:52.4 | 26:00 | 01:28.7 | 20:44 | 01:10.7 |
| 45 | 54:26 | 03:05.6 | 43:24 | 02:28.0 | 34:13 | 01:56.7 | 26:59 | 01:32.0 | 21:30 | 01:13.3 |
| 50 | 56:34 | 03:12.9 | 45:06 | 02:33.8 | 35:33 | 02:01.2 | 28:02 | 01:35.6 | 22:21 | 01:16.2 |
| 55 | 58:53 | 03:20.8 | 46:56 | 02:40.0 | 37:00 | 02:06.2 | 29:11 | 01:39.5 | 23:16 | 01:19.3 |
| 60 | 01:01:23 | 03:29.3 | 48:55 | 02:46.8 | 38:35 | 02:11.5 | 30:25 | 01:43.7 | 24:15 | 01:22.7 |
| 65 | 01:04:06 | 03:38.6 | 51:06 | 02:54.2 | 40:17 | 02:17.4 | 31:46 | 01:48.3 | 25:19 | 01:26.3 |
| 70 | 01:07:19 | 03:49.5 | 53:40 | 03:03.0 | 42:19 | 02:24.3 | 33:22 | 01:53.8 | 26:36 | 01:30.7 |
| 75 | 01:12:20 | 04:06.6 | 57:39 | 03:16.6 | 45:28 | 02:35.0 | 35:51 | 02:02.2 | 28:34 | 01:37.4 |
| 80 | 01:20:03 | 04:33.0 | 01:03:49 | 03:37.6 | 50:19 | 02:51.6 | 39:40 | 02:15.3 | 31:37 | 01:47.8 |
| 85 | 01:32:09 | 05:14.2 | 01:13:28 | 04:10.5 | 57:55 | 03:17.5 | 45:40 | 02:35.7 | 36:24 | 02:04.1 |
| 90 | 01:52:17 | 06:22.9 | 01:29:30 | 05:05.2 | 01:10:35 | 04:00.7 | 55:39 | 03:09.8 | 44:22 | 02:31.3 |
What Is a Good Mile Swim Time for Women?
The table below shows the average 1 mile swim time for females by age, with the pace for every 100 yards.
| Age | Beginner | Novice | Intermediate | Advanced | Elite | |||||
| 1 Mile Swim Time | Pace per 100 yards | 1 Mile Swim Time | Pace per 100 yards | 1 Mile Swim Time | Pace per 100 yards | 1 Mile Swim Time | Pace per 100 yards | 1 Mile Swim Time | Pace per 100 yards | |
| 10 | 59:52 | 03:24.1 | 48:54 | 02:46.8 | 39:34 | 02:14.9 | 32:01 | 01:49.2 | 26:09 | 01:20.3 |
| 15 | 53:44 | 03:03.2 | 43:54 | 02:29.7 | 35:31 | 02:01.1 | 28:44 | 01:38.0 | 23:29 | 01:09.5 |
| 20 | 51:09 | 02:54.4 | 41:47 | 02:22.5 | 33:49 | 01:55.3 | 27:21 | 01:33.3 | 22:21 | 01:07.2 |
| 25 | 51:09 | 02:54.4 | 41:47 | 02:22.5 | 33:49 | 01:55.3 | 27:21 | 01:33.3 | 22:21 | 01:07.2 |
| 30 | 51:09 | 02:54.4 | 41:47 | 02:22.5 | 33:49 | 01:55.3 | 27:21 | 01:33.3 | 22:21 | 01:07.2 |
| 35 | 51:29 | 02:55.6 | 42:04 | 02:23.4 | 34:02 | 01:56.0 | 27:32 | 01:33.9 | 22:30 | 01:08.3 |
| 40 | 52:33 | 02:59.2 | 42:56 | 02:26.4 | 34:44 | 01:58.4 | 28:06 | 01:35.8 | 22:58 | 01:10.7 |
| 45 | 54:26 | 03:05.6 | 44:28 | 02:31.6 | 35:59 | 02:02.7 | 29:07 | 01:39.3 | 23:47 | 01:13.3 |
| 50 | 57:14 | 03:15.2 | 46:46 | 02:39.4 | 37:50 | 02:09.0 | 30:37 | 01:44.4 | 25:00 | 01:16.2 |
| 55 | 01:00:32 | 03:26.4 | 49:27 | 02:48.6 | 40:01 | 02:16.4 | 32:22 | 01:50.4 | 26:27 | 01:19.3 |
| 60 | 01:04:13 | 03:39.0 | 52:28 | 02:58.9 | 42:27 | 02:24.7 | 34:20 | 01:57.1 | 28:03 | 01:22.7 |
| 65 | 01:08:23 | 03:53.2 | 55:52 | 03:10.5 | 45:12 | 02:34.1 | 36:34 | 02:04.7 | 29:53 | 01:26.3 |
| 70 | 01:13:08 | 04:09.4 | 59:44 | 03:23.7 | 48:20 | 02:44.8 | 39:07 | 02:13.4 | 31:57 | 01:30.7 |
| 75 | 01:18:35 | 04:28.0 | 01:04:12 | 03:38.9 | 51:57 | 02:57.1 | 42:02 | 02:23.3 | 34:20 | 01:37.4 |
| 80 | 01:25:04 | 04:50.1 | 01:09:30 | 03:57.0 | 56:14 | 03:11.7 | 45:30 | 02:35.1 | 37:10 | 01:47.8 |
| 85 | 01:35:47 | 05:26.6 | 01:18:15 | 04:26.8 | 01:03:19 | 03:35.9 | 51:14 | 02:54.7 | 41:51 | 02:04.1 |
| 90 | 01:55:27 | 06:33.6 | 01:34:19 | 05:21.6 | 01:16:18 | 04:20.2 | 01:01:44 | 03:30.5 | 50:26 | 02:31.3 |
Swimming Level describes the swimming abilities listed in the charts above both in terms of experience level, meaning how long the swimmer has been training in the sport, as well as percentile or how “good“ the swimmer is relative to other age-matched swimmers in the sport.
This means you can look at what constitutes a good mile swim time based on your experience level, meaning how long you have been swimming.
You can also look at how well you stack up to other swimmers by looking at where your one mile swim time falls for your age (in which swimming level category), and then comparing it to the average mile swim time or what that swimming level means as a relative percentile.
According to Swimming Level, beginner swimmers are those who have been swimming for about one month but less than six months. In terms of percentiles, a beginner swimmer’s average mile swim time is better than 5% of swimmers of the same age.
The novice swimmer has been swimming for at least six months but less than two years. The average mile swim time for the novice swimmer column is better than 20% of age-matched peers.
The intermediate level can be seen as the true average. This swimmer has at least two years of experience in the sport but less than five years.
The average mile swim time represented in the intermediate column is the average mile swim time for all swimmers of that age, as it is the 1 mile swim time of the 50th percentile.
Therefore, it can be said that any 1 mile swim time that is faster than the average 1 mile swim time found in the intermediate column for your age can be considered a good mile swim time for your age.
It means that you can swim a mile faster than the average swimmer of your age.
Advanced swimmers have at least five years of experience in the sport of swimming. The average mile swim time for the Advanced swimmer column is better than 80% of swimmers of the same age.
Finally, elite swimmers have been swimming competitively for at least five years and these times are better than “good mile swim times,“ as they are faster than 95% of age-matched peers.
What Is a Good Triathlon Swim Time?
Triathletes can assess what a good mile swim time is by looking at race results for their age group.
The Olympic distance triathlon has a 1500m swim, and the half Ironman triathlon (70.3 triathlons) has a 1.2 mile swim.
Looking at the average swim times for age groupers of your sex in these races can give you a ballpark idea of a good mile swim time for triathletes like yourself.
If you want to improve your mile swim time, try out some of our swimming workouts here.
