Type “is X a good pace” into a search box and you’ll get forum answers ranging from encouraging to absurd. The honest answer needs three anchors: who is running, how far, and compared to what population. Here’s each, with real numbers.

The level table

Rough finish times and paces by level — built to be honest, not flattering. “Beginner” means the first year of consistent running; “intermediate” is a regular runner with a couple of seasons; “advanced” is a trained club runner; “competitive” is the sharp end of a typical race field — talented amateurs, not professionals.

Level	5K	10K	Half marathon	Marathon
Beginner	32–40 min 6:24–8:00/km	65–85 min 6:30–8:30/km	2:20–3:00 6:38–8:32/km	4:45–6:30 6:45–9:15/km
Intermediate	25–32 min 5:00–6:24/km	52–65 min 5:12–6:30/km	1:55–2:20 5:27–6:38/km	4:00–4:45 5:41–6:45/km
Advanced	20–25 min 4:00–5:00/km	42–52 min 4:12–5:12/km	1:35–1:55 4:30–5:27/km	3:20–4:00 4:44–5:41/km
Competitive	16–20 min 3:12–4:00/km	34–42 min 3:24–4:12/km	1:15–1:35 3:33–4:30/km	2:40–3:20 3:48–4:44/km

Above the competitive row sit national-class and elite runners — marathon times under 2:40 for men and under 3:00 for women — and then the world-class outliers the records belong to. Two things to notice: the bands overlap (a fast beginner beats a slow advanced runner), and each level roughly doubles the gap to the next — consistent improvement is what moves you between rows, not talent labels.

What the middle of the field looks like

Population medians are humbling in both directions:

• 5K: mass-participation events center around 33–38 minutes; fields of regulars (weekly timed runs) nearer 28–32.
• 10K: typical race medians land around 55–65 minutes.
• Half marathon: medians around 2:05–2:20.
• Marathon: medians around 4:15–4:45, depending heavily on the race — small local marathons skew faster, big city majors slower.

Being average in a race field is already well ahead of the general population, most of whom cannot run 5K continuously. Context matters.

Why “good” shifts more than people admit

• Age: performance declines roughly 0.5–1% per year past the mid-30s — a 55-year-old’s 45:00 10K is a stronger relative performance than a 25-year-old’s 40:00 (age-grading tables exist precisely to score this).
• Sex: physiological differences put women’s equivalent performances ~10–12% slower on average; the women’s world records map almost exactly onto the men’s a percentage step down.
• Course and conditions: a hilly 10K in 28°C is worth far more than a flat one in 10°C; wind and altitude move times by several percent.
• Training history: a 50:00 10K in your sixth month of running is not the same performance as a 50:00 after six years.

The only comparison that pays

The useful question isn’t “is my pace good?” but “is my pace improving, and what would it take to move it?” A 6:00/km runner who gets to 5:30 has done something measurably harder than most fast-twitch teenagers ever do. For that, two numbers suffice: your recent race result — which the zones tab turns into training paces — and a prediction of what consistent training could yield, which the Riegel math provides honestly, window included.

A good pace is the one that’s faster than the last version of you. Everything else is calibration.

Frequently asked questions

Is 6:00/km a good pace?

For a newer or returning runner it's a perfectly good training pace — it corresponds to a 30:00 5K and a 60:00 10K, right around the middle of a typical recreational field. For an experienced club runner it's an easy-day jog. Pace quality is distance- and runner-relative; the same 6:00/km is a race effort for one person and a recovery shuffle for another.

What's an average 5K time?

Across mass-participation 5Ks — which include plenty of first-timers, walkers and charity runners — the middle of the field lands around 33–38 minutes. Among regular runners (think weekly parkrun fields) the median is closer to 28–32 minutes. Big-city races skew slower because the fields skew less competitive.

Is a sub-4-hour marathon good?

Yes — unambiguously. Sub-4:00 requires holding ~5:41/km for 42.2 km after months of structured mileage; it puts a runner in roughly the top quarter to third of most marathon fields. Sub-3:30 is club-serious territory; sub-3:00 is a small-percentage achievement anywhere.

Should I compare my pace to other people's?

Comparison is fine for calibration — it tells you what training does at each level. It's useless as a scoreboard: age, sex, years of training, course profile and even weather move times more than most 'am I good' debates admit. The only comparison that predicts improvement is against your own recent results, which is exactly what equivalent-performance math is for.