Walking Time Calculator

Enter a starting address and a destination, and the calculator runs both through OpenStreetMap's geocoder (Nominatim) to find their coordinates, then asks the OSRM foot-routing engine to find the shortest walking route between them along actual paths and pavements. You get the distance in metres or kilometres, an estimated walking time, and a map showing the route in blue.

Pick a walking pace before you calculate. Slow (3 mph / 4.8 km/h) is comfortable strolling. Normal (3.5 mph / 5.6 km/h) is the OS Naismith's-Rule baseline used by most fitness trackers. Brisk (4 mph / 6.4 km/h) is purposeful walking with a destination in mind. Fast (4.5 mph / 7.2 km/h) is speed walking, the upper end of what most people sustain over distance. Each step up the pace knocks 10-15% off the time.

The 'normal' 5 km/h figure is an average for a fit adult on flat, uncrowded ground with no breaks. Real walks deviate. Hills slow you down (Naismith's Rule adds about a minute per 10 m of ascent on top of the flat-ground time). Crowded city pavements break your stride. Carrying shopping, pushing a buggy, or walking with a dog all lower pace. The route engine returns the shortest path geometrically, but the time estimate assumes you walk it without stopping.

For routes you do regularly (the school run, walk to the station, dog loop in the park) you'll quickly learn whether you fall above or below the calculator's prediction. Most people overestimate their walking pace by 10-20%, then under-allocate time and arrive flustered. A useful rule of thumb: if you really need to be somewhere at a specific minute, add 10% to the calculator's estimate.

Comparing two routes when one looks shorter on the map but goes uphill or through busy areas. Working out whether walking to the next station saves enough on a fare to be worth it. Checking whether a hotel really is '5 minutes from the venue' as advertised (often it isn't). Time-boxing dog walks, school runs, or the nip-to-the-shop journey when you're trying to fit one into a tight slot.

Walking distance also affects the property market: 'within 10 minutes' walk of a station is a real premium in commuter areas, with research from estate-agent indices regularly putting that at a 5-10% price uplift. For longer-form planning the [Distance Calculator](/distance-calculator) gives you straight-line distances between cities, useful when walking isn't really an option but you want to feel the scale of the journey.