Marathon
Pace your Paris Marathon
Paris Marathon Pace Calculator — build marathon splits from your goal time and the real course elevation.
Est. Sun, Apr 11, 2027
Course profile
- Distance
- 42.2km
- Gain
- ↑ 100m
- Loss
- ↓ 80m
- Steepest km
- +1.1%
Set a goal time to build your splits
- Splits shaped by the course's climbs and descents
- Even, negative, or positive split strategies
- Send the plan straight to your watch
Course notes
How to pace the Paris Marathon
Paris starts on the Champs-Élysées with around 55,000 runners, so the first 5–10 km are genuinely congested. Expect to lose 30–60 seconds against goal pace early and do not fight the crowd to get it back.
The course has cobbled sections around the Louvre and Rue de Rivoli, and two short tunnel stretches along the Seine that dip and then climb back out, with GPS dropping through them. It is gently rolling overall rather than flat.
Once the field thins after 10 km, settle onto goal pace. Keep something in reserve for the Bois de Boulogne in the final 5 km, where the course has a few last rises before the finish near the Arc de Triomphe.
Set a goal finish time above and the calculator builds a split plan for this course, grade-adjusted from its elevation profile. New to pacing? Read the pacing strategy guide.
FAQ
Paris Marathon pacing FAQ
Is the Paris Marathon flat?
Paris is gently rolling rather than flat, with cobbled sections and two short tunnel climbs along the Seine. The bigger pacing factor is the congested first 10 km.
How crowded is the start of the Paris Marathon?
Very. With around 55,000 entrants the first 5–10 km are slow and bunched. Plan to lose 30–60 seconds against goal pace early and make it up gradually once the field spreads out.
How do I calculate marathon splits?
Choose a marathon course or distance, enter your goal finish time, select kilometers or miles, and generate a split-by-split pacing plan.
Should marathon pace change on hills?
A hill-adjusted plan usually slows the target pace on climbs and allows faster splits on descents so the effort stays more even across the course.
What is an elevation-adjusted pace plan?
An elevation-adjusted pace plan uses the course profile to distribute effort by split instead of assuming the same pace for every kilometer or mile. The goal is to slow slightly on climbs, recover time on descents, and still hit your target finish time.
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