How Long Is a Quarter Mile? 1,320 Feet in Meters, Yards and Steps
A quarter mile is 1,320 feet. Here it is in meters, yards, kilometers and steps, how long it takes to walk or drive, and every drag-strip distance from 60 ft to 1,320 ft.
A quarter mile is exactly 1,320 feet. That’s 440 yards, 402.336 meters or about 0.4 kilometers. Walking at 3 mph it takes 5 minutes and roughly 530 to 630 steps; driving at 65 mph it passes in about 14 seconds. On a drag strip it’s the classic race distance, split into 60-foot, 330-foot, eighth-mile (660 ft) and 1,000-foot marks.
In this guide
The quarter mile turns up in two places: everyday directions, as in “the exit is a quarter mile ahead”, and drag racing, where it has been the standard distance since the late 1940s. Here are the exact numbers in every unit, how long it takes to walk, run or drive, and how a drag strip is divided up.
Last updated 13 October 2026.
A quarter mile in feet, meters, yards and km
A mile is 5,280 feet, so a quarter of it is 5,280 ÷ 4 = 1,320 feet. Since 1959 the international yard has been defined as exactly 0.9144 meters, which makes a mile exactly 1,609.344 meters and every figure below exact.
| Distance | Feet | Yards | Meters | Kilometers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 mile | 5,280 ft | 1,760 yd | 1,609.344 m | 1.609 km |
| 1/2 mile | 2,640 ft | 880 yd | 804.672 m | 0.805 km |
| 1/4 mileThe drag-racing distance | 1,320 ft | 440 yd | 402.336 m | 0.402 km |
| 1,000 feetTop Fuel and Funny Car finish | 1,000 ft | 333.3 yd | 304.8 m | 0.305 km |
| 1/8 mileAn eighth, or half a quarter | 660 ft | 220 yd | 201.168 m | 0.201 km |
| 60 feetThe launch split on a time slip | 60 ft | 20 yd | 18.288 m | 0.018 km |
In inches, a quarter mile is 15,840. For a sense of scale, it’s about four and a half American football fields laid end to end, measured goal line to goal line (300 feet each).
Is 400 meters a quarter mile?
Almost, but not quite. 400 meters is 1,312.3 feet, so it’s 7.7 feet (2.34 meters) short of a true quarter mile. One lap of a standard outdoor running track, measured in the inside lane, is 400 meters, which is why the 400 m is often called “the quarter”. Four laps make 1,600 meters, about 31 feet short of a mile.
The difference is small enough to ignore on a jog, but not in a timed race: at world-record 400 m pace (Wayde van Niekerk’s 43.03 seconds), the extra 2.34 meters would take about a quarter of a second.
How long does it take to walk, run or drive a quarter mile?
The quick formula: minutes = 15 ÷ your speed in mph. At a typical walking speed of 3 mph, that’s 5 minutes.
| How you’re moving | Speed | Time for 1/4 mile |
|---|---|---|
| Leisurely walk | 2.5 mph | 6 min |
| Average walk | 3 mph | 5 min |
| Brisk walk | 4 mph | 3 min 45 s |
| Easy jog10-minute mile | 6 mph | 2 min 30 s |
| Steady run7:30 mile | 8 mph | 1 min 53 s |
| World-record mile paceHicham El Guerrouj, 3:43.13 | 16.1 mph | 55.8 s |
| Car at a steady 30 mph | 30 mph | 30 s |
| Car at a steady 60 mph | 60 mph | 15 s |
| Family car from a standstillFlat out on a drag strip | about 90 mph at the line | 14.5 to 16 s |
| Quickest tested production carCorvette ZR1X, Car and Driver | 155 mph at the line | 8.9 s |
The drag-strip rows come from our guides to quarter-mile times and the fastest 0-60 cars. To estimate your own car’s time from its horsepower and weight, use the quarter mile calculator.
How many seconds is a quarter mile at road speeds?
At a steady speed, the time in seconds is 900 divided by your speed in mph, or 1,448 divided by your speed in km/h. That’s handy when a highway sign says your exit is a quarter mile ahead: at 65 mph you have about 14 seconds to get into the right lane.
| Speed | Time for 1/4 mile | Feet per second |
|---|---|---|
| 25 mph40 km/h | 36.0 s | 36.7 ft/s |
| 35 mph56 km/h | 25.7 s | 51.3 ft/s |
| 45 mph72 km/h | 20.0 s | 66.0 ft/s |
| 55 mph89 km/h | 16.4 s | 80.7 ft/s |
| 65 mph105 km/h | 13.8 s | 95.3 ft/s |
| 70 mph113 km/h | 12.9 s | 102.7 ft/s |
| 75 mph121 km/h | 12.0 s | 110.0 ft/s |
| 80 mph129 km/h | 11.3 s | 117.3 ft/s |
These are steady speeds. Accelerating from a stop takes longer: a family car driven flat out needs about 14.5 to 16 seconds, as the table above shows.
How many steps is a quarter mile?
Divide 1,320 feet by the length of one step. A typical adult walking step is about 2.1 to 2.5 feet, so a quarter mile takes roughly 530 to 630 steps. Taller people and faster walkers take longer steps and need fewer.
| Step length | Steps in 1/4 mile | Steps in 1 mile |
|---|---|---|
| 2.0 ft (61 cm)Short step | 660 | 2,640 |
| 2.2 ft (67 cm) | 600 | 2,400 |
| 2.5 ft (76 cm)Long walking step | 528 | 2,112 |
| 3.5 ft (107 cm)Running | 377 | 1,509 |
To find your own step length, count your steps over a known distance, such as one lap of a track, and divide. Most fitness trackers let you enter it for better distance estimates.
How far is a quarter mile? Everyday comparisons
A figure like 1,320 feet is hard to picture. These comparisons make it easier.
| Compared with | How many make a quarter mile |
|---|---|
| Manhattan street blocksNorth-south, about 264 ft each | about 5 |
| Chicago city blocksAbout 8 to a mile | about 2 |
| Laps of a 400 m running trackInside lane | 1 lap plus 2.34 m |
| American football fields300 ft, goal line to goal line | 4.4 |
| Empire State Building, to the roof1,250 ft | 1.06 |
| Empire State Building, to the tip1,454 ft with spire and antenna | 0.91 |
| 15-foot cars, bumper to bumperRoughly a compact sedan | 88 |
Stood on end, a quarter mile would rise 70 feet above the Empire State Building’s roof but stop 134 feet short of the tip of its antenna.
There’s even a horse named after it. The American Quarter Horse takes its name from the quarter-mile races it was bred to win. The American Quarter Horse Association credits First Moonflash with the 440-yard world record, set at Sunland Park, New Mexico, in 2009, and record tables list the time as 20.274 seconds. That’s an average of about 44 mph from a standing start, and still about 4 to 6 seconds behind a family car driven flat out. For how much power a horse actually makes, see how much horsepower a horse has.
Drag strip distances: 60 ft to 1,320 ft
Drag racing settled on the quarter mile almost by accident. At an early timed event at an airfield in Goleta, California, in 1949, an organizer who was asked about the distance picked a quarter mile on the spot, and it stuck. Timing lights along the strip now split each run into checkpoints, and each one tells you something different about the car.
| Mark | Feet | Meters | What it tells you |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60 ft | 60 | 18.3 | How good the launch was |
| 330 ft | 330 | 100.6 | Pull through first gear and the first shift |
| 1/8 mile | 660 | 201.2 | Finish line at eighth-mile tracks |
| 1,000 ft | 1,000 | 304.8 | Finish for NHRA Top Fuel and Funny Car |
| 1/4 mile | 1,320 | 402.3 | Finish line: ET and trap speed |
The 1,000-foot finish dates from July 2008, when the NHRA shortened races for its quickest classes after Scott Kalitta’s fatal crash, giving cars running at around 300 mph more room to stop. Everything else, from street cars to Pro Stock, still runs the full quarter or the eighth. Our Top Fuel dragster guide has the current records.
Racing on an eighth-mile track? The 1/8 to 1/4 mile calculator converts your eighth-mile ET and speed into a quarter-mile estimate.
How quick is your quarter?
Estimate your car’s quarter-mile ET and trap speed from horsepower and weight, or work back from a time slip.
Quarter Mile CalculatorKey takeaways
- A quarter mile is exactly 1,320 feet, 440 yards or 402.336 meters.
- 400 meters is 2.34 meters (7.7 feet) short of a quarter mile.
- Walking takes about 5 minutes at 3 mph and roughly 530 to 630 steps.
- An eighth mile is 660 feet; NHRA’s fastest classes finish at 1,000 feet.
- A family car covers it from a standstill in about 14.5 to 16 seconds.
- At a steady 65 mph a quarter mile takes about 14 seconds: divide 900 by your speed in mph.
FAQ
How many feet are in a quarter mile?
1,320 feet. A mile is 5,280 feet, and a quarter of that is 1,320.
How many yards is a quarter mile?
440 yards. A mile is 1,760 yards, so a quarter mile is 440.
How many meters is a quarter mile?
402.336 meters exactly, or about 0.4 kilometers.
Is 400 meters a quarter mile?
Not exactly. 400 meters is 1,312.3 feet, which is 7.7 feet (2.34 meters) short of a quarter mile. It’s close enough that one lap of a 400 m track is often called a quarter mile.
How long does it take to walk a quarter mile?
About 5 minutes at an average walking speed of 3 mph, or 3 minutes 45 seconds at a brisk 4 mph.
How many steps are in a quarter mile?
Roughly 530 to 630 steps for a typical adult walking step of 2.1 to 2.5 feet, and fewer when running.
How long is an eighth of a mile?
660 feet, or 201.168 meters. Many local drag strips race over an eighth mile instead of a quarter.
How long does it take to drive a quarter mile?
15 seconds at a steady 60 mph, 13.8 seconds at 65 mph and 12.9 seconds at 70 mph: divide 900 by your speed in mph. From a standstill, a family car driven flat out takes about 14.5 to 16 seconds.
How many blocks is a quarter mile?
About 5 north-south blocks in Manhattan, where there are roughly 20 to a mile, or about 2 blocks in Chicago, where a mile is roughly eight blocks. Block lengths vary from city to city.
Why is drag racing a quarter mile?
The distance was picked, almost on the spot, at an early timed event at an airfield in Goleta, California, in 1949, and it became the standard. Since 2008 NHRA’s quickest classes race 1,000 feet for safety.
Sources
- SEMA: NHRA shortens Top Fuel and Funny Car races to 1,000 feet (2008)
- Jalopnik: why drag races are a quarter mile
- Wikipedia: the international mile (1,609.344 m)
- StreetEasy: how many NYC blocks are in a mile
- WTTW: how Chicago’s street grid works
- Empire State Building: facts and figures (1,250 ft roof, 1,454 ft tip)
- AQHA: First Moonflash’s 440-yard world record, Horse Racing Sense: Quarter Horse record times and Wikipedia: American Quarter Horse
- 0-60calc: quarter-mile times explained and fastest 0-60 cars, with their own sources
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