How many PACER laps should I get for my age?
FitnessGram sets a minimum number of 20 m PACER laps for each age. It is 17 at age 10, 20 at 11 and 23 at 12 for both sexes. From 13 it splits: 29 laps for boys and 25 for girls at 13, 47 and 32 at 16, and 54 and 38 over 17. Reaching that number puts you in the Healthy Fitness Zone.
The table
These are the FitnessGram Healthy Fitness Zone minimums for the 20 m PACER. A lap is one 20 m length. The last two columns turn each minimum into the level it falls in and the speed of that level, so you can see what the number means on the course.
| Age | Boys | Girls | Boys: where it falls | Girls: where it falls |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | 17 | 17 | level 3, lap 2 (9.5 km/h) | level 3, lap 2 |
| 11 | 20 | 20 | level 3, lap 5 (9.5 km/h) | level 3, lap 5 |
| 12 | 23 | 23 | end of level 3 (9.5 km/h) | end of level 3 |
| 13 | 29 | 25 | level 4, lap 6 (10.0 km/h) | level 4, lap 2 |
| 14 | 36 | 27 | level 5, lap 4 (10.5 km/h) | level 4, lap 4 |
| 15 | 42 | 30 | level 6, lap 1 (11.0 km/h) | level 4, lap 7 |
| 16 | 47 | 32 | level 6, lap 6 (11.0 km/h) | end of level 4 (10.0 km/h) |
| 17 | 50 | 35 | level 6, lap 9 (11.0 km/h) | level 5, lap 3 (10.5 km/h) |
| Over 17 | 54 | 38 | level 7, lap 3 (11.5 km/h) | level 5, lap 6 (10.5 km/h) |
Read the table with your own age and sex. A 14-year-old girl compares her lap count with 27, not with the boys’ 36.
How to read your row
Find your age, take the number for your sex, and compare it with your total laps. At or above the number, you are in the Healthy Fitness Zone. Below it, you are under the minimum FitnessGram has set for your age.
Take a 15-year-old boy who stops at lap 44. The minimum is 42, so he is in the zone. Lap 44 is three laps into level 6, which means 11.0 km/h was the speed he was holding when he stopped.
Why the numbers rise with age
The minimum climbs every year for boys, from 17 at age 10 to 54 over 17. For girls it rises more slowly, from 17 to 38. Up to age 12 the two are equal. The split starts at 13, when the boys’ number grows by 3 to 7 laps a year and the girls’ by 2 or 3.
The page does not add a gap of its own. The difference is the one written into the FitnessGram standards.
Laps and levels
A lap count and a level are the same information. The beep test levels have 7, 8, 8, 9, 9, 10, 10, 11 laps and so on, so a total of 23 is the end of level 3 and 41 is the end of level 5. The full lap list is on the page about how many laps are in each level.
What the table does not cover
The figures apply to the 20 m course. A PACER run on 15 m uses a different conversion table and cannot be read against these numbers. FitnessGram publishes no band above the minimum, so there is no official standard for a “good” or “excellent” lap count. For how to read a score above the minimum, see what is a good PACER score.
How the test itself is counted, including the two misses that end it, is in how the PACER test is scored.
Go further
Frequently asked questions
How many PACER laps should a 13-year-old get?
The Healthy Fitness Zone minimum at 13 is 29 laps for a boy and 25 for a girl. A boy at 29 laps is six laps into level 4 at 10.0 km/h. A girl at 25 is two laps into level 4.
How many PACER laps should a 15-year-old get?
42 laps for a boy and 30 for a girl. In levels, that is one lap into level 6 at 11.0 km/h for a boy, and seven laps into level 4 at 10.0 km/h for a girl.
What if I am under 10?
The table here starts at age 10, because that is where the standards in our source begin. A younger child can still run the test and count laps, but there is no minimum on this page to compare with.
Sources
- FitnessGram Healthy Fitness Zone standards, The Cooper Institute — 20 m PACER lap minimums by age and sex, checked 2026-09-25
- PACER 20 m speed table, Topend Sports — laps per level, 8.0 km/h version