Average Speed Examples in Physics

Start with the recap, study the fully worked examples, then use the practice problems to check your understanding of Average Speed.

This page combines explanation, solved examples, and follow-up practice so you can move from recognition to confident problem-solving in Physics.

Concept Recap

Average speed is the total distance traveled divided by the total time taken.

It tells you how fast the trip was overall, not how fast you moved at each moment.

Read the full concept explanation →

How to Use These Examples

Read the first worked example with the solution open so the structure is clear.
Try the practice problems before revealing each solution.
Use the related concepts and background knowledge badges if you feel stuck.

What to Focus On

Core idea: Average Speed starts by naming what changes, over what time interval, and whether direction matters.

Common stuck point: Students often know a formula related to average speed but skip the recognition step: Am I describing motion over time with position, distance, direction, speed, velocity, or acceleration clearly separated? That leads to a correct-looking substitution attached to the wrong physical model.

Sense of Study hint: Ask: Am I describing motion over time with position, distance, direction, speed, velocity, or acceleration clearly separated?

Worked Examples

Example 1

medium

A car travels

120\,\text{km}

60\,\text{km/h}

and another

120\,\text{km}

40\,\text{km/h}

. Find the average speed for the whole trip.

Answer

\text{avg speed} = 48 \text{ km/h}

First step

Time for each leg:

t_1 = 120/60 = 2\,\text{h}

t_2 = 120/40 = 3\,\text{h}

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Example 2

medium

A car drives half the time at

40\,\text{km/h}

and half the time at

80\,\text{km/h}

. Find the average speed.

Example 3

hard

A driver wants to average

80\,\text{km/h}

over

160\,\text{km}

. She covers the first

80\,\text{km}

40\,\text{km/h}

. What constant speed must she drive for the second

80\,\text{km}

Example 4

challenge

A car must average

60\,\text{km/h}

over a

90\,\text{km}

trip. Bad traffic forces

30\,\text{km}

20\,\text{km/h}

. Find the required speed for the remaining

60\,\text{km}

Practice Problems

Try these problems on your own first, then open the solution to compare your method.

Example 1

easy

A car covers

200

m in

10

s. Find the average speed.

Example 2

easy

A trip is

60

km in

1.5

h. Average speed in km/h?

Example 3

easy

A runner covers

5

km in

25

min. Average speed in km/min?

Example 4

easy

Does average speed use distance or displacement?

Example 5

easy

A walker goes

30

m in

15

s. Average speed?

Example 6

easy

A cyclist's total distance is

24

km over

2

h. Average speed?

Example 7

easy

A round trip covers

400

m of path in

100

s but ends at the start. Average speed?

Example 8

easy

A car's odometer rises by

90

km during a

1.5

h drive. Average speed?

Example 9

medium

A car drives

40

km at

80

km/h then

40

km at

40

km/h. Find the average speed.

Example 10

medium

A bus travels

30

min at

60

km/h and

30

min at

20

km/h. Average speed?

Example 11

medium

A jogger runs

3

km in

20

min. Average speed in km/h?

Example 12

medium

A car covers three

20

km legs at

40

60

120

km/h. Find the average speed.

Example 13

medium

A train goes

100

km at

50

km/h, stops

30

min, then

100

km at

100

km/h. Average speed including the stop?

Example 14

medium

A drone flies

12

m east,

5

m north (path), total time

2

s. Find the average speed.

Example 15

challenge

A car travels half the distance at

30

km/h and the other half at

70

km/h. Find the average speed.

Example 16

challenge

A car averages

60

km/h over a whole trip. The first half-distance was at

40

km/h. Find the speed for the second half-distance.

Example 17

challenge

A commuter drives to work at

30

km/h and back the same route at

60

km/h. What single constant speed gives the same total time?

Example 18

medium

A car drives

50

km at

100

km/h then

50

km at

25

km/h. Find the average speed.

Example 19

medium

A trip covers

36

km in

40

min. Average speed in km/h?

Example 20

medium

A bus runs

20

min at

30

km/h and

20

min at

90

km/h. Average speed?

Example 21

easy

A runner covers

150\,\text{m}

30\,\text{s}

. Find the average speed.

Example 22

easy

A truck drives

180\,\text{km}

3\,\text{h}

. Find its average speed.

Example 23

easy

Convert

72\,\text{km/h}

to m/s.

Example 24

easy

A train travels

240\,\text{km}

4\,\text{h}

. What is its average speed?

Example 25

easy

A cyclist's average speed is

15\,\text{km/h}

over

2\,\text{h}

. How far did she ride?

Example 26

easy

A swimmer averages

1.2\,\text{m/s}

over

300\,\text{m}

. Find the time.

Example 27

easy

A train covers

300\,\text{m}

20\,\text{s}

. Find the average speed.

Example 28

medium

A bus drives

40\,\text{min}

30\,\text{km/h}

, then

20\,\text{min}

60\,\text{km/h}

. Find the average speed.

Example 29

medium

A car drives

150\,\text{km}

2.5\,\text{h}

then stops for

30\,\text{min}

. Find the average speed for the entire trip.

Example 30

medium

A car drives

60\,\text{km}

30\,\text{km/h}

60\,\text{km}

60\,\text{km/h}

, and

60\,\text{km}

90\,\text{km/h}

. Find the average speed.

Example 31

medium

A jogger runs

5\,\text{km}

25\,\text{min}

. Find her average speed in km/h.

Example 32

medium

A delivery van's odometer reads

58,420\,\text{km}

at 9 AM and

58,700\,\text{km}

at 1 PM. Find the average speed.

Example 33

medium

A runner does

400\,\text{m}

80\,\text{s}

and then walks

200\,\text{m}

120\,\text{s}

. Find the average speed for both segments together.

Example 34

medium

A car drives

40\,\text{km}

50\,\text{km/h}

, idles

30\,\text{min}

in traffic, then drives

60\,\text{km}

60\,\text{km/h}

. Find the average speed.

Example 35

medium

A car covers

80\,\text{km}

1\,\text{h}

and the next

80\,\text{km}

2\,\text{h}

. Find the average speed.

Example 36

hard

A car drives

50\,\text{km}

25\,\text{km/h}

then

50\,\text{km}

50\,\text{km/h}

. Find the average speed.

Example 37

hard

A driver wants to average

60\,\text{km/h}

over a

120\,\text{km}

trip. The first

60\,\text{km}

is at

40\,\text{km/h}

. Find the required speed for the rest.

Example 38

hard

A jet flies from city A to city B at

600\,\text{km/h}

and returns at

400\,\text{km/h}

. Find the average speed for the round trip.

Example 39

hard

A cyclist covers

20\,\text{km}

10\,\text{km/h}

20\,\text{km}

20\,\text{km/h}

, and

20\,\text{km}

30\,\text{km/h}

. Find the average speed.

Example 40

hard

A car drives

1\,\text{h}

80\,\text{km/h}

2\,\text{h}

50\,\text{km/h}

, and

1\,\text{h}

30\,\text{km/h}

. Find the average speed.

Example 41

hard

A car drives at average

50\,\text{km/h}

for

3\,\text{h}

and average

70\,\text{km/h}

for the next

2\,\text{h}

. Find the overall average speed.

Example 42

challenge

A train averages

80\,\text{km/h}

between two stations

200\,\text{km}

apart, including a single

15\,\text{min}

stop. Find its average moving speed (excluding the stop).

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Related Concepts

Speed Instantaneous Speed

Background Knowledge

These ideas may be useful before you work through the harder examples.

speed