TriSplits › Cutoff Calculator

Triathlon Cutoff Calculator

The clock is brutal at a full-distance race. Enter your planned paces and see whether you'll beat the swim, bike and overall cutoffs — and by how much. Free, instant, fully editable.

Your planned paces

🏊 Swim pace per 100m, M:SS

🚴 Bike speed

mph

🏃 Run pace per mile, M:SS

min

Will you make it?

Projected finish

0:00:00

✅

Standard Ironman (140.6) cutoffs: swim 2:20, bike done by 10:30, overall 17:00 from the gun. 70.3: roughly swim 1:10, bike by 5:30, overall 8:30. Individual races vary and may have mid-course cutoffs — always check your event's athlete guide.

More triathlon tools

Ironman & 70.3 cutoff times explained

Cutoffs are measured from the race start (the gun), not from when you personally start — so they're cumulative. Miss one and your day ends there. The standard limits:

Checkpoint

Full (140.6)

Half (70.3)

Swim done by

2:20

~1:10

Bike done by

10:30

~5:30

Overall finish

17:00

~8:30

Many races also have mid-bike and mid-run "sweep" cutoffs. The biggest danger zone for most age-groupers is the bike cutoff — a slow swim plus a steady-but-modest bike can leave too little margin. Aim to exit the swim comfortably under its limit and protect your bike pace.

Standard cutoffs shown; your specific race may differ. Always confirm in the official athlete guide.

Frequently asked questions

What is the Ironman time limit?

17 hours overall for a full Ironman (a midnight finish from a 7am start), with a 2:20 swim cutoff and the bike done by 10:30. A 70.3 is typically 8:30 overall.

Which cutoff catches the most people?

Usually the bike cutoff. A slow swim eats into the time you have to finish the bike by 10:30, so exit the water with margin and keep the bike steady.

Do the cutoffs start when I cross the line?

No — they run from the official race start. With a rolling swim start, your personal clock and the cutoff clock differ slightly; this tool assumes a mass-start basis. Check your race's timing rules.