By Zencalcy Editorial TeamLast reviewed About us
An arrow starts dropping the moment it leaves the bow, so measuring the drop over a known distance is enough to recover its speed. This calculator uses the free-fall relation between drop, distance and time to estimate launch speed in metres per second, feet per second and miles per hour.
Estimate arrow speed from the drop over a known distance.
t = √(2h / g) v = d / t
h is the vertical drop, d is the horizontal distance and g is standard gravity. This ignores air drag, so it slightly overestimates speed for light arrows.
| Symbol | Meaning |
|---|---|
| h | Vertical drop over the measured distance, in metres. |
| d | Horizontal distance to the target, in metres. |
| t | Time of flight, in seconds. |
| v | Launch speed, in metres per second. |
An arrow that drops 0.5445 m over 20 m has a flight time of about 0.333 s, giving a launch speed near 60 m/s, or roughly 197 fps.
Continue with the Ballistic Coefficient Calculator, Car Jump Distance Calculator, or the Conservation of Momentum Calculator — or browse more kinematics tools and all physics calculators.
Drag slows the arrow and adds to the drop in a way that needs the arrow's mass, diameter and drag coefficient. Without those, the vacuum model is the only one that can be solved from drop and distance alone.
Results are computed from the standard equations of classical mechanics. Unit conversions use the SI definitions published by NIST. Air resistance is ignored unless the calculator names a drag model.
Reference material used to build and check this calculator:
Last reviewed: September 2026. See how we build and check every tool on the about page.
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Free calculator · No signup
Free calculator · No signup
Free calculator · No signup
Free calculator · No signup
Content updated: September 2026