Last updated: 2026-06-30

Beep Test (Multistage Fitness) VO₂max

The beep test — also called the multistage fitness test (MSFT), bleep test, or 20 m shuttle run — is one of the most widely used field tests of aerobic fitness. Runners shuttle between two lines 20 m apart, turning on each beep from an audio track that speeds up over time. The level and shuttle reached when a runner can no longer keep pace is the score, and from that score a VO₂max can be estimated. This calculator takes the level and shuttle you reached, together with your age, and returns the running speed at completion and your predicted VO₂max using the Léger equation.

From level to running speed

The standard 20 m protocol fixes the speed of each level. Level 1 is run at 8 km/h, and every level after that adds 0.5 km/h:

where $v$ is the speed in km/h and $L$ is the completed level. So level 5 is 10 km/h, level 10 is 12.5 km/h, and level 13 is 14 km/h. Within a level, the number of 20 m shuttles is fixed and grows as the levels get faster; the shuttle you record marks how far into the level you got, while the speed used for the VO₂max estimate is the speed of the last level you completed.

Estimating VO₂max

VO₂max is predicted from the final running speed and the runner's age using the regression published by Léger and colleagues:

Here $V$ is VO₂max in ml·kg⁻¹·min⁻¹, $v$ is the final speed in km/h, and $a$ is age in years. The interaction term $a\,v$ means age and speed are not independent: the penalty for being older is smaller at higher speeds. Because age is in the equation, two runners who reach the same level can have noticeably different estimated VO₂max values.

Worked example

Suppose a 25-year-old completes level 10. The speed at completion is:

Feeding that into the Léger equation:

The same level 10 for a 40-year-old gives a lower estimate, because the age term grows faster than the age–speed interaction can offset at this speed.

Running the test well

The result only reflects fitness if the test is run properly. Use a calibrated audio track and a measured 20 m course on a non-slip surface. Runners should turn and touch the line on each beep, not before, and the test ends after two consecutive failures to reach the line in time. Pacing matters: starting too fast wastes energy on the easy early levels and lowers the final level reached. Motivation, footwear, surface, and temperature all influence the score, so compare results from tests run under similar conditions.

Interpreting the estimate

A beep-test VO₂max is an estimate from speed and age, not a laboratory gas-exchange measurement, so treat the number as a tracking tool rather than an exact value. The most useful signal is the trend: a rising level or VO₂max across a training block indicates improving aerobic fitness. To compare your figure against age- and sex-based fitness norms, or to estimate VO₂max from other field tests such as the Cooper or Rockport tests, see the VO2 Max Calculator. To turn improved fitness into training intensities, the Heart Rate Zones Calculator and Running Pace Calculator calculators are useful companions.