The short answer: Pace by ear is a way of holding your running pace using sound. Instead of reading a number off your wrist or phone, you listen to a continuous tone that sits at your target pace, rises when you slow, and falls when you speed up. You correct by pitch, in real time, without looking. Steady Pace uses this idea: you set a target and the tone keeps you on it while your attention stays on the run.
How a pace tone works
The app measures your pace from GPS and the phone's sensors and maps it onto a sound. When you are on target, the tone is steady and neutral, easy to tune out. Drift slower than your target and the pitch rises; drift faster and it drops. The sound is neither a metronome nor a voice. It is a continuous signal you hear that moves with your pace. Your ears catch a change in pitch quickly, so you notice the drift before you would think to check a screen.
Why it beats the alternatives
Three common ways to know your pace are screen numbers, spoken callouts, and audio. Audio leaves your eyes and rhythm alone.
| Method | What you do | The drawback |
|---|---|---|
| Screen number | Glance at your wrist or phone | You look constantly, and the number is jumpy |
| Spoken callout | Hear your pace every lap or minute | Only updates now and then; you drift between updates |
| Pace by ear (a tone) | Listen to a continuous pitch | None for pacing: it is constant and eyes-free |
A screen number makes you look, a spoken callout helps but only updates now and then, and a continuous tone is always present, so you catch a drift as it starts.
Why sound suits running
Running is a rhythmic, eyes-up activity. You want to watch the road, your footing, and the world around you, and you often already have headphones in, so sound is a natural place for your pace. Turning it into a sound means the one number you need most is the one you never have to look for, and it frees your eyes for everything else.
Pace by ear turns your pace into a sound that stays quiet while you are on target and changes pitch the moment you drift, so you can hold your pace without taking your eyes off the run.
Blog
Hold pace without looking
The method, step by step.
Guide
Audio pace alerts
Why a tone beats a callout every lap.
Compare
vs a metronome
Pace and cadence are different things.
What does "pace by ear" mean?
It means holding your running pace using sound, so you do not need a screen. Your pace becomes a continuous tone that rises when you slow and falls when you speed up, so you correct by what you hear, with no need to look at a number.
Is a pace tone the same as a metronome?
No. A metronome keeps a fixed beat for your cadence, your step rhythm. A pace tone tracks your actual speed and changes pitch when your pace drifts. Steady Pace includes both, but they do different jobs.
Is audio pacing better than spoken pace callouts?
For holding a steady pace, yes, because a tone is continuous while callouts are periodic. Between spoken updates you can drift without knowing; a tone tells you the moment your pace changes.
Do I need headphones?
Headphones make the tone easy to hear and keep it to yourself, though the phone can play it aloud too. Either way, you follow the tone by ear and keep your eyes on the run.