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About this tool
Add length time and stroke count into a SWOLF efficiency score, normalised per 25 m, with the speed and stroke trade-off.
SWOLF, short for swim golf, is the time in seconds a length takes added to the number of strokes taken in it — swim a 25 m length in 20 seconds using 18 strokes and your SWOLF is 38. As in golf, lower is better, because you either moved faster or used fewer strokes. This calculator scores a single length or a whole set, normalises the result per 25 m so a 50 m pool can be compared with a short course one, and shows the trade-off table of stroke counts and times that all give the same score.
Open SWOLF Score Calculator on AltFTool — it loads instantly in your browser.
Enter the values you already know.
Fine-tune the options to match your scenario.
Read the result and use it in your planning or reporting.
The per-25 m normalisation makes long-course and short-course sessions comparable.
A table of stroke counts and the times each would need for the same score.
Speed, pace per 100 and distance per stroke sit next to the score so a slow low score is obvious.
Add the time in seconds for one length to the number of strokes taken in that length. A 25 m length in 20 seconds with 18 strokes gives a SWOLF of 38. Watches compute it per length and then average across the set.
There is no universal target, because the score depends on pool length, stroke and speed. In a 25 m pool freestyle scores in the 30s are typical of a competent swimmer and the 20s of a fast one, but the only comparison that matters is your own score at the same pace over time.
Not directly — a 50 m length roughly doubles both the time and the strokes, so the raw score roughly doubles too. Multiply the 50 m score by 25 divided by 50 to get a per-25 m figure, which this calculator does automatically.
No. You can lower SWOLF by gliding, which cuts strokes but adds time and makes you slower overall. A genuinely better swim is a lower SWOLF at the same or a faster pace, which is why the pace per 100 is shown next to the score.
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