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How Long Does It Take To Drive 100 Miles?

When you head out for a destination in your car, anything above three digits starts to feel like a road trip.

And why shouldn’t it?

A hundred miles is well beyond the distance most people are willing to commute to work (with good reason) and usually takes a little planning to drive.

It’s a substantial enough distance, and takes enough time to drive, that most people aren’t doing it on a whim.

So, just how long does it take to drive 100 miles?

It depends, of course, on where you’re driving and the speed limits and conditions of the road.

How long does it take to drive 100 miles on U.S. interstates?

Speed limits on U.S. interstates are between 55 and 85 mph, with 55 mph being the speed limit in metro areas in many states and 85 mph being the outlier in Texas.

Most sections of the country’s interstates have speed limits between 70 and 75 mph.

  • At 70 mph, it takes 1 hour and 26 minutes to drive 100 miles.
  • At 75 mph, it takes 1 hour and 20 minutes to drive 100 miles.
Sun illuminates man driving

How long does it take to drive 100 miles on U.S. highways?

Highways in the U.S. are a bit different than interstates.

They have more accessibility and more crossroads.

Due to this, they also have lower speed limits – 55 to 70 mph being typical (though, there are a few states with highway speeds up to 75 mph).

Highway speed limits may also vary within states, depending on how accessible the highway is.

Highways with limited access (those accessed by ramps or with few intersecting roads) typically have higher speed limits than those with multiple crossroads.

Highways with many crossroads and access to businesses and residences typically have lower speed limits.

This isn’t true of every state, but most states do follow this pattern.

On average, 55 or 65 mph is what you can expect to find on more accessible highways across the country.

  • At 55 mph, it takes 1 hour and 49 minutes to drive 100 miles.
  • At 65 mph, it takes 1 hour and 32 minutes to drive 100 miles.

How Long It Takes To Drive 100 Miles Just Depends

As illustrated, how long it takes to drive 100 miles is highly dependent on the type of road you’re on and the speed limit on that road.

And that’s not even getting into traffic and construction and how those obstacles slow things down.

Driving 100 miles through rural Nevada where the speed limit is 80 mph may take you just an hour and 15 minutes (if you keep legal).

Meanwhile, driving 100 miles through Southern California or Atlanta at just the wrong time of day may take you a solid 5 hours. (We’ve been in that traffic before.)

So, the answer as to how long it takes to drive 100 miles is that there is no real answer.

Drive time depends on speed, traffic, and conditions.

But, for your reference, here’s a chart that shows how long it takes to drive 100 miles under at common speed limits under perfect conditions.

How Long To Drive 100 Miles
Speed LimitTime
352 hrs 52 min
452 hrs 13 min
551 hr 49 min
601 hr 40 min
651 hr 32 min
701 hr 26 min
751 hr 20 min