Free Fall Calculator
Calculate free fall time, final velocity, or distance under gravity. Use Earth's standard gravitational acceleration or enter a custom gravity value for other environments.
Calculate Free Fall
Free Fall Result
What Is a Free Fall Calculator?
A Free Fall Calculator estimates the motion of an object moving vertically under the influence of gravity. In the ideal physics model, air resistance is ignored and gravitational acceleration is treated as constant.
On Earth, standard gravitational acceleration is approximately 9.80665 m/s². This means an object's downward velocity changes by about 9.81 meters per second during each second of ideal free fall.
You can use this calculator to determine fall time, final velocity, or distance traveled. A custom gravity input is also included for calculations involving different gravitational environments.
Free Fall Formulas
For an object released from rest, fall time depends on height and gravitational acceleration.
Final velocity is calculated from initial velocity, gravitational acceleration, and elapsed time.
This equation calculates displacement after a known period of free fall.
Free Fall Formula Symbols
The vertical displacement traveled by the object.
The duration of the object's fall.
The gravitational acceleration acting on the object.
The object's velocity after the specified fall.
The velocity of the object at the start of the motion.
How to Use the Free Fall Calculator
Select a Calculation
Choose fall time, final velocity, fall distance, or velocity from height.
Enter Height or Time
Enter the value requested for your selected free fall calculation.
Set Initial Velocity and Gravity
Keep initial velocity at zero for an object simply dropped from rest. Standard Earth gravity is provided automatically.
Calculate
Click Calculate to instantly see the result and related motion values.
Free Fall Example
Consider an object dropped from rest from a height of 20 meters under standard Earth gravity.
In the ideal model, the object reaches the ground in about 2.02 seconds. Its final downward speed is approximately 19.81 m/s.
Free Fall Calculator Assumptions
Standard free fall equations make several simplifying assumptions. These assumptions are useful for physics problems, but they mean calculated values can differ from real-world measurements.
Drag from the atmosphere is ignored.
Gravitational acceleration remains constant throughout the fall.
The motion is modeled along a vertical line.
Frequently Asked Questions
For an object dropped from rest, free fall time is calculated using t = √(2h/g), where h is height and g is gravitational acceleration.
Standard gravitational acceleration on Earth is approximately 9.80665 meters per second squared.
In the ideal free fall model without air resistance, objects experience the same gravitational acceleration regardless of their mass.
No. This calculator uses the standard ideal free fall equations and does not model aerodynamic drag.
Yes. The gravitational acceleration field can be changed for calculations using a different gravity value.
Initial velocity is the object's velocity at the beginning of its motion. For an object simply released or dropped from rest, the initial velocity is zero.