Riding a Shinkansen, TGV, ICE or Fuxing? Check the bullet train speed live from your seat. Your phone GPS shows the real speed in km/h or mph, along with the peak and average for the journey.
Tap Start GPS and allow location access
Tap Start GPS, allow location access and keep your phone close to the window. The gauge follows the train as it climbs past 200, 250 and 300 km/h, and the Peak box keeps the fastest moment of the trip.
| Train | Top speed in service |
|---|---|
| Fuxing CR400 (China) | 350 km/h |
| Shinkansen E5/H5 (Tohoku line, Japan) | 320 km/h |
| TGV (France) | 320 km/h |
| KTX (South Korea) | 300 to 305 km/h |
| ICE 3 (Germany) | 300 km/h |
| Shinkansen N700S (Tokaido line, Japan) | 285 km/h |
| Mumbai to Ahmedabad high-speed rail (India, planned) | 320 km/h design speed |
Yes. Phone GPS measures speed from the tiny frequency shift in satellite signals, and that works just as well at 300 km/h as at 30 km/h. What breaks the reading on high-speed lines is tunnels, which are common on the Shinkansen. The speed returns a few seconds after the train comes out.
For ordinary trains use the train speed test. In India, try the Vande Bharat speed test.
Open this page on board, tap Start GPS and the live speed of your bullet train appears within seconds. Switch between km/h and mph with the buttons under the gauge. No app and no sign-up.
Some high-speed trains show the speed on screens in the carriage, but many do not, and the screens are often only in some coaches. Your phone gives you the figure wherever you sit. Because GPS measures ground speed directly, the reading does not depend on the train's own instruments.
Top speed is reached on long straight sections between major stations, not near cities. On the Tokaido Shinkansen that means the stretches between Nagoya and Kyoto and west of Shin-Osaka on the Sanyo line. In France, the LGV lines away from Paris are where a TGV holds 300 to 320 km/h for long periods.
Maglev trains do not touch the rails at all. The Shanghai Maglev runs at up to 300 km/h in service, and a Japanese SCMaglev test train reached 603 km/h in 2015, the world speed record for a train.
Most bullet trains run at 250 to 320 km/h in service. The fastest, China's Fuxing trains, run at 350 km/h. Japan's Shinkansen reaches 320 km/h on the Tohoku line and 285 km/h on the Tokaido line.
Open this page on your phone, tap Start GPS and allow location. The live speed shows in km/h or mph, and the Peak box records the top speed of your trip.
Yes, through the windows. Tunnels block the signal for a while, and the reading returns a few seconds after the train comes out.
The Mumbai to Ahmedabad high-speed line is designed for 320 km/h, using Shinkansen technology. It is still under construction.
The Japanese SCMaglev holds the record at 603 km/h, set in a 2015 test. The fastest train in regular service is the Shanghai Maglev, at up to 300 km/h, with China's Fuxing trains the fastest on rails at 350 km/h.