A “click” (more accurately spelled klick) is military slang for 1 kilometer, which is about 0.62 miles or roughly 3,281 feet.

What “a click” means in distance

  • 1 click = 1 kilometer = 1,000 meters.
  • In miles, 1 click ≈ 0.62 miles.
  • In feet, 1 click ≈ 3,280.84 feet.
  • If someone says, “We’re 10 clicks out,” that’s about 10 km, or roughly 6.2 miles.

Many English speakers write it as “click” in casual use, but in US military contexts “klick” is the more common spelling.

Quick HTML distance table

html

<table>
  <thead>
    <tr>
      <th>Clicks (klicks)</th>
      <th>Kilometers</th>
      <th>Miles (approx.)</th>
      <th>Feet (approx.)</th>
    </tr>
  </thead>
  <tbody>
    <tr>
      <td>1</td>
      <td>1 km</td>
      <td>0.62 mi</td>
      <td>3,281 ft</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>5</td>
      <td>5 km</td>
      <td>3.11 mi</td>
      <td>16,404 ft</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>10</td>
      <td>10 km</td>
      <td>6.21 mi</td>
      <td>32,808 ft</td>
    </tr>
  </tbody>
</table>

Where the term comes from

  • “Klick” is used widely in modern militaries as shorthand for kilometer because it’s short and easy to say over a radio.
  • The exact origin is a bit murky, with theories including:
    • Emerged around World War I or World War II as English speakers dealt with metric maps and distances.
* Popularized among US troops during the Vietnam War and listed as “Viet War Slang” in a 1965 article.

* Possibly tied to the audible “click” of odometers or rifle mechanisms used to count off each kilometer on patrol.

Even though the backstory isn’t 100% nailed down, everyone agrees on the practical meaning: when you hear “a click” in this context, think one kilometer. Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.