How Does The Difference Between Speed & Velocity Work?

Speed and velocity are both about how fast something is moving, but they have a little twist that makes them different, just like when you ride your bike in a circle!

Speed is how fast you're going, no matter where you're heading. It’s like counting how many blocks you pass every minute, whether you’re going straight or zigzagging. If you go 10 blocks in 2 minutes, your speed is 5 blocks per minute, no matter what path you took.

Velocity is a bit smarter, it cares about where you're going and how fast you get there. So if you ride around the block and end up back at home, even though you were moving all along, your velocity was zero because you didn’t go anywhere new.

Imagine you’re on a bike path that loops back to where you started, like going around a park. You might have been pedaling hard for 5 minutes, but if you end up right where you began, your velocity is zero because you didn’t move from one place to another. Your speed, though, was pretty good, you covered the whole loop in that time!

So speed is like how fast you're going, and velocity is like how fast you're going and where you’re headed.