Army / Military Fitness Standards

UK Army

If you are specifically looking for bleep test army UK requirements, confirm the date of the information you are reading. The British Army has published a change stating that, from Wednesday 26 November 2025, the entry fitness test replaces the multi-stage fitness test (bleep test) with a 2km run.

Older guidance, forum posts, and training plans may still refer to a bleep test score because the MSFT was used for entry assessment historically. Treat those as out of date unless your recruiting contact confirms the MSFT is still being used for your intake.

This matters because training plans that are optimised for a shuttle run (tight turns, repeated accelerations) are not the same as plans optimised for a continuous 2km effort. If your recruiter or assessment centre uses the updated entry test, train for the 2km run first, then add shuttle-specific work only if your role or training unit confirms it is required.

Even when a bleep test is not the official entry test, shuttle running can still be a useful training tool. It builds repeatable pacing and acceleration/deceleration capacity, which can support field fitness and injury resilience. The key is to keep the assessment target and the training method separate: do not assume a training tool is the same as the test you will be graded on.

Royal Marines

The Royal Marines publish candidate guidance that includes a bleep test standard. Their candidate information describes a bleep test score of 10.8 as part of the route to becoming a Royal Marines Officer, and their training guidance also describes a sub-maximal bleep test used during early training periods (for example, reaching a set level and stopping under instruction).

For candidates, the practical takeaway is that a bleep test score is only one part of readiness. Royal Marines preparation material also emphasises running durability, loaded movement capacity, and repeated-effort conditioning.

If you are using bleep test results in your own training (even when a timed run is the formal entry test), aim to keep conditions consistent: same shuttle length, same surface, same footwear, and the same audio file. A “10.8” style score is only meaningful when the underlying test version is the same.

RAF

The RAF publishes pre-joining fitness test (PJFT) guidance that is primarily based on a treadmill run over 2.4km, with time standards by age and sex. Some RAF pathways also refer candidates to additional standards (including multi-stage tests) provided during the recruiting process.

If your route mentions a bleep test, confirm whether it is a 15m or 20m shuttle run and whether it is used at selection, during training, or as a periodic service fitness check.

Where organisations publish treadmill run standards but not bleep test scores, do not attempt to “convert” a run time to a shuttle level unless the organisation provides an official conversion. Shuttle tests require repeated turning, which changes the energy cost and can advantage athletes with strong acceleration and turning technique.

US Army

The US Army does not use a single “bleep test level” as its universal standard. Instead, it uses the Army Fitness Test (AFT), a multi-event test that includes:

• 3-repetition maximum deadlift
• Standing power throw
• Hand-release push-up
• Sprint-drag-carry
• Plank
• 2-mile run

The US Army has published that the AFT became the “test of record” from June 1, 2025 and that standards are linked to job requirements. If you are training for US Army entry or retention, train specifically to the AFT events rather than assuming a bleep test will be used.

For candidates coming from a bleep test background, the biggest adjustment is that the AFT is not a single “maximal endurance” test. It combines strength, power, muscular endurance, agility, and a longer continuous run. Training therefore needs to be balanced across event types rather than focused on one shuttle score.

Australian Defence Force

In Australia, the bleep test is commonly referenced in ADF pre-entry materials. ADF Careers publish guidance for the Physical Fitness Assessment (PFA) that includes a shuttle run score (alongside other events such as sit-ups and push-ups). Their published training brochure includes examples such as:

• Army general entry combat roles and officer entry roles: shuttle run score 7.5.
• Army general entry combat support roles: shuttle run score 6.1.

The same brochure also shows that standards can vary across services and categories, and that some services allow alternative cardio tests (for example, a run, walk, shuttle run, or swim) depending on the service’s published assessment model.

ADF entry materials also publish additional constraints (for example, a body mass index range stated as required to join, varying by role). If you are close to thresholds, treat the published role description as the authoritative reference, because the limiting factor may be medical eligibility rather than a single shuttle run score.

Entry vs ongoing requirements

Most military organisations separate fitness standards into two broad categories:

• Entry standards: the minimum required to start training safely and to ensure training outcomes are achievable within the training pipeline.
• Ongoing (in-service) standards: periodic checks intended to ensure operational readiness, which may be job-specific and can change as an individual moves into specialist roles.

It is common for entry standards to be simpler (a run time, a shuttle score, or a basic battery) and for ongoing standards to become more role-linked (loaded movement, strength endurance, repeated sprints, water confidence, or other tests relevant to the trade).

If your goal is an “army bleep test” score for a particular unit, treat any public number as a starting point only. Your best source of truth is the current official candidate documentation for your exact role and intake date.

Training recommendation: start by building the capacity to comfortably exceed the published entry requirement, then add the higher-intensity work that tends to appear during training pipelines (interval runs, shuttle sessions, and strength-endurance circuits). That sequencing reduces injury risk and makes it easier to progress when training volume increases.

Related pages: Yo-Yo test (a common intermittent-sport conditioning test) and police bleep test requirements.

Quick facts

• Many militaries do not use a bleep test
• UK Army entry test changed on 26 Nov 2025
• US Army uses the AFT multi-event test
• ADF entry materials include shuttle run scores

If you know the service and role, the main risk is training to the wrong test (20m vs 15m, shuttle vs timed run).

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