World record progression 400 metres freestyle

The first world record in the men's 400 metres freestyle in long course (50 metres) swimming was recognised by the International Swimming Federation (FINA) in 1908. In the short course (25 metres) swimming events the world's governing body recognizes world records since 3 March 1991.

Men

Long course

#	Time	Swimmer	Date	Event	Location
1	5:36.8	Henry Taylor	16 Jul 1908	1908 Summer Olympics	London, United Kingdom	?
2	5:35.8	Sydney Battersby	21 Sep 1911	?	London, United Kingdom	?
3	5:29.0	Alajos Kenyery	21 Apr 1912	?	Magdeburg, Germany	?
4	5:28.4	Béla Las-Torres	5 Jun 1912	?	Budapest, Hungary	?
5	5:24.4	George Hodgson	14 Jul 1912	1912 Summer Olympics	Stockholm, Sweden	?
6	5:21.6	Jack Hatfield	26 Sep 1912	?	London, United Kingdom	?
7	5:14.6	Norman Ross	9 Oct 1919	?	Los Angeles, USA	?
8	5:14.4	Norman Ross	25 Sep 1921	?	Brighton Beach, USA	[1]
9	5:11.8	Arne Borg	9 Apr 1922	?	Stockholm, Sweden	?
10	5:06.6	Johnny Weissmuller	22 Jun 1922	?	Honolulu, USA	?
11	4:57.0	Johnny Weissmuller	6 Mar 1923	?	New Haven, USA	?
12	4:54.7	Arne Borg	9 Dec 1924	?	Stockholm, Sweden	?
13	4:50.3	Arne Borg	11 Sep 1925	?	Stockholm, Sweden	?
14	4:47.0	Jean Taris	16 Apr 1931	?	Paris, France	?
15	4:46.4	Shozo Makino	14 Aug 1933	?	Tokyo, Japan	?
16	4:38.7	Jack Medica	30 Aug 1934	?	Honolulu, USA	?
17	4:38.5	Bill Smith	13 May 1941	?	Honolulu, USA	?
18	4:35.2	Alex Jany	12 Sep 1947	?	Monte Carlo, Monaco	?
19	4:34.6	Hironoshin Furuhashi	24 Jul 1949	?	Tokyo, Japan	?
20	4:33.3	Hironoshin Furuhashi	18 Aug 1949	?	Los Angeles, USA	?
21	4:33.1	John Marshall	11 Mar 1950	?	New Haven, USA	?
22	4:29.5	John Marshall	1 Apr 1950	?	New Haven, USA	?
23	4:26.9	John Marshall	24 Mar 1951	?	New Haven, USA	?
24	4:26.7	Ford Konno	3 Apr 1954	?	New Haven, USA	?
25	4:27.0	Murray Rose	27 Oct 1956	?	Melbourne, Australia	?
26	4:25.9*	Murray Rose	12 Jan 1957	?	Sydney, Australia	?
27	4:25.9	John Konrads	15 Jan 1958	?	Sydney, Australia	?
28	4:21.8	John Konrads	12 Jan 1959	?	Melbourne, Australia	?
29	4:19.0	John Konrads	7 Feb 1959	?	Sydney, Australia	?
30	4:16.6	Tsuyoshi Yamanaka	26 Jul 1959	?	Osaka, Japan	?
31	4:15.9	John Konrads	23 Feb 1960	?	Sydney, Australia	?
32	4:13.4	Murray Rose	17 Aug 1962	?	Chicago, USA	?
33	4:12.7	Don Schollander	31 Jul 1964	USA Summer Nationals	Los Altos, USA	[2]
34	4:12.2	Don Schollander	15 Oct 1964	1964 Summer Olympics	Tokyo, Japan	?
35	4:11.8	John Nelson	18 Aug 1966	?	Lincoln, USA	?
36	4:11.6	Don Schollander	18 Aug 1966	?	Lincoln, USA	?
37	4:11.1	Frank Wiegand	25 Aug 1966	?	Utrecht, The Netherlands	?
38	4:10.6	Mark Spitz	25 Jun 1967	?	Haywood, USA	?
39	4:09.2	Alain Mosconi	4 Jul 1967	?	Monaco, Monaco	?
40	4:08.8	Mark Spitz	7 Jul 1967	Santa Clara International Invitation Swim Meet	Santa Clara, USA	[3]
41	4:08.2	Greg Charlton	28 Aug 1967	?	Tokyo, Japan	?
42	4:07.7	Mark Spitz	23 Jun 1968	16th Annual Swimming Relays	Haywood, USA	?
43	4:06.5	Ralph Hutton	1 Aug 1968	AAU National Swimming Championships	Lincoln, USA	?
44	4:04.0	Hans-Joachim Fassnacht	14 Aug 1969	AAU National Swimming Championships	Louisville, USA	?
45	4:02.8	John Kinsella	20 Aug 1970	AAU National Swimming Championships (elec. 4:02.81)	Los Angeles, USA	?
46	4:02.6	Gunnar Larsson	7 Sep 1970	European Swimming Championships	Barcelona, Spain	?
47	4:02.1	Tom McBreen	25 Aug 1971	AAU Nationals (elec. 4:02.08)	Houston, USA	?
48	4:01.7	Brad Cooper	12 Feb 1972	AUS Nationals & Olympic Trials	Brisbane, Australia	?
49	4:00.11	Kurt Krumpholz	4 Aug 1972	USA Olympic Trials	Chicago, USA	?
50	3:58.18	Rick DeMont	9 Sep 1973	FINA World Championships	Belgrade, SFR Yugoslavia	?
51	3:56.96	Tim Shaw	22 Aug 1974	AAU National Swimming Championships	Concord, USA	[4]
52	3:54.69	Tim Shaw	22 Aug 1974	AAU National Swimming Championships	Concord, USA	[4]
53	3:53.95	Tim Shaw	19 Jun 1975	USA World Championship Trials	Long Beach, USA	?
54	3:53.31	Tim Shaw	20 Aug 1975	AAU National Swimming Championships	Kansas City, USA	?
55	3:53.08	Brian Goodell	18 Jun 1976	USA Olympic Trials	Long Beach, USA	[5]
56	3:51.93	Brian Goodell	22 Jul 1976	1976 Summer Olympics	Montreal, Canada	?
57	3:51.56	Brian Goodell	27 Aug 1977	USAvGDR Dual Meet	West Berlin	?
58	3:51.41	Vladimir Salnikov	6 Apr 1979	URSvGDR Junior meet	Potsdam, East Germany	?
59	3:51.40	Vladimir Salnikov	19 Aug 1979	URSvCAN Duel	Moscow, Soviet Union	?
60	3:51.20	Vladimir Salnikov	29 Feb 1980	URS Winter Nationals	Potsdam, East Germany	?
61	3:50.49	Peter Szmidt	15 Jul 1980	Canadian Nationals & Olympic Trials	Etobicoke, Canada	?
62	3:49.57	Vladimir Salnikov	12 Mar 1982	URSvGDR Duel	Moscow, Soviet Union	?
62=	3:49.57	Vladimir Salnikov	14 Jul 1982	URS Nationals	Kiev, Soviet Union	?
63	3:48.32	Vladimir Salnikov	19 Feb 1983	URS Winter Nationals	Moscow, Soviet Union	?
64	3:47.80	Michael Gross	27 Jun 1985	FRG Nationals & European Championship Trials	Wuppertal, West Germany	?
65	3:47.38	Artur Wojdat	25 Mar 1988	USA Spring Nationals	Orlando, USA	[6]
66	3:46.95	Uwe Dassler	23 Sep 1988	1988 Summer Olympics	Seoul, South Korea	?
67	3:46.47	Kieren Perkins	3 Apr 1992	Australian Olympic Trials	Canberra, Australia	?
68	3:45.00	Yevgeny Sadovyi	29 Jul 1992	1992 Summer Olympics	Barcelona, Spain	?
69	3:43.80	Kieren Perkins	11 Sep 1994	1994 World Championships	Rome, Italy	?
70	3:41.83	Ian Thorpe	22 Aug 1999	1999 Pan Pacific Championships	Sydney, Australia	?
71	3:41.33	Ian Thorpe	13 May 2000	Australian Olympic Trials	Sydney, Australia	?
72	3:40.59	Ian Thorpe	16 Sep 2000	2000 Summer Olympics	Sydney, Australia	?
73	3:40.17	Ian Thorpe	22 Jul 2001	2001 World Championships	Fukuoka, Japan	?
74	3:40.08	Ian Thorpe	30 Jul 2002	2002 Commonwealth Games	Manchester, United Kingdom	?
75	3:40.07	Paul Biedermann	26 Jul 2009	2009 World Aquatics Championships	Rome, Italy	[7]

• Murray Rose's 4:25.9 set in a 25-metre pool on 12 Jan 1957 was only valid until 1 May the same year. Due to the new rule that records must be set in a 50-metre pool, and the fact that neither John Marshall's 4:26.9 from 1951, nor Ford Konno's 4:26.7 from 1954 were set in 50-metre pools, the WR reverted to Rose's 4:27.0 from 1956.[8]

Short course

#	Time	Swimmer	Date	Event	Location
1	3:41.74	Giorgio Lamberti	13 Feb 1988	German Invitational	Bonn, Germany	?
2	3:40.81	Anders Holmertz	4 Feb 1990	Paris Open, FINA Swimming World Cup	Paris, France	?
3	3:40.46	Danyon Loader	11 Feb 1995	World Cup	Sheffield, United Kingdom	?
4	3:39.82	Ian Thorpe	25 Sep 1998	AUS SC Nationals	Perth, WA, Australia	?
5	3:35.01	Grant Hackett	2 Apr 1999	World SC Championships	Hong Kong	?
6	3:34.58	Grant Hackett	18 Jul 2002	Grand Prix	Sydney, Australia	?
7	3:32.77	Paul Biedermann	14 Nov 2009	World Cup	Berlin, Germany	[9]
8	3:32.25	Yannick Agnel	15 Nov 2012	French Nationals	Angers, France	[10]

Women

Long course

#	TIME	SWIMMER	DATE	EVENT	PLACE
1	6:30.2	Ethelda Bleibtrey	16 Aug 1919	?	New York City	?
2	6:16.6	Hilda James	29 Jul 1921	?	Leeds, United Kingdom	?
3	5:53.2	Gertrude Ederle	4 Aug 1922	?	Indianapolis, USA	?
4	5:51.4	Martha Norelius	23 Jan 1927	?	Coral Gables, USA	?
5	5:49.6	Martha Norelius	30 Jun 1928	?	New York City	?
6	5:42.8	Martha Norelius	6 Aug 1928	Olympic Games	Amsterdam, The Netherlands	?
7	5:39.2	Martha Norelius	27 Aug 1928	?	Vienna, Austria	?
8	5:31.0	Helene Madison	3 Feb 1931	?	Seattle, USA	?
9	5:28.5	Helene Madison	13 Aug 1932	?	Los Angeles, USA	?
10	5:16.0	Willy den Ouden	12 Jul 1934	?	Rotterdam, The Netherlands	?
11	5:14.2	Ragnhild Hveger	10 Feb 1937	?	Copenhagen, Denmark	?
12	5:14.0	Ragnhild Hveger	3 Oct 1937	?	Ghent, Belgium	?
13	5:12.4	Ragnhild Hveger	14 Nov 1937	?	Magdeburg, Germany	?
14	5:11.0	Ragnhild Hveger	12 Dec 1937	?	Copenhagen, Denmark	?
15	5:08.2	Ragnhild Hveger	16 Jan 1938	?	Copenhagen, Denmark	?
16	5:06.1	Ragnhild Hveger	1 Aug 1938	?	Copenhagen, Denmark	?
17	5:05.4	Ragnhild Hveger	8 Sep 1940	?	Svendborg, Denmark	?
18	5:00.1	Ragnhild Hveger	15 Sep 1940	?	Copenhagen, Denmark	?
19	4:50.8	Lorraine Crapp	25 Aug 1956	?	Townsville, Australia	?
20	4:47.2	Lorraine Crapp	20 Oct 1956	?	Sydney, Australia	?
21	4:45.4	Ilsa Konrads	9 Jan 1960	?	Sydney, Australia	?
22	4:44.5	Chris von Saltza	5 Aug 1960	USA Olympic Trials	Detroit, USA	[11]
23	4:42.0	Marilyn Ramenofsky	11 Jul 1964	?	Los Altos, USA	?
24	4:41.7	Marilyn Ramenofsky	1 Aug 1964	USA Summer Nationals	Los Altos, USA	[2]
25	4:39.5	Marilyn Ramenofsky	31 Aug 1964	?	New York City	?
26	4:39.2	Martha Randall	14 Aug 1965	?	Maumee, USA	?
27	4:38.0	Martha Randall	26 Aug 1965	?	Monaco, Monaco	?
28	4:36.8	Pam Kruse	30 Jun 1967	?	Fort Lauderdale, USA	?
29	4:36.4	Pam Kruse	7 Jul 1967	Santa Clara International	Santa Clara, USA	[3]
30	4:32.6	Debbie Meyer	27 Jul 1967	Pan American Games	Winnipeg, Canada	?
31	4:29.0	Debbie Meyer	18 Aug 1967	USA Nationals	Philadelphia, USA	?
32	4:26.7	Debbie Meyer	1 Aug 1968	USA Nationals	Lincoln, USA	?
33	4:24.5	Debbie Meyer	25 Aug 1968	USA Olympic Trials (elec. 4:24.55)	Los Angeles, USA	[12]
34	4:24.3	Debbie Meyer	20 Aug 1970	USA Nationals (elec. 4:24.24)	Los Angeles, USA	?
35	4:22.6	Karen Moras	30 Apr 1971	Coca-Cola International	London, United Kingdom	?
36	4:21.2	Shane Gould	9 Jul 1971	Santa Clara Invitational	Santa Clara, USA	?
37	4:19.04	Shane Gould	30 Aug 1972	Olympic Games	Munich, West Germany	?
38	4:18.07	Keena Rothhammer	22 Aug 1973	USA Nationals	Louisville, USA	?
39	4:17.33	Heather Greenwood	28 Jun 1974	Santa Clara Invitational	Santa Clara, USA	?
40	4:15.77	Shirley Babashoff	22 Aug 1974	USA Nationals	Concord, USA	?
41	4:14.76	Shirley Babashoff	20 Jun 1975	USA World Championships Trials	Long Beach, USA	?
42	4:11.69	Barbara Krause	3 Jun 1976	GDR Olympic Trials	East Berlin, East Germany	?
43	4:09.89	Petra Thümer	20 Jul 1976	Olympic Games	Montreal, Canada	?
44	4:08.91	Petra Thümer	17 Aug 1977	European Championships	Jönköping, Sweden	?
45	4:07.66	Kim Linehan	2 Aug 1978	USA Summer Nationals	The Woodlands, USA	[13]
46	4:06.28	Tracey Wickham	24 Aug 1978	World Championships	West Berlin	?
47	4:05.45	Janet Evans	20 Dec 1987	US Open	Orlando, USA	?
48	4:03.85	Janet Evans	22 Sep 1988	Olympic Games	Seoul, South Korea	?
49	4:03.03	Laure Manaudou	12 May 2006	French Championships	Tours, France	?
50	4:02.13	Laure Manaudou	6 Aug 2006	European Championships	Budapest, Hungary	?
51	4:01.53	Federica Pellegrini	24 Mar 2008	European Championships	Eindhoven, Netherlands	?
52	4:00.66	Joanne Jackson	16 Mar 2009	British Championships	Sheffield, United Kingdom	[14]
53	4:00.41	Federica Pellegrini	27 Jun 2009	Mediterranean Games	Pescara, Italy	[15]
54	3:59.15	Federica Pellegrini	26 Jul 2009	World Championships	Rome, Italy	?
55	3:58.86	Katie Ledecky	9 Aug 2014	USA Championships	Irvine, United States	[16]
56	3:58.37	Katie Ledecky	23 Aug 2014	Pan Pacific Championships	Gold Coast, Australia	[17]
57	3:56.46	Katie Ledecky	7 Aug 2016	Olympic Games	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Short course

#	TIME	SWIMMER	DATE	EVENT	PLACE
1	4:02.59	Cynthia Woodhead	Apr 1979	?	Austin, Texas, USA	[18]
2	4:02.05	Astrid Strauss	8 Feb 1987	Bonn Arena Festival	Bonn, Germany	[19][18]
3	4:00.03	Claudia Poll	18 Apr 1997	World Championships	Gothenburg, Sweden	[19]
4	3:59.53	Lindsay Benko	26 Jan 2003	World Cup	Berlin, Germany
5	3:56.79	Laure Manaudou	10 Dec 2005	European Championships	Trieste, Italy
6	3:56.09	Laure Manaudou	9 Dec 2006	European Championships	Helsinki, Finland
7	3:54.92	Joanne Jackson	8 Aug 2009	British Grand Prix	Leeds, UK
8	3:54.85	Camille Muffat	24 Nov 2012	European Championships	Chartres, France	[20]
9	3:54.52	Mireia Belmonte	11 Aug 2013	World Cup	Berlin, Germany	[21]
10	3:53.97	Wang Jianjiahe	4 Oct 2018	World Cup	Budapest, Hungary	[22]
11	3:53.92	Ariarne Titmus	14 Dec 2018	World Championships	Hangzhou, China	[23]

All-time top 25

Men long course

• Correct as of December 2020

Pos	Time	Swimmer	Date	Venue
1	3:40.07	Paul Biedermann (GER)	26 July 2009	Italy
2	3:40.08	Ian Thorpe (AUS)	30 July 2002	Australia
3	3:40.14	Sun Yang (CHN)	28 July 2012	Great Britain
4	3:41.11	Oussama Mellouli (TUN)	26 July 2009	Italy
5	3:41.35	Zhang Lin (CHN)	26 July 2009	Italy
6	3:41.53	Taehwan Park (KOR)	13 November 2010	China
7	3:41.55	Mack Horton (AUS)	6 August 2016	Brazil
8	3:42.51	Grant Hackett (AUS)	22 July 2001	Japan
9	3:42.78	Larsen Jensen (USA)	10 August 2008	China
10	3:43.11	Peter Vanderkaay (USA)	10 August 2008	China
11	3:43.23	Gabriele Detti (ITA)	21 July 2019	South Korea
12	3:43.36	Danas Rapsys (LTU)	12 May 2019	Hungary
13	3:43.40	Massimiliano Rosolino (ITA)	16 September 2000	Australia
14	3:43.42	Conor Dwyer (USA)	6 August 2016	Brazil
15	3:43.45	Nikita Lobintsev (RUS)	9 August 2008	China
16	3:43.46	Ryan Cochrane (CAN)	24 July 2014	Great Britain
17	3:43.71	David McKeon (AUS)	26 April 2013	Australia
18	3:43.75	James Guy (GBR)	2 August 2015	Russia
19	3:43.79	Connor Jaeger (USA)	26 June 2016	United States
20	3:43.80	Kieren Perkins (AUS)	5 September 1994	Italy
21	3:43.85	Yannick Agnel (FRA)	23 March 2011	France
22	3:43.90	Kosuke Hagino (JPN)	10 April 2014	Japan
		Elijah Winnington (AUS)	14 December 2020	Australia
24	3:43.92	Erik Vendt (USA)	29 June 2008	United States
25	3:43.97	Yuriy Prilukov (RUS)	10 August 2008	China

Notes

Below is a list of other times equal or superior to 3:43.97:

• Paul Biedermann also swam 3:43.01 (2009).
• Ian Thorpe also swam 3:40.17 (2001), 3:40.54 (2002), 3:40.59 (2000), 3:40.76 (2001), 3:41.33 (2000), 3:41.83 (1999), 3:42.58 (2003), 3:43.10 (2004), 3:43.85 (1999).
• Sun Yang also swam 3:40.29 (2011), 3:41.38 (2017), 3:41.48 (2011), 3:41.59 (2013), 3:41.68 (2016), 3:41.94 (2017), 3:42.16 (2017), 3:42.31 (2012), 3:42.44 (2019), 3:42.47 (2010), 3:42.49 (2012), 3:42.58 (2015), 3:42.75 (2019), 3:42.89 (2012), 3:42.92 (2018), 3:42.93 (2013), 3:43.23 (2014), 3:43.24 (2011), 3:43.55 (2016), 3:43.73 (2019), 3:43.79 (2019), 3:43.97 (2012).
• Oussama Mellouli also swam 3:43.45 (2008), 3:43.78 (2009).
• Zhang Lin also swam 3:42.44 (2008), 3:43.32 (2008), 3:43.58 (2009).
• Taehwan Park also swam 3:41.86 (2008), 3:42.04 (2011), 3:42.06 (2012), 3:43.15 (2014), 3:43.35 (2008), 3:43.96 (2014).
• Mack Horton also swam 3:41.65 (2016), 3:42.84 (2015), 3:43.17 (2019), 3:43.76 (2018), 3:43.84 (2016), 3:43.85 (2017).
• Grant Hackett also swam 3:42.91 (2005), 3:43.36 (2004), 3:43.48 (2002), 3:43.84 (2008).
• Larsen Jensen also swam 3:43.10 (2008), 3:43.86 (2008).
• Peter Vanderkaay also swam 3:43.20 (2009), 3:43.78 (2008), 3:43.82 (2008).
• Gabriele Detti also swam 3:43.36 (2017, 2019), 3:43.49 (2016), 3:43.93 (2016), 3:43.95 (2017), 3:43.97 (2016).
• Danas Rapsys also swam 3:43.50 (2019), 3:43.91 (2019).
• David McKeon also swam 3:43.72 (2014).
• James Guy also swam 3:43.84 (2016).

Men short course

• Correct as of November 2020

Pos	Time	Swimmer	Date	Venue
1	3:32.25	Yannick Agnel (FRA)	15 November 2012	France
2	3:32.77	Paul Biedermann (GER)	14 November 2009	Germany
3	3:33.20	Danas Rapsys (LTU)	4 December 2019	Great Britain
4	3:34.32	Peter Bernek (HUN)	5 December 2014	Qatar
5	3:34.58	Grant Hackett (AUS)	18 July 2002	Australia
6	3:34.59	Park Tae-hwan (KOR)	6 December 2016	Canada
7	3:34.63	Ian Thorpe (AUS)	21 January 2003	Sweden
8	3:34.81	Peter Vanderkaay (USA)	22 February 2009	Japan
9	3:35.30	Alexander Krasnykh (RUS)	13 December 2017	Denmark
10	3:35.75	Nikita Lobintsev (RUS)	10 December 2009	Turkey
11	3:36.35	James Guy (GBR)	5 December 2014	Qatar
12	3:36.56	Tom Dean (GBR)	21 November 2020	Budapest
13	3:36.63	Gabriele Detti (ITA)	7 April 2019	Italy
14	3:36.64	Henrik Christiansen (NOR)	11 December 2018	China
15	3:36.75	Oussama Mellouli (TUN)	15 November 2008	Germany
16	3:36.82	Mads Glaesner (DEN)	10 December 2009	Turkey
17	3:36.86	Tyler Clary (USA)	10 August 2013	Germany
18	3:37.10	Sun Yang (CHN)	24 October 2014	China
19	3:37.35	Yuriy Prilukov (RUS)	11 April 2008	Great Britain
20	3:37.45	Elijah Winnington (AUS)	27 September 2020	Australia
21	3:37.48	Felix Aubock (AUT)	26 October 2020	Budapest
22	3:37.57	Emiliano Brembilla (ITA)	10 December 2009	Turkey
		Wojciech Wojdak (POL)	2 December 2015	Israel
24	3:37.63	Thomas Fraser-Holmes (AUS)	26 November 2015	Australia
25	3:37.75	Martin Malyutin (RUS)	11 December 2008	China

Notes

Below is a list of other times equal or superior to 3:37.75:

Women long course

• Correct as of July 2019

Pos	Time	Swimmer	Date	Venue
1	3:56.46	Katie Ledecky (USA)	7 August 2016	Brazil
2	3:58.76	Ariarne Titmus (AUS)	21 July 2019	South Korea
3	3:59.15	Federica Pellegrini (ITA)	26 July 2009	Italy
4	4:00.60	Joanne Jackson (GBR)	26 July 2009	Italy
5	4:00.65	Leah Smith (USA)	27 June 2016	United States
6	4:00.79	Rebecca Adlington (GBR)	26 July 2009	Italy
7	4:01.13	Camille Muffat (FRA)	18 March 2012	France
8	4:01.23	Jazmin Carlin (GBR)	7 August 2016	Brazil
9	4:01.31	Ajna Kesely (HUN)	21 July 2019	South Korea
10	4:01.75	Li Bingjie (CHN)	1 September 2017	China
11	4:01.77	Allison Schmitt (USA)	29 July 2012	Great Britain
12	4:02.13	Laure Manaudou (FRA)	31 July 2006	Hungary
13	4:02.20	Katie Hoff (USA)	15 February 2008	United States
14	4:02.35	Chen Qian (CHN)	17 October 2009	China
15	4:02.37	Boglárka Kapás (HUN)	7 August 2016	Brazil
16	4:02.47	Melani Costa (ESP)	28 July 2013	Spain
17	4:03.02	Sharon van Rouwendaal (NED)	2 August 2015	Russia
18	4:03.11	Cao Yue (CHN)	4 September 2013	China
19	4:03.14	Wang Jianjiahe (CHN)	3 March 2018	United States
20	4:03.29	Coralie Balmy (FRA)	26 July 2009	Italy
21	4:03.34	Jessica Ashwood (AUS)	2 August 2015	Russia
22	4:03.35	Simona Quadarella (ITA)	9 August 2018	Great Britain
23	4:03.40	Kylie Palmer (AUS)	15 March 2012	Australia
24	4:03.41	Camelia Potec (ROU)	26 July 2009	Italy
25	4:03.43	Brittany MacLean (CAN)	7 August 2016	Brazil

Notes

Below is a list of other times equal or superior to 4:03.43:

• Katie Ledecky also swam 3:57.94 (2018), 3:58.34 (2017), 3:58.37 (2014), 3:58.44 (2017), 3:58.50 (2018), 3:58.71 (2016), 3:58.86 (2014), 3:58.98 (2016), 3:59.06 (2017), 3:59.09 (2018), 3:59.13 (2015), 3:59.28 (2019), 3:59.54 (2016), 3:59.82 (2013), 3:59.89 (2014), 3:59.95 (2019), 3:59.97 (2019), 4:00.31 (2016), 4:00.35 (2018), 4:00.47 (2015), 4:00.51 (2018), 4:00.98 (2017), 4:01.01 (2017), 4:01.45 (2016), 4:01.50 (2019), 4:01.68 (2019), 4:01.73 (2015), 4:01.81 (2015), 4:01.84 (2019), 4:01.95 (2015), 4:01.96 (2017), 4:01.98 (2016), 4:02.08 (2018), 4:02.15 (2016), 4:02.21 (2018), 4:02.40 (2019), 4:02.41 (2017), 4:02.44 (2019), 4:02.57 (2018), 4:02.59 (2017), 4:02.62 (2016), 4:02.67 (2015), 4:02.67 (2015), 4:02.69 (2018), 4:02.71 (2019), 4:02.87 (2019), 4:03.05 (2015), 4:03.05 (2013), 4:03.09 (2014), 4:03.09 (2014), 4:03.22 (2016).
• Ariarne Titmus also swam 3:59.35 (2019), 3:59.66 (2018, 2019), 4:00.93 (2018), 4:01.73 (2018), 4:02.36 (2018), 4:02.42 (2019), 4:02.86 (2017).
• Federica Pellegrini also swam 4:00.41 (2009), 4:01.53 (2008), 4:01.96 (2009), 4:01.97 (2011), 4:02.19 (2008).
• Joanne Jackson swam 4:00.66 (2009).
• Leah Smith also swam 4:01.29 (2019), 4:01.54 (2017), 4:01.92 (2016), 4:02.00 (2017), 4:02.21 (2018), 4:03.14 (2016), 4:03.33 (2016), 4:03.39 (2016).
• Rebecca Adlington also swam 4:02.24 (2008), 4:02.35 (2012), 4:02.84 (2011), 4:03.01 (2012).
• Camille Muffat also swam 4:01.45 (2012), 4:02.84 (2013), 4:02.97 (2012).
• Jazmin Carlin also swam 4:02.83 (2016).
• Li Bingjie also swam 4:02.52 (2017).
• Allison Schmitt also swam 4:02.51 (2009), 4:02.80 (2009), 4:02.84 (2012), 4:03.31 (2008).
• Laure Manaudou also swam 4:02.61 (2007), 4:03.03 (2006).
• Katie Hoff also swam 4:02.32 (2008), 4:03.29 (2008).

Women short course

• Correct as of November 2020

Pos	Time	Swimmer	Date	Venue
1	3:53.92	Ariarne Titmus (AUS)	14 December 2018	China
2	3:53.97	Wang Jianjiahe (CHN)	4 October 2018	Hungary
3	3:54.06	Katie Ledecky (USA)	6 October 2019	United States
4	3:54.52	Mireia Belmonte (ESP)	11 August 2013	Germany
5	3:54.85	Camille Muffat (FRA)	24 November 2012	France
6	3:54.92	Joanne Jackson (GBR)	8 August 2009	Great Britain
7	3:55.16	Lauren Boyle (NZL)	8 August 2013	Netherlands
8	3:55.89	Allison Schmitt (USA)	18 December 2009	Great Britain
9	3:56.09	Laure Manaudou (FRA)	9 December 2006	Finland
10	3:56.24	Coralie Balmy (FRA)	12 December 2009	Turkey
11	3:56.84	Melani Costa (ESP)	8 August 2013	Netherlands
12	3:57.07	Katie Hoff (USA)	17 December 2010	United Arab Emirates
13	3:57.45	Holly Hibbott (GBR)	21 December 2019	United States
14	3:57.59	Federica Pellegrini (ITA)	6 March 2011	Italy
15	3:57.76	Sharon van Rouwendall (NED)	5 December 2014	Qatar
16	3:57.78	Leah Smith (USA)	9 December 2016	Canada
17	3:57.99	Li Bingjie (CHN)	14 December 2018	China
18	3:58.02	Lotte Friis (DEN)	10 December 2011	Poland
19	3:58.07	Chloe Sutton (USA)	16 December 2011	United States
		Jazmin Carlin (GBR)	11 December 2015	United States
21	3:58.15	Boglarka Kapas (HUN)	17 December 2017	Denmark
22	3:58.25	Veronika Andrusenko (RUS)	8 November 2019	Russia
23	3:58.26	Hali Flickinger (USA)	11 December 2015	United States
24	3:58.31	Blair Evans (AUS)	9 November 2011	China
25	3:58.39	Kylie Palmer (AUS)	17 December 2010	United Arab Emirates

Notes

Below is a list of other times equal or superior to 3:58.39:

• Ariarne Titmus also swam 3:54.58 (2020).

References

1. "3 Eight Swimming Records Are Set". The New York Times. 26 November 1921. p. 20.
2. Results from 1964 US Summer Nationals
3. "3 World Records Set in Coast Swim". The New York Times. 8 July 1967. p. S20.
4. "3 Swim Marks Set By Shaw, Babashoff". The New York Times. 23 August 1974. p. 26.
5. Results from 1976 US Olympic Trials
6. Results from 1988 US Spring Nationals
7. http://www.omegatiming.com/File/Download?id=0001090B0009000000FFFFFFFFFFFF01 Results from 2009 World Aquatics Championships - Men's 400 Freestyle Final
8. http://en.espn.co.uk/onthisday/sport/story/316.html
9. "Word Cup 2009 Berlin Results Men's 400m Freestyle" (PDF). omegatiming.com. 14 November 2009. Retrieved 14 November 2009.
10. "Flash! Yannick Agnel Downs World Record in 400 Free at French Nationals". Swimming World Magazine. 15 November 2012. Retrieved 15 November 2012.
11. Results from 1960 US Olympic Trials
12. Results from 1968 US Olympic Trials
13. Results from 1978 US Summer Nationals
14. "Jackson claims new world record". BBC News. 16 March 2009.
15. Federica Pellegrini Edges World Record in 400 Free
16. "USA Swimming Senior Nationals: Katie Ledecky Sparks Crowd With WR During Day 4 Finals". Swimming World Magazine. 9 August 2014. Retrieved 10 August 2014.
17. "Katie Ledecky Breaks 400 Freestyle World Record". Associated Press. 23 August 2014. Retrieved 23 August 2014.
18. "Davis leads record setters at swim meet". The Ottawa Citizen. Section C. 9 February 1987. p. 5.
19. More Records Fall In Short-course Swimn by Jim Harding, 1997-04-20.
20. "Flash! Camille Muffat Downs 400 Free World Record; Vlad Morozov Posts Textile Best". Swimming World Magazine. 24 November 2012. Retrieved 24 November 2012.
21. "Women's 400m Freestyle Result". Omega Timing. 11 August 2013. Retrieved 11 August 2013.
22. "Women's 400m Freestyle Result". Omega Timing. 4 October 2018. Retrieved 4 October 2018.
23. "Women's 400m Freestyle Final Results". Omega Timing. 14 December 2018. Retrieved 14 December 2018.

External links

• International Olympic Committee
• Sports Records
• New Zealand Short Course Open Records