Men's 60 metres world record progression
The following table shows the world record progression in the men's indoor 60 metres, as recognised by the IAAF. The IAAF have officially ratified world indoor records since 1 January 1987. Previous to this, they were regarded as world indoor bests.
Ben Johnson's 6.41 secs at the 1987 IAAF World Indoor Championships was deleted as the world record in 1989 when Johnson was stripped of his records as part of his punishment for drug offences. Lee McRae replaced Johnson as world record holder with his 6.50 secs from the same competition.
World Record Progression
| Time | Athlete | Date | Place | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6.54 |  Houston McTear (USA) | 7 January 1978 | Long Beach, United States | |
| 6.54 |  Steffen Bringmann (GDR) | 15 February 1986 | Senftenberg, Germany | |
| 6.53 |  Marian Woronin (POL) | 7 February 1987 | Zabrze, Poland | |
| 6.52 | Marian Woronin (POL) | 21 February 1987 | Liévin, France | |
| 6.51 | Marian Woronin (POL) | 21 February 1987 | Liévin, France | |
| IAAF ratified records | ||||
| 6.50 | Lee McRae (USA) | 7 March 1987 | Indianapolis, United States | |
| 6.48 | Leroy Burrell (USA) | 13 February 1991 | Madrid, Spain | |
| 6.45 | Andre Cason (USA) | 29 January 1992 | Ghent, Belgium | |
| 6.41 | Andre Cason (USA) | 14 February 1992 | Madrid, Spain | |
| 6.41 | Maurice Greene (USA) | 1 February 1998 | Stuttgart, Germany | |
| 6.39 | Maurice Greene (USA) | 3 February 1998 | Madrid, Spain | |
| 6.39 | Maurice Greene (USA) | 3 March 2001 | Atlanta, United States | |
Note: Bringmann and Woronin's performances were not regarded as world indoor bests / records, as Ben Johnson ran 6.50 in
January 1986 and 6.44 in January 1987. In total, Johnson ran ten annulled times in the 6.41 to 6.50 range between 1986 and 1988.