Distance between two cities calculator
How far is it from one place to another? Type two cities, addresses or coordinates for the straight-line distance, flight time, compass bearing and time difference.
51.5000°, -0.1167° · Europe/London
40.7500°, -73.9800° · America/New York
WGS-84 ellipsoid (Vincenty). Spherical haversine gives 5,567 km. Flight time assumes 800 km/h cruise + 30 min for taxi, climb and descent.
What the numbers mean
Distance as the crow flies is the length of the shortest path across the Earth’s surface between two points, ignoring roads, borders and terrain. Airlines, sailors and radio engineers all start from this number. We compute it on the WGS-84 ellipsoid, the same model GPS uses, so the result accounts for the Earth being slightly flattened at the poles.
Initial bearing is the compass direction you would set off in. On a long route it changes along the way: London to New York starts out heading west-north-west and arrives heading south-west. See the bearing calculator for final bearing and the constant-heading alternative.
Time difference uses each location’s current official time zone, including daylight saving time today. For planning calls across several zones use the meeting planner.
Why the shortest route bends toward the pole
Flights from Europe to North America pass near Greenland, and flights from the US to Asia cross Alaska. It is not a detour: on a globe, the shortest line between two cities at similar latitudes arcs poleward. Drag the globe above to see it, or open the great circle distance calculator to compare the great circle with a constant-compass route step by step.
Popular city-to-city distances
- New York to London
- New York to Paris
- New York to Tokyo
- New York to Los Angeles
- New York to Sydney
- New York to Dubai
- New York to Singapore
- New York to Hong Kong
- New York to Toronto
- New York to Chicago
- New York to San Francisco
- New York to Delhi
- New York to Mumbai
- New York to Bangkok
- New York to Berlin
- London to Paris
- London to Tokyo
- London to Los Angeles
All city distance pages, including US city pairs → · Time difference between cities →
Frequently asked questions
How is the distance between two cities calculated?
CoordKit takes the latitude and longitude of each city centre and computes the shortest path over the Earth’s surface (the great-circle distance) on the WGS-84 ellipsoid using Vincenty’s formula. That is the “as the crow flies” distance, accurate to within metres for the two points chosen.
Is this the driving distance?
No. It is the straight-line distance over the globe. Road distance is usually 20–40% longer depending on terrain and the road network, and sea or rail routes differ again. Use the straight-line figure for flight planning, rough travel comparisons and radius questions.
Why does the route curve on a flat map?
The shortest path on a sphere is an arc of a great circle. Flat maps such as Mercator stretch high latitudes, so that arc looks curved and bent toward the pole, while a straight line on the map is actually longer. The globe on this page shows the true shortest path.
Can I measure between an address and a city, or raw coordinates?
Yes. Each box accepts a city name, pasted coordinates in decimal or degrees-minutes-seconds format, or a street address, which is looked up on OpenStreetMap.
How do I measure the distance between two places on Google Maps?
On a computer, right-click the starting point and choose “Measure distance”, then click the destination; on a phone, drop a pin, open it and choose “Measure distance”. That gives the same straight-line figure as this calculator, which also adds bearing, flight time and time difference and accepts pasted coordinates.
How many miles is 1,000 km?
621.4 miles. One statute mile is exactly 1.609344 km, and one nautical mile is exactly 1.852 km. Switch units with the buttons under the calculator; your choice is remembered.
How accurate is the flight time?
It is an estimate: 30 minutes for taxi, climb and descent plus cruise at about 800 km/h. Real schedules vary with winds (jet streams can change a transatlantic flight by an hour), routing and airport congestion.