Distance Between Coordinates
Find the great-circle (as-the-crow-flies) distance and bearing between two latitude and longitude points.
About the Distance Between Coordinates
Enter two points as latitude and longitude in decimal degrees. The calculator gives the great-circle distance in kilometres, miles and nautical miles, and the starting compass bearing.
The haversine formula gives the shortest distance over the Earth's surface, treating Earth as a sphere with the mean radius 6,371.0088 km. The result is within about 0.5% of the more exact ellipsoid (Vincenty) distance. London to New York is about 5,570 km.
The formula
d = 2R · asin(√(sin²(Δφ/2) + cos φ₁ cos φ₂ sin²(Δλ/2)))
Worked example
London (51.5074, −0.1278) to New York (40.7128, −74.006)
- 5,570.2 km = 3,461.2 miles
- 3,007.7 nautical miles
- Initial bearing 288° (west-north-west)
Questions people ask
Where do I get coordinates?
Right-click a place in Google Maps or use your phone's compass app.
Why isn't it the driving distance?
It's a straight line over the globe; roads are longer.