Measure the straight-line, road, and flight distance between two cities or any two coordinates, with driving estimates shown only where a road route actually exists.
Change the inputs that matter to your decision. Optional assumptions stay collapsed until you need them.
Pick two cities, or switch to coordinates for any point on Earth.
Every estimate below is derived from these figures, so you can adjust them.
3,461 miles in a straight line. There is no road route, so this is a flight or sea journey.
These places are on separate road networks, so only a flight or sea crossing connects them.
| Straight line | 3,461 milesGreat circle, heading northeast (51°) |
|---|---|
| By road | Not availableNo continuous road route connects these two places. |
| By air | 3,669 miles7h 20m airborne plus a 30 minute terminal allowance; excludes connections |
Straight-line distance uses the haversine formula on a spherical Earth. Road and flight figures are estimates from the assumptions above, not routed distances from a mapping or airline service.
Practical notes about the inputs, assumptions, and result.
The two places sit on separate road networks. New York and Tokyo are the obvious case, but so are Panama City and Bogotá: the Darién Gap breaks the Pan-American Highway, so no continuous road connects North and South America. Rather than multiply an ocean crossing by a detour factor, the calculator states that no road route exists.
It is a planning estimate, not a routed distance. Real road distance is typically 1.2 to 1.3 times the straight line on long highway routes, which is why the circuity factor is editable rather than hidden. For an exact figure, use a mapping service.
It is the shortest distance across the surface of the Earth between two points, the path an aircraft approximates. It is always shorter than a road route and shorter than an actual flight track.
A 30 minute allowance is added for taxi, climb, descent, and terminal-area sequencing. The figure still excludes connections, holding, and time spent at the airport.
Yes. Switch the locator to Coordinates and enter latitude and longitude for both ends. Road feasibility cannot be established for arbitrary points, so the road estimate is shown but explicitly marked as assuming a route exists.
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