# Is there a web-site to calculate the distance between two locations? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 6, 2006, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-web-site-to-calculate-the-distance-between-two-locations/367614 "2006-08-06T22:18:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2006, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-web-site-to-calculate-the-distance-between-two-locations/367614/1 "2006-08-06T22:18:25Z")
**Inspired by [Zeldar’s thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=382841).** If I know where I am, and I know where the closest town on a coast is, is there a web-site that I can plug the two town names (or long/lats) into, and get the distance? I suppose I could dig out an atlas and ruler and do some measuring and ciphering, but this is the oughts, dammit! what’s this internet thingamjig good for if not to help us lazies? (plus there’s that Great Circle thing, and my spherical geometry has never been that good…) anyone? ---
**Author:** ![Nawth\_Chucka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c57346/32.png) [@Nawth\_Chucka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nawth_Chucka)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2006, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-web-site-to-calculate-the-distance-between-two-locations/367614/2 "2006-08-06T22:22:28Z")
[www.mapquest.com](http://www.mapquest.com), click on the Directions tab. Put in the city names if you know them. It won’t be down to the exact tenth of a mile, but durn near. ---
**Author:** ![racer72](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/racer72/32/3075_2.png) [@racer72](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/racer72)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2006, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-web-site-to-calculate-the-distance-between-two-locations/367614/3 "2006-08-06T22:25:00Z")
I used Google Earth. I pin tacked my location then selected tools:measure. ---
**Author:** ![Alive\_At\_Both\_Ends](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/73ab20/32.png) [@Alive\_At\_Both\_Ends](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alive_At_Both_Ends)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2006, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-web-site-to-calculate-the-distance-between-two-locations/367614/4 "2006-08-06T22:25:04Z")
There are lots of sites that will do this. Google “distance calculation” for a selection of them. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2006, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-web-site-to-calculate-the-distance-between-two-locations/367614/5 "2006-08-06T22:29:32Z")
thanks, but that site assumes that there are roads linking the two locations. that’s not the case for me - the only way to get there from here is by air or railroad (if i’m right in thinking where the closest coast for me is). that’s why I mentioned long/lat - is there a web-site that just calculates the difference betwee two different locations on the globe, without worrying about trivialities such as road links? ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2006, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-web-site-to-calculate-the-distance-between-two-locations/367614/6 "2006-08-06T22:47:47Z")
oops - post #5 was commenting on the Mapquest program **Nawth Chucka** suggested. so I googled ‘Distance Calculation’ as **Alive at Both Ends** suggested and found this handy site: [Surface Distance between Two Points of of Latitude and Longitude](http://www.chemical-ecology.net/java/lat-long.htm). Using it, I confirmed that my closest coast is not accessible by road. ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2006, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-web-site-to-calculate-the-distance-between-two-locations/367614/7 "2006-08-07T04:41:34Z")
There is also the [Bali & Indonesia tourism site](http://www.indo.com/distance/) that lets one use latitude/longitude or (major) world cities or U.S. cities plus states to calculate distances. ---
**Author:** ![corkboard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e9bcb4/32.png) [@corkboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/corkboard)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2006, 12:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-web-site-to-calculate-the-distance-between-two-locations/367614/8 "2006-08-07T12:37:55Z")
[Ask.com](http://Ask.com). Type how far is it from [location #1] to [location #2]? Your result should appear above the links, in miles and kilometers. Example: How far is it from Walla Walla, WA to Athens, Greece? Answer: The distance between Walla Walla, WA and Athens, Greece is 6174.0 miles(9937.0 km) ---
**Author:** ![SmackFu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/53a042/32.png) [@SmackFu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmackFu)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2006, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-web-site-to-calculate-the-distance-between-two-locations/367614/9 "2006-08-07T17:31:17Z")
I’ve always found the Great Circle Mapper to be very useful for this kind of thing: [http://gc.kls2.com/](http://gc.kls2.com/)