Skip to content
My Current Elevation

What Is My Elevation?

Find how high above sea level you are right now, in feet and meters. Tap the button, or search an address, enter coordinates or click the map.

    Decimal (39.7392, -104.9903) or DMS (39°44'21"N 104°59'25"W).

    Or click the map

    Loading map…

    Map: USGS The National Map topographic basemap (US coverage).

    Your elevation

    —ft

    Choose a location to see its elevation.

    By Ankit Kumar · Updated

    What your result means

    Feet (large) and meters
    How high the ground at your position is above the sea-level reference (NAVD 88 in the contiguous US). A minus sign means below it.
    Place and coordinates
    Where the tool measured: a place name and the exact latitude and longitude. If the place is wrong, your device located you poorly; try again outdoors or search an address.
    Accuracy line
    How close the value should be, from the published accuracy of the elevation data and your device's location accuracy. "How accurate is this?" shows each part.
    Data sources
    The dataset that answered: USGS 3DEP in the US, Terrain Tiles elsewhere, with required credits.
    Life at this elevation
    The temperature water boils at, air pressure and oxygen per breath compared with sea level, each linked to a calculator filled in with your elevation.

    What each elevation means

    Standard-atmosphere figures for common elevations, with the thresholds USDA and the CDC use.

    ElevationWater boils atAir pressureOxygen per breathNote
    0 ft (0 m)212.0 °F29.92 inHg100%Sea level
    1,000 ft (305 m)210.2 °F28.86 inHg96%
    2,000 ft (610 m)208.4 °F27.82 inHg93%
    3,000 ft (914 m)206.5 °F26.82 inHg90%USDA: high altitude for cooking starts here
    5,280 ft (1,609 m)202.4 °F24.64 inHg82%One mile
    8,000 ft (2,438 m)197.4 °F22.22 inHg74%CDC: altitude illness risk when sleeping at about this height or higher
    10,000 ft (3,048 m)193.8 °F20.58 inHg69%
    14,000 ft (4,267 m)186.4 °F17.58 inHg59%Summits of the Colorado and California 14ers

    Thresholds: USDA FSIS (cooking) and CDC Yellow Book(altitude illness; general information, not medical advice). Oxygen per breath is the share of sea-level air pressure, from the U.S. Standard Atmosphere.

    Elevation of US cities, highs and lows

    Selected cities (downtown, USGS)

    Denver, CO5,276 ft1,608 m
    Albuquerque, NM4,955 ft1,510 m
    Salt Lake City, UT4,264 ft1,300 m
    Boise, ID2,700 ft823 m
    Tucson, AZ2,481 ft756 m
    Las Vegas, NV1,996 ft608 m
    Oklahoma City, OK1,196 ft365 m
    Phoenix, AZ1,088 ft332 m
    Atlanta, GA1,050 ft320 m
    Nashville, TN555 ft169 m
    Austin, TX487 ft148 m
    Boston, MA48 ft15 m
    Philadelphia, PA35 ft11 m
    Honolulu, HI19 ft6 m
    Providence, RI9 ft3 m

    US highs and lows

    Highest point in the US
    Denali, Alaska    		20,310 ft6,191 m
    Lowest point in the US
    Badwater Basin, Death Valley, California    		-282 ft-86 m
    Highest state capital (downtown)
    Santa Fe, NM    		6,997 ft2,133 m
    Lowest state capital (downtown)
    Providence, RI    		9 ft3 m

    Each linked page lists its source. More in US elevation by state.

    Worked examples

    At the Colorado State Capitol

    A point at the Capitol building in Denver (39.73924, −104.98486) returns 5,276 ft (1,608 m) from USGS 3DEP, a few feet short of a mile. At that elevation water boils at about 202.4 °F and each breath holds about 82% of the oxygen it would at sea level.

    Mount Elbert: map data vs. a survey mark

    Colorado's highest point has an official surveyed height of 14,440 ft (NOAA National Geodetic Survey datasheet KL0637). The highest USGS 3DEP value near the summit is 14,432 ft, 8 ft lower. Elevation models describe the ground in small cells, so sharp summits read slightly low; for named peaks, use the surveyed figure on the peak page.

    Below sea level in Death Valley

    Badwater Basin is 282 ft below sea level, the lowest point in the US (USGS). The result card shows a negative number and says "below sea level"; water there boils slightly above 212 °F.

    How it works

    1. Tap Find my elevation and allow location access when your browser asks. Without it, search a US street address, type coordinates or click the map.
    2. Our server looks up the ground elevation at those coordinates: from the USGS Elevation Point Query Service (3D Elevation Program) in the US, and from Terrain Tiles elsewhere.
    3. The result shows feet first and meters below, with the data's published accuracy and your device's location accuracy.
    4. Every result has its own link (the coordinates are in the address bar), so you can share or bookmark it.

    Accuracy and limitations

    • Elevation data: USGS reports an overall vertical accuracy (RMSE) of about 0.53 m (1.7 ft) for 3DEP. Outside the US, accuracy depends on the source data for that country.
    • Your position: on a slope, a small sideways location error changes the elevation. Indoors GPS is less precise; try near a window or outdoors.
    • Ground, not you: the value is bare earth. Floors, towers and aircraft are not included.
    • Summits and cliffs: elevation models smooth sharp features, so peaks read a little low; surveyed heights are on our mountain pages.
    • Reference surface: US values are above NAVD 88, not the raw height a GPS receiver calculates from its own model of the Earth.

    How we measure elevation and how accurate it is

    Glossary

    Elevation:
    the height of the ground at a place above sea level. It does not change.
    Altitude:
    the height of something above sea level or the ground, such as a plane; it changes as it moves.
    NAVD 88:
    the surveyed reference surface for official US heights, standing in for mean sea level (NOAA).
    3DEP:
    the USGS 3D Elevation Program, the national elevation dataset (USGS).

    Frequently asked questions

    How can I find the elevation of my location?

    Tap "Find my elevation" and allow location access. The tool looks up the surveyed ground elevation at your position and shows it in feet and meters. Without location access, search an address, type coordinates or click the map.

    Can Google Maps tell me my elevation?

    Not as a number for your spot. The Terrain layer shows contour lines you can read roughly, but there is no elevation readout for a point. This tool gives the value directly, from USGS data in the US.

    Can my phone tell my elevation?

    Many compass and GPS apps show an altitude from the phone's GPS or barometer. GPS altitude is usually less precise than GPS position, and barometer readings drift with the weather. This tool uses your phone only to find where you are, then looks up the mapped ground elevation there.

    Is 2,000 ft considered high altitude?

    Not by the usual thresholds. USDA treats 3,000 ft and above as high altitude for cooking, and the CDC puts the risk of altitude illness at sleeping elevations of about 8,000 ft or higher. At 2,000 ft water boils at about 208 °F instead of 212 °F.

    How accurate is my elevation?

    In the United States the value comes from the USGS 3D Elevation Program, which USGS reports has an overall vertical accuracy (RMSE) of about 0.53 m (1.7 ft). The result also depends on how precisely your device located you; the card shows both under "How accurate is this?".

    Why is this different from the altitude my phone shows?

    A phone's GPS altitude is an estimate from satellite signals and is usually less precise vertically than horizontally, and GPS measures height from a different reference surface than sea level. This tool uses your position only to find where you are, then looks up the surveyed ground elevation at that point.

    Why is my elevation negative?

    A minus sign means the ground is below the sea-level reference (NAVD 88 in the contiguous US). Badwater Basin in Death Valley, at 282 ft below sea level, is the lowest point in the United States.

    What is the elevation of my house?

    Use elevation by address: search your street address, then click your roof or yard on the map for the ground at the house itself.

    Is the elevation for the ground or for where I am standing?

    For the ground at your position. If you are on an upper floor or in a plane, add your height above the ground yourself.

    Does it work outside the United States?

    Yes. Outside the US the elevation comes from Terrain Tiles, an open dataset that blends national and global elevation models. Accuracy varies by country; the result card shows the published figure for the data used at your spot when one exists.

    What is the difference between elevation and altitude?

    Elevation is the height of a point on the ground above sea level. Altitude is the height of something above sea level or the ground, such as a plane, and changes as it moves. This tool reports elevation.

    Is my location saved?

    Your coordinates are sent to our server to look up the elevation, and the result is stored by coordinates for up to 90 days so repeat lookups are fast. We do not store it with anything that identifies you. The lookup itself goes to the data providers listed under Sources.

    Sources

    How each number is produced: methodology and data sources.

    More elevation and location tools

    Once you know your elevation, the next questions are usually practical: what temperature your water boils at, how to adjust canning and baking, and how much oxygen each breath has. For a house or another spot, use elevation by address.

    Popular tools

    All tools by category

    All 28 tools, with how each one works

    Elevation

    Where am I?

    Altitude & atmosphere

    Fitness & hiking

    Maps & math

    Printable maps

    Printable maps of all 50 states and the US

    Blank, county, city and shaded elevation maps for every state, as 300 dpi PNG and PDF.

    Elevation by state

    US elevation by state: highs, lows and averages

    Each state page has its highest and lowest points, a sampled average elevation, the capital and the largest cities. Figure shown: highest point.

    Studies

    All elevation data studies

    Original research from the same USGS and Census data, with every number sourced and the dataset free to reuse.

    • Data study

      Every US State Capital Ranked by Elevation

      Santa Fe, NM sits highest at 6,997 ft downtown; Providence, RI lowest at 9 ft.

      All 50 capitals by USGS downtown elevation, with the range inside city limits, boiling point, oxygen, and how each capital compares with its state.

      Published