Alaska to Washington

Distance from Anchorage to Tacoma

Straight-line distance

1,430.6mi

Anchorage, AK and Tacoma, WA are 1,430.6 miles (2,302.4 km) apart in a straight line. From Anchorage, the shortest path starts out heading ESE (120°).

kilometers
2,302.4
nautical miles
1,243.2
heading from Anchorage
120° ESE
heading from Tacoma
322° NW
AnchorageTacoma

Orange line: great-circle path · ring: midpoint

How far Anchorage is from Tacoma

The great-circle distance between the Census internal points of Anchorage and Tacoma is 1,430.6 miles, 2,302.4 km or 1,243.2 nautical miles. That is the shortest path over the Earth's surface, computed with the haversine formula on a sphere with the mean Earth radius, 6,371.0 km. A course held on one compass bearing (a rhumb line) would be 1,439.4 miles, 8.7 miles longer.

Measurements

Miles
1,430.6
Kilometers
2,302.4
Nautical miles
1,243.2
Bearing from Anchorage
120.0° ESE
Bearing arriving at Tacoma
142.0°
Bearing from Tacoma
322.0° NW

Halfway between Anchorage and Tacoma

The great-circle midpoint is at 54.939509, -133.559240 (54°56'22.23"N 133°33'33.26"W). The nearest incorporated place of 1,000 or more people is Craig, AK, with 1,051 residents, 41.8 miles from the midpoint. To find towns near the midpoint of any two places, use the halfway tool.

Time zones and daylight

Anchorage uses America/Anchorage and Tacoma uses America/Los_Angeles; Tacoma is 1 hour ahead all year. On June 21, Anchorage gets 19 h 21 min of daylight and Tacoma 15 h 56 min; on December 21, 5 h 28 min and 8 h 28 min. Anchorage is 13.92° farther north, so it has the longer summer days and the shorter winter ones.

Population compared

Anchorage has 1.3 times the population of Tacoma. From July 2020 to July 2024, Anchorage changed by -0.4% and Tacoma by +3.8%. The trip crosses from Alaska into Washington.

  1. 01Anchorage, AK289,600 (-0.4%)
  2. 02Tacoma, WA228,202 (+3.8%)
July 1, 2024 population and change since July 2020, Census Vintage 2024.

Questions people ask

How far is Anchorage from Tacoma?

1,430.6 miles, 2,302.4 km or 1,243.2 nautical miles along the great circle between the two Census internal points. Road distance is longer.

Which direction is Tacoma from Anchorage?

ESE. The great-circle path leaves Anchorage on a bearing of 120.0° and arrives at Tacoma on 142.0°. The return trip starts on 322.0°.

What is halfway between Anchorage and Tacoma?

The midpoint is at 54.939509, -133.559240. The nearest incorporated place of 1,000+ is Craig, AK, 41.8 miles from it.

Is there a time difference between Anchorage and Tacoma?

Anchorage uses America/Anchorage and Tacoma uses America/Los_Angeles; Tacoma is 1 hour ahead all year.

Which is bigger, Anchorage or Tacoma?

Anchorage, with 289,600 residents in July 2024 against 228,202 for Tacoma, 1.3 times as many.

Sources and data as of

Data as of: Census 2024 Gazetteer internal points and Vintage 2024 estimates; time zones from Open-Meteo.

  1. 01Census 2024 Gazetteer, places
  2. 02Census Vintage 2024 subcounty population estimates
  3. 03SunCalc library (Vladimir Agafonkin), algorithms after Jean Meeus
  4. 04IANA time zone database (clock times and daylight saving rules)

How every number is computed: methodology. Spotted a wrong figure? Report an error.