California

Distance from Bakersfield to Palmdale

Straight-line distance

74.6mi

Bakersfield, CA and Palmdale, CA are 74.6 miles (120.0 km) apart in a straight line. From Bakersfield, the shortest path starts out heading SE (135°).

kilometers
120.0
nautical miles
64.8
heading from Bakersfield
135° SE
heading from Palmdale
315° NW
BakersfieldPalmdale

Orange line: great-circle path · ring: midpoint · thin lines: county borders

How far Bakersfield is from Palmdale

The great-circle distance between the Census internal points of Bakersfield and Palmdale is 74.6 miles, 120.0 km or 64.8 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 74.6 miles, practically the same at this range.

Measurements

Miles
74.6
Kilometers
120.0
Nautical miles
64.8
Bearing from Bakersfield
134.7° SE
Bearing arriving at Palmdale
135.2°
Bearing from Palmdale
315.2° NW

Halfway between Bakersfield and Palmdale

The great-circle midpoint is at 34.972991, -118.569481 (34°58'22.77"N 118°34'10.13"W). The nearest incorporated place of 1,000 or more people is Tehachapi, CA, with 11,114 residents, 13.7 miles from the midpoint. To find towns near the midpoint of any two places, use the halfway tool.

Time zones and daylight

Both use America/Los_Angeles, so there is no time difference. On June 21, Bakersfield gets 14 h 33 min of daylight and Palmdale 14 h 29 min; on December 21, 9 h 46 min and 9 h 50 min. Bakersfield is 0.76° farther north, so it has the longer summer days and the shorter winter ones.

Population compared

Bakersfield has 2.6 times the population of Palmdale. From July 2020 to July 2024, Bakersfield changed by +3.0% and Palmdale by -3.8%. Both are in California.

  1. 01Bakersfield, CA417,468 (+3.0%)
  2. 02Palmdale, CA162,536 (-3.8%)
July 1, 2024 population and change since July 2020, Census Vintage 2024.

Questions people ask

How far is Bakersfield from Palmdale?

74.6 miles, 120.0 km or 64.8 nautical miles along the great circle between the two Census internal points. Road distance is longer.

Which direction is Palmdale from Bakersfield?

SE. The great-circle path leaves Bakersfield on a bearing of 134.7° and arrives at Palmdale on 135.2°. The return trip starts on 315.2°.

What is halfway between Bakersfield and Palmdale?

The midpoint is at 34.972991, -118.569481. The nearest incorporated place of 1,000+ is Tehachapi, CA, 13.7 miles from it.

Is there a time difference between Bakersfield and Palmdale?

Both use America/Los_Angeles, so there is no time difference.

Which is bigger, Bakersfield or Palmdale?

Bakersfield, with 417,468 residents in July 2024 against 162,536 for Palmdale, 2.6 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.