Massachusetts

Distance from Boston to Lowell

Straight-line distance

25.9mi

Boston, MA and Lowell, MA are 25.9 miles (41.6 km) apart in a straight line. From Boston, the shortest path starts out heading NW (323°).

kilometers
41.6
nautical miles
22.5
heading from Boston
323° NW
heading from Lowell
143° SE
BostonLowell

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

How far Boston is from Lowell

The great-circle distance between the Census internal points of Boston and Lowell is 25.9 miles, 41.6 km or 22.5 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 25.9 miles, practically the same at this range.

Measurements

Miles
25.9
Kilometers
41.6
Nautical miles
22.5
Bearing from Boston
323.5° NW
Bearing arriving at Lowell
323.3°
Bearing from Lowell
143.3° SE

Halfway between Boston and Lowell

The great-circle midpoint is at 42.488900, -71.169287 (42°29'20.04"N 71°10'9.43"W). The nearest incorporated place of 1,000 or more people is Woburn, MA, with 43,895 residents, 0.7 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/New_York, so there is no time difference. On June 21, Boston gets 15 h 17 min of daylight and Lowell 15 h 19 min; on December 21, 9 h 05 min and 9 h 03 min. The two sit at nearly the same latitude, so their day lengths match closely all year.

Population compared

Boston has 5.6 times the population of Lowell. From July 2020 to July 2024, Boston changed by -0.3% and Lowell by +4.0%. Both are in Massachusetts.

  1. 01Boston, MA673,458 (-0.3%)
  2. 02Lowell, MA120,418 (+4.0%)
July 1, 2024 population and change since July 2020, Census Vintage 2024.

Questions people ask

How far is Boston from Lowell?

25.9 miles, 41.6 km or 22.5 nautical miles along the great circle between the two Census internal points. Road distance is longer.

Which direction is Lowell from Boston?

NW. The great-circle path leaves Boston on a bearing of 323.5° and arrives at Lowell on 323.3°. The return trip starts on 143.3°.

What is halfway between Boston and Lowell?

The midpoint is at 42.488900, -71.169287. The nearest incorporated place of 1,000+ is Woburn, MA, 0.7 miles from it.

Is there a time difference between Boston and Lowell?

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

Which is bigger, Boston or Lowell?

Boston, with 673,458 residents in July 2024 against 120,418 for Lowell, 5.6 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.