Massachusetts to Rhode Island

Distance from Cambridge to Providence

Straight-line distance

41.2mi

Cambridge, MA and Providence, RI are 41.2 miles (66.3 km) apart in a straight line. From Cambridge, the shortest path starts out heading SSW (202°).

kilometers
66.3
nautical miles
35.8
heading from Cambridge
202° SSW
heading from Providence
22° NNE
CambridgeProvidence

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

How far Cambridge is from Providence

The great-circle distance between the Census internal points of Cambridge and Providence is 41.2 miles, 66.3 km or 35.8 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 41.2 miles, practically the same at this range.

Measurements

Miles
41.2
Kilometers
66.3
Nautical miles
35.8
Bearing from Cambridge
202.0° SSW
Bearing arriving at Providence
201.8°
Bearing from Providence
21.8° NNE

Halfway between Cambridge and Providence

The great-circle midpoint is at 42.099648, -71.269404 (42°05'58.73"N 71°16'9.86"W). The nearest incorporated place of 1,000 or more people is Franklin Town, MA, with 33,742 residents, 7.3 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, Cambridge gets 15 h 17 min of daylight and Providence 15 h 13 min; on December 21, 9 h 04 min and 9 h 08 min. Cambridge is 0.55° farther north, so it has the longer summer days and the shorter winter ones.

Population compared

Providence has 1.6 times the population of Cambridge. From July 2020 to July 2024, Cambridge changed by +2.5% and Providence by +2.0%. The trip crosses from Massachusetts into Rhode Island.

  1. 01Cambridge, MA121,186 (+2.5%)
  2. 02Providence, RI194,706 (+2.0%)
July 1, 2024 population and change since July 2020, Census Vintage 2024.

Questions people ask

How far is Cambridge from Providence?

41.2 miles, 66.3 km or 35.8 nautical miles along the great circle between the two Census internal points. Road distance is longer.

Which direction is Providence from Cambridge?

SSW. The great-circle path leaves Cambridge on a bearing of 202.0° and arrives at Providence on 201.8°. The return trip starts on 21.8°.

What is halfway between Cambridge and Providence?

The midpoint is at 42.099648, -71.269404. The nearest incorporated place of 1,000+ is Franklin Town, MA, 7.3 miles from it.

Is there a time difference between Cambridge and Providence?

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

Which is bigger, Cambridge or Providence?

Providence, with 194,706 residents in July 2024 against 121,186 for Cambridge, 1.6 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.