California

Distance from Carlsbad to San Diego

Straight-line distance

23.4mi

Carlsbad, CA and San Diego, CA are 23.4 miles (37.6 km) apart in a straight line. From Carlsbad, the shortest path starts out heading SSE (158°).

kilometers
37.6
nautical miles
20.3
heading from Carlsbad
158° SSE
heading from San Diego
338° NNW
CarlsbadSan Diego

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

How far Carlsbad is from San Diego

The great-circle distance between the Census internal points of Carlsbad and San Diego is 23.4 miles, 37.6 km or 20.3 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 23.4 miles, practically the same at this range.

Measurements

Miles
23.4
Kilometers
37.6
Nautical miles
20.3
Bearing from Carlsbad
158.3° SSE
Bearing arriving at San Diego
158.4°
Bearing from San Diego
338.4° NNW

Halfway between Carlsbad and San Diego

The great-circle midpoint is at 32.972172, -117.209768 (32°58'19.82"N 117°12'35.16"W). The nearest incorporated place of 1,000 or more people is Del Mar, CA, with 3,902 residents, 3.0 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, Carlsbad gets 14 h 21 min of daylight and San Diego 14 h 19 min; on December 21, 9 h 58 min and 9 h 59 min. The two sit at nearly the same latitude, so their day lengths match closely all year.

Population compared

San Diego has 12.4 times the population of Carlsbad. From July 2020 to July 2024, Carlsbad changed by -1.2% and San Diego by +1.4%. Both are in California.

  1. 01Carlsbad, CA113,575 (-1.2%)
  2. 02San Diego, CA1,404,452 (+1.4%)
July 1, 2024 population and change since July 2020, Census Vintage 2024.

Questions people ask

How far is Carlsbad from San Diego?

23.4 miles, 37.6 km or 20.3 nautical miles along the great circle between the two Census internal points. Road distance is longer.

Which direction is San Diego from Carlsbad?

SSE. The great-circle path leaves Carlsbad on a bearing of 158.3° and arrives at San Diego on 158.4°. The return trip starts on 338.4°.

What is halfway between Carlsbad and San Diego?

The midpoint is at 32.972172, -117.209768. The nearest incorporated place of 1,000+ is Del Mar, CA, 3.0 miles from it.

Is there a time difference between Carlsbad and San Diego?

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

Which is bigger, Carlsbad or San Diego?

San Diego, with 1,404,452 residents in July 2024 against 113,575 for Carlsbad, 12.4 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.