North Carolina

Distance from Cary to Raleigh

Straight-line distance

10.8mi

Cary, NC and Raleigh, NC are 10.8 miles (17.4 km) apart in a straight line. From Cary, the shortest path starts out heading ENE (71°).

kilometers
17.4
nautical miles
9.4
heading from Cary
71° ENE
heading from Raleigh
251° WSW
CaryRaleigh

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

How far Cary is from Raleigh

The great-circle distance between the Census internal points of Cary and Raleigh is 10.8 miles, 17.4 km or 9.4 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 10.8 miles, practically the same at this range.

Measurements

Miles
10.8
Kilometers
17.4
Nautical miles
9.4
Bearing from Cary
71.1° ENE
Bearing arriving at Raleigh
71.2°
Bearing from Raleigh
251.2° WSW

Halfway between Cary and Raleigh

The great-circle midpoint is at 35.806634, -78.732229 (35°48'23.88"N 78°43'56.02"W). The nearest incorporated place of 1,000 or more people is Raleigh, NC, with 499,825 residents, 5.4 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, Cary gets 14 h 35 min of daylight and Raleigh 14 h 36 min; on December 21, 9 h 44 min and 9 h 44 min. The two sit at nearly the same latitude, so their day lengths match closely all year.

Population compared

Raleigh has 2.7 times the population of Cary. From July 2020 to July 2024, Cary changed by +4.5% and Raleigh by +7.3%. Both are in North Carolina.

  1. 01Cary, NC182,659 (+4.5%)
  2. 02Raleigh, NC499,825 (+7.3%)
July 1, 2024 population and change since July 2020, Census Vintage 2024.

Questions people ask

How far is Cary from Raleigh?

10.8 miles, 17.4 km or 9.4 nautical miles along the great circle between the two Census internal points. Road distance is longer.

Which direction is Raleigh from Cary?

ENE. The great-circle path leaves Cary on a bearing of 71.1° and arrives at Raleigh on 71.2°. The return trip starts on 251.2°.

What is halfway between Cary and Raleigh?

The midpoint is at 35.806634, -78.732229. The nearest incorporated place of 1,000+ is Raleigh, NC, 5.4 miles from it.

Is there a time difference between Cary and Raleigh?

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

Which is bigger, Cary or Raleigh?

Raleigh, with 499,825 residents in July 2024 against 182,659 for Cary, 2.7 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.