Iowa to Minnesota

Distance from Des Moines to Minneapolis

Straight-line distance

234.9mi

Des Moines, IA and Minneapolis, MN are 234.9 miles (378.0 km) apart in a straight line. From Des Moines, the shortest path starts out heading N (4°).

kilometers
378.0
nautical miles
204.1
heading from Des Moines
4° N
heading from Minneapolis
184° S
Des MoinesMinneapolis

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

How far Des Moines is from Minneapolis

The great-circle distance between the Census internal points of Des Moines and Minneapolis is 234.9 miles, 378.0 km or 204.1 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 234.9 miles, practically the same at this range.

Measurements

Miles
234.9
Kilometers
378.0
Nautical miles
204.1
Bearing from Des Moines
4.1° N
Bearing arriving at Minneapolis
4.3°
Bearing from Minneapolis
184.3° S

Halfway between Des Moines and Minneapolis

The great-circle midpoint is at 43.268077, -93.444013 (43°16'5.08"N 93°26'38.45"W). The nearest incorporated place of 1,000 or more people is Forest City, IA, with 4,199 residents, 9.7 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/Chicago, so there is no time difference. On June 21, Des Moines gets 15 h 12 min of daylight and Minneapolis 15 h 37 min; on December 21, 9 h 10 min and 8 h 46 min. Minneapolis is 3.39° farther north, so it has the longer summer days and the shorter winter ones.

Population compared

Minneapolis has 2.0 times the population of Des Moines. From July 2020 to July 2024, Des Moines changed by -0.3% and Minneapolis by -0.5%. The trip crosses from Iowa into Minnesota.

  1. 01Des Moines, IA213,096 (-0.3%)
  2. 02Minneapolis, MN428,579 (-0.5%)
July 1, 2024 population and change since July 2020, Census Vintage 2024.

Questions people ask

How far is Des Moines from Minneapolis?

234.9 miles, 378.0 km or 204.1 nautical miles along the great circle between the two Census internal points. Road distance is longer.

Which direction is Minneapolis from Des Moines?

N. The great-circle path leaves Des Moines on a bearing of 4.1° and arrives at Minneapolis on 4.3°. The return trip starts on 184.3°.

What is halfway between Des Moines and Minneapolis?

The midpoint is at 43.268077, -93.444013. The nearest incorporated place of 1,000+ is Forest City, IA, 9.7 miles from it.

Is there a time difference between Des Moines and Minneapolis?

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

Which is bigger, Des Moines or Minneapolis?

Minneapolis, with 428,579 residents in July 2024 against 213,096 for Des Moines, 2.0 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.