Oregon to Washington

Distance from Salem to Tacoma

Straight-line distance

163.1mi

Salem, OR and Tacoma, WA are 163.1 miles (262.5 km) apart in a straight line. From Salem, the shortest path starts out heading N (9°).

kilometers
262.5
nautical miles
141.7
heading from Salem
9° N
heading from Tacoma
190° S
SalemTacoma

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

How far Salem is from Tacoma

The great-circle distance between the Census internal points of Salem and Tacoma is 163.1 miles, 262.5 km or 141.7 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 163.1 miles, practically the same at this range.

Measurements

Miles
163.1
Kilometers
262.5
Nautical miles
141.7
Bearing from Salem
9.3° N
Bearing arriving at Tacoma
9.7°
Bearing from Tacoma
189.7° S

Halfway between Salem and Tacoma

The great-circle midpoint is at 46.088396, -122.747344 (46°05'18.22"N 122°44'50.44"W). The nearest incorporated place of 1,000 or more people is Kalama, WA, with 3,131 residents, 6.7 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/Los_Angeles, so there is no time difference. On June 21, Salem gets 15 h 37 min of daylight and Tacoma 15 h 56 min; on December 21, 8 h 47 min and 8 h 28 min. Tacoma is 2.33° farther north, so it has the longer summer days and the shorter winter ones.

Population compared

Tacoma has 1.3 times the population of Salem. From July 2020 to July 2024, Salem changed by +2.5% and Tacoma by +3.8%. The trip crosses from Oregon into Washington.

  1. 01Salem, OR180,406 (+2.5%)
  2. 02Tacoma, WA228,202 (+3.8%)
July 1, 2024 population and change since July 2020, Census Vintage 2024.

Questions people ask

How far is Salem from Tacoma?

163.1 miles, 262.5 km or 141.7 nautical miles along the great circle between the two Census internal points. Road distance is longer.

Which direction is Tacoma from Salem?

N. The great-circle path leaves Salem on a bearing of 9.3° and arrives at Tacoma on 9.7°. The return trip starts on 189.7°.

What is halfway between Salem and Tacoma?

The midpoint is at 46.088396, -122.747344. The nearest incorporated place of 1,000+ is Kalama, WA, 6.7 miles from it.

Is there a time difference between Salem and Tacoma?

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

Which is bigger, Salem or Tacoma?

Tacoma, with 228,202 residents in July 2024 against 180,406 for Salem, 1.3 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.