SnapDistance Team
Published March 15, 2026·Updated March 18, 2026·8 min read

How Far Is It Between Major World Cities?

The world's major cities are separated by vast distances — from short European hops of 300 km to intercontinental journeys of over 16,000 km.

Understanding the distances between the world's major cities helps put geography into perspective for travel planning or simple curiosity.

European Routes

  • London to Paris — 344 km (214 miles)
  • London to Amsterdam — 358 km (222 miles)
  • Paris to Berlin — 878 km (546 miles)
  • Madrid to Rome — 1,365 km (848 miles)

Many European routes are short enough that high-speed trains compete with air travel.

North American Routes

  • New York to Los Angeles — 3,944 km (2,451 miles)
  • New York to Chicago — 1,149 km (714 miles)
  • Los Angeles to San Francisco — 559 km (347 miles)

Asian Routes

  • Tokyo to Osaka — 397 km (247 miles)
  • Beijing to Shanghai — 1,068 km (663 miles)
  • Delhi to Mumbai — 1,148 km (713 miles)
Asian distances range from short domestic routes like Tokyo to Osaka (397 km) to vast intercontinental spans exceeding 8,000 km.

Intercontinental Distances

  • London to New York — 5,570 km (3,461 miles)
  • Los Angeles to Tokyo — 8,815 km (5,477 miles)
  • Sydney to London — 16,983 km (10,553 miles)
Sydney to London — one of the world's longest city pairs at nearly 17,000 km — requires over 20 hours of flight time.

Using These Distances for Planning

Use these distances as reference points. For any route, use SnapDistance or compare multiple routes side by side.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the two farthest-apart major cities?

Madrid to Auckland (~19,590 km) and Lisbon to Auckland (~19,186 km) are among the farthest.

Which continent has the shortest distances between major cities?

Europe, due to its compact geography.

Can I calculate any city pair distance online?

Yes. SnapDistance can calculate the distance between any two locations on Earth.