Measure Distance on a Map
MapGridder measures distance on a map: click two or more points and read the distance for each segment and the running total. Switch between metric and imperial units, and add as many legs as you need.
What you can do
- Click to add points and measure leg by leg
- Running total distance
- Metric or imperial units
- Combine with grids, waypoints, and routes
How map distance measurement works
Each click records a latitude and longitude, and the distance between two points is the great-circle distance: the shortest path along the curved surface of the Earth, the line a plane would fly, not a flat line on the screen. A multi-point path is measured leg by leg and the legs are summed, so you can trace a road, a trail or a perimeter and read the cumulative distance. No GIS install is needed; the math runs in the browser.
Measure inside a grid
Turn a grid on first, then measure within it. With 100 m cells, one cell is 10,000 square meters, one hectare, which gives a fast area estimate by counting cells; the measure tool then handles the irregular shapes inside a cell, such as a field edge or a stretch of shoreline. On an MGRS grid the same applies to each 100 m or 1 km square.
Frequently asked questions
How do I measure distance on a map?
Open the measure tool, click a starting point, then click each next point. The tool shows the distance of each segment and the total.
Can I switch between kilometers and miles?
Yes. Units can be set to metric or imperial and the measurement updates.
Is the measure tool free?
Yes. Measuring runs in your browser with no login or install. Personal and non-commercial use is free; commercial use needs a paid license.
How accurate is it?
Distances are computed along the Earth's surface, so they stay accurate for both short legs and long ones.
Related: GPX and KML guide · MGRS grid overlay · Export the map to PDF at real scale