How to turn on elevation in Google Maps

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Quick Tips for using this Elevation map tool
FAQs for Elevation
Find Elevation in Google Maps on Mobile
Find Elevation in Google Maps on Desktop

Search places (e.g. address, city)

See Google Maps elevation for any city, address or place, and create an Elevation Profile on Google Maps anywhere in the world. Keep reading to learn how to draw an elevation profile along any path, learn how to show contour lines near your chosen location, and how to keep your location automatically updated on the map.

In addition to this Google Maps elevation layer, you can also show county lines and county name labels in the U.S., U.K., Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Mexico and Switzerland. Optionally add city limits and township boundaries in the U.S. Have fun exploring with this Google Maps altitude tool!

Quick Tips for using this Elevation map tool

Type any place or address in the “Search places” box above the map*
OR: Zoom into your place of interest on the map
The approximate elevation will be shown for the blue dot. Also, county lines will draw on the map, and the county name, state name**, country name and latitude/longitude for your chosen location will appear at the top of the map***
Click the “Use m/km” button to use the metric system (meters and kilometers). Click “Use ft/mi” to use the imperial system (feet and miles). By default, U.S. users will see feet and users in the rest of the world will see meters.
Click the blue “Elevation Profile…” button to create an elevation profile along the path you draw. Double-click the map at the last point you wish to draw, and an Elevation Profile will appear.
Check the “Show similar elevations” checkbox to see all the places on the map with elevations similar to your chosen location This option draws contour lines that are within +/-60ft vertical of the blue dot (or +/-60m vertical, if you’re using metric). In general, three contours will be draw at 20ft/m intervals above your elevation in red and three contours will be draw at 20ft/m intervals below your clicked elevation in green.
Optionally, check the “Show US city limits” checkbox in the lower left corner of the map to see City Limits overlaid on the map
Show US townships by checking the box in the lower left corner of the map
Check the “Show county labels” checkbox in the lower left corner of the map to see the names of the counties on the map
Click the ◉ button in the upper right corner of the map to use your current location. Click the ◉ button again to automatically update your location every 1, 5 or 10 minutes (Monthly Contributors also get an option to update every several seconds). †
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* You can also type in GPS coordinates in decimal degrees into the Search places box. For example, type -105.25, 40 for Boulder, Colorado.
** or equivalent province, district, etc.
*** All information is reported based on the location of the blue dot on the map; to move the blue dot, click the map
† The “Locate” button will be more accurate on smartphones and other devices containing a GPS; desktop browsers typically show an approximate location

FAQs for Elevation

How do I show Google Maps elevation / altitude?

This Elevation map tool shows elevation / altitude on Google Maps. Click anywhere on the map to get its elevation, click the 'use location' button in the upper right corner of the map to see your current elevation, or 'Search places' above the map.

How do I draw a Google Maps elevation profile?

This Elevation Profile map tool lets you draw elevation profiles on Google Maps. Click the 'Elevation Profile' button on the left side of the map, draw a path and double-click at the last point, and an Elevation Profile along your path will appear above the map.

How do I find elevation on Google Maps?

This Elevation map tool displays elevation on Google Maps. Click the 'use location' button in the upper right corner of the map to see your current elevation, or click anywhere on the map, or 'Search places' above the map.

Is there a Google Maps elevation layer?

This Elevation / Altitude map tool has a global elevation layer on Google Maps. Click the 'use location' button in the upper right corner of the map to see your current elevation, or click anywhere on the map, or 'Search places' above the map.

How do you find elevation on Google Maps? Just follow the quick steps above and you will see your altitude or elevation displayed on a fully-interactive Google Map.

Answer questions such as: – What is the elevation of this city? – What is the elevation at this address?

– What is my elevation profile along this road or hiking route?

Elevation coverage is worldwide. In the U.S., the vertical accuracy is typically within 8ft (2.44m), in the rest of the world the vertical accuracy is typically within 16m (52.5ft)
US coverage includes Counties in all 50 states plus Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands and American Samoa “Show US city limits” draws all incorporated cities and towns in the United States and its territories and possessions
“Show US townships” draws all minor civil divisions (MCDs) (these are often townships)
Within the UK, England displays Counties and Unitary Authorities, Scotland displays Council Areas, Wales displays Principal Areas, and Northern Ireland displays Districts. Explanation of Unitary Authorities, Council Areas, Principal Areas and Districts.
Australia displays Local Government Areas (LGAs)
New Zealand displays Territorial Authorities
Canada displays Census Divisions, which are Counties in some provinces but may include other geographies
Mexico displays Municipalities, which are the next level administrative divisions below State
Switzerland displays Districts

The Search places box uses a standard Google Maps geocoding engine, therefore you can type street addresses, road names, points of interest, and GPS coordinates (see * above) to see what county that location is part of
Many of the map layers from which this information is extracted are very large, so it may take several seconds for all of the map layers to finish drawing
When using “Elevation Profile…”, you must click slowly due to slow interactions with the server
Because the map layers are large, boundaries will not be shown if you are zoomed out too far
Note that typing an address will zoom in the map very close, whereas typing a city or county by itself will show you a map with a wider view
Disclaimer: While the number of decimals in the latitude and longitude displayed for the map marker imply a positional accuracy of within a few feet, note that Google Maps is not inherently that accurate, and therefore this tool should not be used for legal purposes or anything beyond entertainment value.

– US: United States Geological Survey – Rest of World: U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration Jet Propulsion Labratory

BOUNDARY LINE Sources

– US: Census Bureau – UK: Open Government License – Contains Office of National Statistics data, Ordnance Survey data ©Crown copyright and database right 2017. Open Data Lincese – Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland. – Ireland: Open Data and Creative Commons License – Ordnance Survey Ireland – Australia: Incorporates Administrative Boundaries ©PSMA Australia Limited licensed by the Commonwealth of Australia under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence – New Zealand: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 – Stats NZ – Canada: Open License – Boundary Files, 2016 Census; Statistics Canada Catalogue no. 92-160-X – Mexico: Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía (INEGI) – Switzerland: Swiss Federal Office of Topography

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Last updated: May 29, 2022

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If you’re going on a hike or you’re just curious about a specific place’s altitudes, Google Maps makes it easy to find the elevation for most locations. Here’s how to use that feature on your desktop and mobile.

Note: Google Maps doesn’t show the elevation for all locations. Most elevation data is for natural places.

RELATED: How to Measure Elevation on Your iPhone

Find Elevation in Google Maps on Mobile

If you’re on a mobile phone, use the Google Maps app to check a place’s altitude.

To do that, first, open the Google Maps app on your phone. At the top of the app, tap the “Search Here” box and type the name of the place, then press Enter.

Once you see your place on the map, to the right of the map, tap the “Layers” option.

In the menu that opens, from the “Map Type” section, select “Terrain.” Then tap “X” in the top-right corner.

Your map’s view will change to the terrain view. Here, take a closer look at your place on the map and you’ll find the elevation written there.

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To get a better view of the altitude numbers, zoom in a bit on the map, but don’t do it too much or the elevation numbers will disappear.

And that’s how you know how high a place is using Google Maps!.

Find Elevation in Google Maps on Desktop

On a desktop computer, use the Google Maps website to find a place’s elevation.

To do so, first, open a web browser on your computer and launch the Google Maps site. In the site’s top-left corner, click the “Search Google Maps” box and type your place’s address. Then select that place in the search results.

Once your place appears on the map, then in the map’s bottom-left corner, click the “Layers” option.

In the expanded menu, click “Terrain.”

You’ll now see your map in the terrain view. Zoom in on your place and you will find some numbers written there. Those numbers represent the altitude of that specific place.

Make sure not to zoom in too much or the elevation numbers will be gone.

And that’s all there is to it.

Did you know Google Maps also shows you your direction of travel?

RELATED: How to Find Your Direction of Travel Using Google Maps