Distance & Bearing Calculator
Calculate horizontal distance, coordinate differences, midpoint, forward bearing and reverse bearing between two plane-coordinate points.
Important: bearings are whole-circle grid bearings measured clockwise from coordinate north. Apply grid-to-true or grid-to-magnetic corrections separately when required.
How to use this tool
Quick example: load the 3-4-5 example. From P1 (1000, 2000) to P2 (1003, 2004), the distance is 5 and the grid bearing is 36.8699°.
1. Enter point coordinates
Point 1 — start
Point 2 — end
2. Results
Enter two distinct points.
Coordinate summary
Export results
Calculation method
The coordinate differences are ΔE = E₂ − E₁ and ΔN = N₂ − N₁. Horizontal distance is √(ΔE² + ΔN²). Whole-circle bearing is calculated with atan2(ΔE, ΔN), then normalised to 0°–360°.
Frequently asked questions
Is bearing measured from north or east?
This tool measures clockwise from coordinate north: north is 0°, east is 90°, south is 180° and west is 270°.
What is a reverse bearing?
It is the bearing from Point 2 back to Point 1, exactly 180° from the forward bearing after normalisation.
What is a quadrant bearing?
It expresses direction from north or south towards east or west, such as N 36°52′12″ E.
Does the distance include height difference?
No. It is a horizontal plane distance calculated from Easting and Northing only.
Can I use local coordinates?
Yes, provided both points use the same plane grid and linear unit.
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