Elevation of Surprise
1,174ft
above sea level · 358 m
Surprise is a city in Arizona with 175,304 people, the 10th most populous in the state. Of the 249 US cities with 100,000 to 250,000 people, it’s the 46th highest.
By the Mapsfera Team
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Place facts
- Coordinates
- 33.63° N · 112.33° W
- In degrees, minutes and seconds: 33° 37′ 50″ N · 112° 20′ 0″ W
- UTM coordinates
- 12S · 376,346 E · 3,721,995 N
- Zone 12 · NAD83, the official US datum
- Time zone
- Mountain Standard Time (no DST)
- UTC−7 all year: no daylight saving time
- Population (2025)
- 175,304 people
- 111 sq mi of land · 1,586 people/sq mi
- Elevation model
- USGS 3DEP, 1 m grid
- Lidar from November 2021: the ground height at the city’s reference point.
Population
Surprise had 175,304 residents on July 1, 2025, according to Census Bureau estimates, 22% more than in April 2020, when it had 143,150. Its 111 sq mi of land work out to 1,586 people/sq mi; the state average is 67 people/sq mi.
It’s the 10th most populous of the 467 places the Census counts in Arizona (cities, towns and CDPs), after Phoenix (1,665,481), and holds 2.3% of the state’s population.
It lies entirely within Maricopa County. Its reference point in the USGS gazetteer is 7.4 mi from the geographic center the Census gives for the city.
Compared with US cities of 100,000 to 250,000
Surprise sits at 1,174 ft (358 m) above sea level. Of the 249 US cities with 100,000 to 250,000 people, the highest is Lakewood (5,520 ft) and the lowest is Fort Lauderdale (3 ft). The average is 862 ft: Surprise is 312 ft above it.
The state capital, Phoenix, is 20 mi away in a straight line and 86 ft lower than Surprise.
The nearest city with more than 250,000 people is Glendale, 11 mi away in a straight line and 46 ft lower.
Of the 14 cities in Arizona with a page, Surprise is the 7th highest: the highest is Tucson (2,481 ft) and the lowest is Yuma (141 ft).
The highest point in Arizona is Humphreys Peak, at 12,633 ft according to the USGS: 11,459 ft above Surprise, 124 mi away in a straight line.
- 47 Surprise 1,174 ft
Each color band is 500 m (1,640 ft), the same colors as the map. See the full list
Nearest cities with a page
Tools for this place
Step-by-step guide How to find the elevation of any place
Frequently asked questions
What people most often ask about the elevation of Surprise.
What is the elevation of Surprise?
Surprise is 1,174 feet (358 m) above sea level. That’s the ground height from the USGS 3DEP elevation model at the city’s reference point in the official gazetteer (GNIS). The city doesn’t have a single elevation: it rises and falls from one neighborhood to another.
What are the coordinates of Surprise?
Latitude 33.63059 and longitude -112.33322, in decimal degrees (33° 37′ 50″ N · 112° 20′ 0″ W). In UTM, zone 12: 376,346 E and 3,721,995 N, on NAD83.
How does Surprise rank among the highest US cities of its size?
It’s the 46th highest of the 249 US cities with 100,000 to 250,000 people. The highest is Lakewood (5,520 ft) and the lowest is Fort Lauderdale (3 ft).
What county is Surprise in?
Maricopa County, Arizona.
Which is higher, Surprise or Phoenix?
Surprise. Surprise sits at 1,174 ft and Phoenix at 1,088 ft: a difference of 86 ft, 20 mi apart in a straight line.
How is elevation measured?
Elevation is the height above mean sea level. In the US the official reference is the NAVD88 vertical datum. Summits are surveyed on the ground, with leveling and precise GPS. The USGS 3DEP is an elevation model of the whole country, largely from 1-meter lidar: it gives the ground height at every point. That’s why it can differ by a few feet from the official figure of a sharp summit.
Sources
- USGS 3DEP (EPQS service) The elevation: the ground height at the reference point. Public domain.
- USGS GNIS (official gazetteer) The city’s reference point (“Populated Place”). Public domain.
- U.S. Census Bureau, Vintage 2025 estimates Population, land area (2025 Gazetteer) and counties. Public domain.
- TIGERweb (U.S. Census Bureau) Which county and city the point falls in. Public domain.
- timezone-boundary-builder The point’s time zone (ODbL, © OpenStreetMap contributors).
- Terrain Tiles, OpenStreetMap and OpenFreeMap The relief shading and the base map (ODbL).
Methodology and sources · Spotted a mistake? Let us know