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Elevation

Elevation of Santa Ana

113ft

above sea level · 34 m

Santa Ana is a city in California with 315,586 people, the 14th most populous in the state. Of the 91 US cities with more than 250,000 people, it’s the 30th lowest.

By the Mapsfera Team

Elevation profile

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Place facts

Coordinates
33.75° N · 117.87° W
In degrees, minutes and seconds: 33° 44′ 44″ N · 117° 52′ 4″ W
UTM coordinates
11S · 419,618 E · 3,734,284 N
Zone 11 · NAD83, the official US datum
County
Orange County
Where the city’s reference point falls
State
California
CA · capital: Sacramento
Time zone
Pacific Time
UTC−8 · UTC−7 in summer (daylight saving time)
Population (2025)
315,586 people
27.4 sq mi of land · 11,526 people/sq mi
Elevation model
USGS 3DEP, 1 m grid
Lidar from October 2023: the ground height at the city’s reference point.

Population

Santa Ana had 315,586 residents on July 1, 2025, according to Census Bureau estimates, 1.6% more than in April 2020, when it had 310,534. Its 27.4 sq mi of land work out to 11,526 people/sq mi; the state average is 253 people/sq mi.

It’s the 14th most populous of the 1,617 places the Census counts in California (cities, towns and CDPs), after Los Angeles (3,869,089), and holds 0.8% of the state’s population.

It lies entirely within Orange County. Its reference point in the USGS gazetteer is 1.1 mi from the geographic center the Census gives for the city.

Compared with other big cities

Santa Ana sits at 113 ft (34 m) above sea level. Of the 91 US cities with more than 250,000 people, the highest is Colorado Springs (6,009 ft) and the lowest is New Orleans (0 ft). The average is 858 ft: Santa Ana is 745 ft below it.

The state capital, Sacramento, is 391 mi away in a straight line and 86 ft lower than Santa Ana.

Of the 15 cities in California with a page, Santa Ana is the 6th highest: the highest is Riverside (829 ft) and the lowest is Stockton (12 ft).

The highest point in California is Mount Whitney, at 14,494 ft according to the USGS: 14,381 ft above Santa Ana, 197 mi away in a straight line.

  1. 60 Seattle 173 ft
  2. 61 Anaheim 159 ft
  3. 62 Santa Ana 113 ft
  4. 63 Anchorage 104 ft
  5. 64 Orlando 103 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

Frequently asked questions

What people most often ask about the elevation of Santa Ana.

What is the elevation of Santa Ana?

Santa Ana is 113 feet (34 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 Santa Ana?

Latitude 33.74557 and longitude -117.86783, in decimal degrees (33° 44′ 44″ N · 117° 52′ 4″ W). In UTM, zone 11: 419,618 E and 3,734,284 N, on NAD83.

How does Santa Ana rank among the highest big cities?

It’s the 30th lowest of the 91 US cities with more than 250,000 people. The highest is Colorado Springs (6,009 ft) and the lowest is New Orleans (0 ft).

What county is Santa Ana in?

Orange County, California.

Which is higher, Santa Ana or Sacramento?

Santa Ana. Santa Ana sits at 113 ft and Sacramento at 27 ft: a difference of 86 ft, 391 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