Elevation of Gainesville
178ft
above sea level · 54 m
Gainesville is a city in Florida with 148,671 people, the 13th most populous in the state. Of the 249 US cities with 100,000 to 250,000 people, it’s the 91st lowest.
By the Mapsfera Team
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Place facts
- Coordinates
- 29.65° N · 82.32° W
- In degrees, minutes and seconds: 29° 39′ 6″ N · 82° 19′ 29″ W
- UTM coordinates
- 17R · 371,774 E · 3,280,918 N
- Zone 17 · NAD83, the official US datum
- Time zone
- Eastern Time
- UTC−5 · UTC−4 in summer (daylight saving time)
- Population (2025)
- 148,671 people
- 64.0 sq mi of land · 2,323 people/sq mi
- Elevation model
- USGS 3DEP, 1 m grid
- Lidar from December 2019: the ground height at the city’s reference point.
Population
Gainesville had 148,671 residents on July 1, 2025, according to Census Bureau estimates, 5.3% more than in April 2020, when it had 141,161. Its 64.0 sq mi of land work out to 2,323 people/sq mi; the state average is 437 people/sq mi.
It’s the 13th most populous of the 956 places the Census counts in Florida (cities, towns and CDPs), after Jacksonville (1,017,689), and holds 0.6% of the state’s population.
It lies entirely within Alachua County. Its reference point in the USGS gazetteer is 2.3 mi from the geographic center the Census gives for the city.
Compared with US cities of 100,000 to 250,000
Gainesville sits at 178 ft (54 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: Gainesville is 684 ft below it.
The state capital, Tallahassee, is 129 mi away in a straight line and 26 ft higher than Gainesville.
The nearest city with more than 250,000 people is Jacksonville, 62 mi away in a straight line and 162 ft lower.
Of the 26 cities in Florida with a page, Gainesville is the 3rd highest: the highest is Tallahassee (204 ft) and the lowest is Fort Lauderdale (3 ft).
The highest point in Florida is Britton Hill, at 345 ft according to the USGS: 167 ft above Gainesville, 253 mi away in a straight line.
- 159 Gainesville 178 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 Gainesville.
What is the elevation of Gainesville?
Gainesville is 178 feet (54 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 Gainesville?
Latitude 29.65163 and longitude -82.32483, in decimal degrees (29° 39′ 6″ N · 82° 19′ 29″ W). In UTM, zone 17: 371,774 E and 3,280,918 N, on NAD83.
How does Gainesville rank among the highest US cities of its size?
It’s the 91st lowest 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 Gainesville in?
Alachua County, Florida.
Which is higher, Gainesville or Tallahassee?
Tallahassee. Gainesville sits at 178 ft and Tallahassee at 204 ft: a difference of 26 ft, 129 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