Elevation of Detroit
598ft
above sea level · 182 m
Detroit is a city in Michigan with 649,095 people, the most populous in the state. Of the 91 US cities with more than 250,000 people, it’s the 44th highest.
By the Mapsfera Team
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Place facts
- Coordinates
- 42.33° N · 83.05° W
- In degrees, minutes and seconds: 42° 19′ 53″ N · 83° 2′ 45″ W
- UTM coordinates
- 17T · 331,454 E · 4,688,602 N
- Zone 17 · NAD83, the official US datum
- Time zone
- Eastern Time
- UTC−5 · UTC−4 in summer (daylight saving time)
- Population (2025)
- 649,095 people
- 139 sq mi of land · 4,678 people/sq mi
- Elevation model
- USGS 3DEP, 1 m grid
- Lidar from March 2017: the ground height at the city’s reference point.
Population
Detroit had 649,095 residents on July 1, 2025, according to Census Bureau estimates, 1.5% more than in April 2020, when it had 639,534. Its 139 sq mi of land work out to 4,678 people/sq mi; the state average is 179 people/sq mi.
It’s the most populous of the 745 places the Census counts in Michigan (cities, towns and CDPs), and holds 6.4% of the state’s population.
It lies entirely within Wayne County. Its reference point in the USGS gazetteer is 4.6 mi from the geographic center the Census gives for the city.
Compared with other big cities
Detroit sits at 598 ft (182 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: Detroit is 260 ft below it.
The state capital, Lansing, is 82 mi away in a straight line and 255 ft higher than Detroit.
The highest point in Michigan is Mount Arvon, at 1,979 ft according to the USGS: 1,381 ft above Detroit, 396 mi away in a straight line.
- 44 Detroit 598 ft
Each color band is 500 m (1,640 ft), the same colors as the map. See the full list
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Frequently asked questions
What people most often ask about the elevation of Detroit.
What is the elevation of Detroit?
Detroit is 598 feet (182 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 Detroit?
Latitude 42.33143 and longitude -83.04575, in decimal degrees (42° 19′ 53″ N · 83° 2′ 45″ W). In UTM, zone 17: 331,454 E and 4,688,602 N, on NAD83.
How does Detroit rank among the highest big cities?
It’s the 44th highest 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 Detroit in?
Wayne County, Michigan.
Which is higher, Detroit or Lansing?
Lansing. Detroit sits at 598 ft and Lansing at 853 ft: a difference of 255 ft, 82 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