Elevation of Newport News
18ft
above sea level · 5 m
Newport News is a city in Virginia with 183,230 people, the 6th most populous in the state. Of the 249 US cities with 100,000 to 250,000 people, it’s the 22nd lowest.
By the Mapsfera Team
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Place facts
- Coordinates
- 36.98° N · 76.43° W
- In degrees, minutes and seconds: 36° 58′ 44″ N · 76° 25′ 41″ W
- UTM coordinates
- 18S · 372,903 E · 4,093,469 N
- Zone 18 · NAD83, the official US datum
- Time zone
- Eastern Time
- UTC−5 · UTC−4 in summer (daylight saving time)
- Population (2025)
- 183,230 people
- 69.0 sq mi of land · 2,656 people/sq mi
- Elevation model
- USGS 3DEP, 1 m grid
- Lidar from February 2024: the ground height at the city’s reference point.
Population
Newport News had 183,230 residents on July 1, 2025, according to Census Bureau estimates, 1.6% fewer than in April 2020, when it had 186,235. Its 69.0 sq mi of land work out to 2,656 people/sq mi; the state average is 225 people/sq mi.
It’s the 6th most populous of the 684 places the Census counts in Virginia (cities, towns and CDPs), after Virginia Beach (453,737), and holds 2.1% of the state’s population.
It lies entirely within Newport News city. Its reference point in the USGS gazetteer is 8.5 mi from the geographic center the Census gives for the city.
Compared with US cities of 100,000 to 250,000
Newport News sits at 18 ft (5 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: Newport News is 844 ft below it.
The state capital, Richmond, is 69 mi away in a straight line and 195 ft higher than Newport News.
The nearest city with more than 250,000 people is Chesapeake, 14 mi away in a straight line and 6 ft lower.
Of the 8 cities in Virginia with a page, Newport News is the 4th highest: the highest is Richmond (213 ft) and the lowest is Norfolk (7 ft).
The highest point in Virginia is Mount Rogers, at 5,729 ft according to the USGS: 5,711 ft above Newport News, 284 mi away in a straight line.
- 226 Newport News 18 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 Newport News.
What is the elevation of Newport News?
Newport News is 18 feet (5 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 Newport News?
Latitude 36.97876 and longitude -76.42800, in decimal degrees (36° 58′ 44″ N · 76° 25′ 41″ W). In UTM, zone 18: 372,903 E and 4,093,469 N, on NAD83.
How does Newport News rank among the highest US cities of its size?
It’s the 22nd 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 Newport News in?
Newport News city, Virginia.
Which is higher, Newport News or Richmond?
Richmond. Newport News sits at 18 ft and Richmond at 213 ft: a difference of 195 ft, 69 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