how many miles away is the moon

The Moon is on average about 238,855 miles away from Earth.

Quick Scoop

The super-short answer

• Average distance: about 238,855 miles from Earth.

• Closest distance (perigee): about 225,600 miles.

• Farthest distance (apogee): about 252,100 miles.

Because the Moon’s orbit is slightly elliptical , it isn’t always the same distance away, so astronomers usually quote that average value of roughly 239,000 miles.

A quick way to picture it

If Earth were a small marble, the Moon would be another marble sitting about 30 marble-widths away—farther than most people imagine when they see simple space illustrations.

Extra nerdy bit

• Average distance in kilometers: about 384,400 km.

• Light travel time: about 1.3 seconds for light to go from the Moon to Earth.

So when you look at the Moon tonight, you’re seeing it as it was a little over a second ago—your own tiny time machine in the sky.

TL;DR: The Moon is about 239,000 miles away on average, swinging between roughly 226,000 and 252,000 miles as it orbits Earth.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.