The Earth orbits the Sun at about 30 kilometers per second on average, which is roughly 107,000 km/h (about 67,000 mph).

Quick Scoop: The Numbers

  • Average orbital speed: about 29.8–30 km/s.
  • That’s around 107,000–108,000 km/h (about 67,000 mph).
  • At this speed, Earth could travel its own diameter in about 7 minutes and the distance to the Moon in about 4 hours.

Because Earth’s path is a slightly elliptical orbit, the speed isn’t perfectly constant.

Why the Speed Changes a Bit

Earth’s orbit is not a perfect circle but a slightly squashed ellipse, so the distance to the Sun changes over the year.

  • Perihelion (early January): Earth is closest to the Sun and moves a bit faster, about 30 km/s.
  • Aphelion (early July): Earth is farthest and moves a bit slower, about 29 km/s.
  • The difference is only a few percent, so the average stays near 30 km/s.

This variation comes straight from gravity: when Earth is closer, the Sun’s pull is stronger and Earth speeds up; when farther, it slows slightly.

A Couple of Handy Comparisons

Here’s an HTML table to put that speed in perspective:

html

<table>
  <thead>
    <tr>
      <th>Thing</th>
      <th>Typical Speed</th>
      <th>How It Compares to Earth’s Orbit</th>
    </tr>
  </thead>
  <tbody>
    <tr>
      <td>Commercial jet</td>
      <td>~900 km/h</td>
      <td>Earth orbits ~120× faster</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>International Space Station</td>
      <td>~28,000 km/h</td>
      <td>Earth orbits ~4× faster</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Earth around the Sun</td>
      <td>~107,000 km/h</td>
      <td>Baseline</td>
    </tr>
  </tbody>
</table>

Even though we don’t feel it, we’re all riding along on a planet hurtling through space at tens of thousands of miles per hour every day of the year.

TL;DR: The Earth travels around the Sun at about 30 km/s, or roughly 107,000 km/h (67,000 mph), moving slightly faster when it’s closer to the Sun and slightly slower when it’s farther away.

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