Live · Venus

How far is Venus from Earth right now?

Centre-to-centre distance from Earth to Venus, computed in this browser and kept up to date from your clock. Venus is the planet that comes nearest to Earth.

See Venus in 3DAll distances

Computing the distance from your device’s clock…

Why the distance changes

Venus is the next orbit in, so the gap shrinks toward inferior conjunction and grows toward superior conjunction, when Venus is behind the Sun. NASA’s Venus Fact Sheet lists a minimum of 38.2 million km and a maximum of 261.0 million km. No other planet’s minimum is that small: Mercury’s is 77.3 million km and Mars’s is 54.6 million km.

The live figure is the same JPL 3000 BC–3000 AD model as the distance table. The nominal distance error for Venus on that fit is about 8,000 km. At 38.2 million km, light takes a little over 2 minutes. At 261 million km it takes about 15 minutes. Venus is not brightest at the minimum: it is then a thin crescent in the Sun’s glare. It looks brightest a few weeks away from inferior conjunction, when more of the dayside faces Earth and it is still nearby.

Other distances

Back to every body on the distance table. The same clock also fills these pages:

• Sun
• Moon
• Mercury
• Venus
• Mars
• Jupiter
• Saturn
• Uranus
• Neptune
• Pluto

Frequently asked questions

How far is Venus from Earth right now?

The figure is the centre-to-centre distance at the time shown, from JPL’s approximate Keplerian elements for 3000 BC–3000 AD. The nominal distance error for Venus on that fit is about 8,000 km. It is not a Horizons ephemeris.

Which planet comes closest to Earth?

Venus. NASA lists a minimum Earth distance of 38.2 million km, closer than Mercury’s 77.3 million km or Mars’s 54.6 million km. Venus then recedes to 261.0 million km on the far side of the Sun.

Why is Venus not brightest at its closest?

At minimum distance Venus is a thin crescent next to the Sun. It looks brightest a few weeks from inferior conjunction, when a larger fraction of the dayside faces Earth and Venus is still nearby. Distance and brightness are not the same thing.

How long does light take to travel from Venus?

About 2 minutes at 38.2 million km and about 15 minutes at 261 million km. The live light-travel time is the current distance divided by 299,792.458 km/s.

Sources: JPL Approximate Positions of the Planets · NASA Venus Fact Sheet for the 38.2 and 261.0 million km range.