Take the 2-minute tour ×

Is there any source in the Internet that allows me to calculate the vertical height between two arbitrary points?

Im thinking of something like the calculate route function of Google Maps. But instead of the trip length, I want to see the vertical height.

Do you have any experience with such information?

share|improve this question

closed as off topic by moz, Neil Fein Jun 14 '11 at 1:41


Do you mean just the change in altitude between the start and finish points? Or do you mean the amount of ups and downs you would need to do to travel from the start point to the end point? –  Amos Jun 13 '11 at 20:51
If possible the amount of up and downs –  RoflcoptrException Jun 13 '11 at 20:57
Is this related to bicycles at all? It sounds more like mathematics or physics. –  Мסž Jun 13 '11 at 22:02
@moz I can't be sure but I think that @Roflcoptr is looking to figure out the change in elevation on a route they are either riding or looking to ride. If one is commuting elevation change can be an important consideration. But I agree in its current form this is not a very good question for bicycles.stackexchange –  CyberKnoy08 Jun 13 '11 at 22:09
@Roflcoptr - I agree, this question in its current form is off-topic. Will close this now, but I'd certainly consider re-opening if you made this relate more directly to bicycling or calculating routes. However, keep in mind that on many Stack Exchange sites, questions that are just asking for links are generally frowned upon. –  Neil Fein Jun 14 '11 at 1:41

2 Answers 2

up vote 4 down vote accepted

You can get an elevation profile of a route from using Google Maps and GPS Visualiser, as detailed on Aaron James Young's blog. In summary:

  1. Create your route on Google Maps.
  2. Grab the link, and stick it into GPS Visualiser.
  3. Bingo! An elevation profile chart is created showing how the altitude changes over the route.
share|improve this answer
Thanks a lot, this is an excellent answer! –  RoflcoptrException Jun 14 '11 at 9:35
Agreed... very handy. –  Mac Jun 15 '11 at 4:31

Does it strictly have to be a web application?

If not, with Google Earth you can simply hover your mouse over a location and it will display the altitude of that location at the bottom of your screen, which would let you subtract the 2 altitudes from each other to get the vertical difference between the 2 points.

You can download Google Earth here.

share|improve this answer
