Absolute Location of Anchorage, Alaska: Coordinates & Context

The precise geographic coordinates for Anchorage, Alaska are:

Decimal Degrees (Standard)

61.2181° N, 149.9003° W

Degrees-Minutes-Seconds (DMS)

61° 13′ 05″ N, 149° 54′ 01″ W

What This Means

• 61.2181° N — 61° north of the Equator. Anchorage sits at the same latitude as **Oslo, Stockholm, Helsinki, St. Petersburg** — but the North Pacific Current makes it far milder.
• 149.9003° W — 149° west of the Prime Meridian (Greenwich). Places it in the **Alaska Time Zone (AKST/AKDT, UTC−9/−8)**.

Geographic Context

• Region: Southcentral Alaska, Cook Inlet (Knik Arm).
• Municipality: Municipality of Anchorage (consolidated city-borough).
• Area: 1,961 sq mi (5,079 km²) — larger than Rhode Island.
• Elevation: 102 ft (31 m) avg; up to 3,000+ ft in Chugach foothills.
• Population: ~291,000 (2023) — 40% of Alaska's total.

Nearby Coordinates

• Denali summit: 63.0695° N, 151.0074° W (240 km north)
• Juneau (capital): 58.3019° N, 134.4197° W (930 km southeast)
• Fairbanks: 64.8378° N, 147.7164° W (580 km north)

Plug 61.2181, -149.9003 into any GPS or map—you'll land on Anchorage's city hall, at the head of Cook Inlet, under the Chugach.