Japan
United StatesTokyo to Los Angeles shipping route.
4,916 nautical miles direct, about 14.6 days of steaming at 14 knots.
Sea Distance Between Ports: Tokyo and Los Angeles
Port to Port Distance on the map, along real shipping lanes.
TokyoSeaLos AngelesShipping time from Tokyo to Los Angeles
| Route | Distance | 12 kn | 14 kn | 18 kn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| direct (shortest) | 4,916 nm | 17.1 d | 14.6 d | 11.4 d |
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About the Tokyo to Los Angeles shipping route
Tokyo to Los Angeles is a 4,916 nautical mile shipping route on a direct course, heading north east from Japan to the United States. That is 9,105 km of water against 8,830 km as the crow flies. No canals or major straits on this leg, the ship stays close to the direct line.
Pure steaming time is 14.6 days at 14 knots. A carrier that slow steams at 12 knots to save fuel needs 17.1 days, and a fast 18 knot string about 11.4. Container transit time on a liner service is longer than the steaming time: ships call at other ports on the rotation, and cargo may transship at a hub. Add terminal time at Tokyo and Los Angeles to plan the full ocean transit time.
683 nm of the route, 14% of it, lies inside North American ECA. In an emission control area ships must burn fuel with no more than 0.1% sulphur or clean the exhaust with scrubbers. That fuel costs more, and carriers add it to the ocean freight bill as a low sulphur or ECA surcharge.
Container freight rates on Tokyo to Los Angeles move with fuel prices, ship capacity and the season. Compare several carriers before booking: the cheapest sailing is often the slowest one. At Los Angeles (USLAX) carriers give about 4 free days before demurrage and detention charges start, so plan the truck or rail pickup before the box lands.
Of the 64 port to port routes from Tokyo in this directory, Los Angeles is the 24th shortest. Closer destinations include Auckland (4,898 nm), Oakland (4,582 nm) and Colombo (4,551 nm).
FAQ
How many nautical miles from Tokyo to Los Angeles?
The port to port distance from Tokyo to Los Angeles is 4,916 nautical miles (9,105 km), direct.
What is the shipping time from Tokyo to Los Angeles?
About 14.6 days at 14 knots and 11.4 days at 18 knots of steaming, without port calls. Scheduled liner services add calls and transhipment.
How much of the route is in an emission control area?
683 nm sit inside ECA waters (North American ECA), where ships burn 0.1% sulphur fuel.
Is the return route the same?
The reverse route Los Angeles to Tokyo has its own page with the same distance and route.
More port to port distance
- Tokyo to
Busan669 nm - Tokyo to
Shanghai1,042 nm - Tokyo to Incheon1,067 nm
- Tokyo to Ningbo1,075 nm
- Tokyo to Qingdao1,113 nm
- Tokyo to Dalian1,176 nm
- Oakland to Los Angeles385 nm
- Seattle to Los Angeles1,214 nm
Vancouver to Los Angeles1,235 nm
Manzanillo to Los Angeles1,284 nm
Balboa to Los Angeles2,974 nm
Cartagena to Los Angeles3,301 nm
How we count: sea routes follow shipping lanes and canals, time is pure steaming at 14 knots without port calls. Engine navo-distance-time 0.3.0. See all sea distance between ports or the Shipping Routes Directory.