The short answer
Open the altitude tool, tap the button and allow location access when your browser asks. Your elevation above sea level appears in metres within a few seconds. It works on any phone, tablet or laptop with a browser — Android, iPhone, Windows or Mac.
You do not need to install anything. Altitude comes from the same GPS chip that powers your maps app, and browsers are allowed to read it directly once you grant permission.
How your device knows your altitude
A GPS receiver listens to signals from satellites orbiting roughly 20,000 km above Earth. By measuring how long each signal takes to arrive, it calculates its distance from each satellite. Four or more satellites give it enough information to solve for four unknowns at once: latitude, longitude, altitude and time.
So altitude is not an extra feature that has to be added — it falls out of the same calculation that produces your position on the map. Most apps simply choose not to display it.
Two different meanings of "altitude"
This trips people up often, so it is worth being precise:
- Altitude above sea level — height measured from the average level of the ocean. This is the number printed on maps, road signs and mountain summit markers.
- Altitude above ground level — height measured from the terrain directly beneath you. Pilots care about this one; hikers almost never do.
When someone asks how high a mountain is, they mean above sea level. That is the figure this tool reports.
How accurate is GPS altitude?
Under an open sky, expect your reading to land within roughly 10–20 metres of the true value. Horizontal position is usually more accurate than vertical position, and the reason is geometry: satellites are spread out around and above you, but never below you, so the receiver has less information to work with in the vertical direction.
| Situation | Typical vertical accuracy |
|---|---|
| Open mountain ridge, clear sky | 5–15 m |
| Open field or beach | 10–20 m |
| Forest with dense canopy | 20–40 m |
| Narrow valley or deep gorge | 25–50 m |
| Between tall city buildings | 30–100 m |
| Indoors | Unreliable — go outside |
Getting a better reading
- Go outside. Walls and roofs block satellite signals. This single step matters more than everything else combined.
- Stand still for about 30 seconds. The receiver averages several readings and settles down noticeably.
- Step away from cliffs, walls and vehicles. Signals that bounce off hard surfaces before reaching you arrive late and distort the result.
- Keep the sky in view. A ridge or open summit gives the cleanest reading you will ever get.
Why people look up their altitude
- Hiking and mountaineering — confirming you actually reached the summit, and logging elevation gain across a route.
- Altitude sickness awareness — symptoms typically begin somewhere above 2,500 m, so knowing when you cross that line matters.
- Cycling and trail running — total climbing is often a better measure of a hard day than distance.
- Cooking and baking — water boils at a lower temperature as you climb, which changes cooking times noticeably above about 1,000 m.
- Aviation and paragliding — cross-checking instruments against a second source.
- Simple curiosity — most people have genuinely no idea how high their own street sits.
Turn the number into something worth keeping
A number on a screen disappears the moment you close the tab. Zirvə takes your reading — elevation, coordinates, date and location — and turns it into a summit card you can save or post. Seven designs, generated instantly, yours to keep.
Common questions
Do I need to download an app?
No. Zirvə runs entirely in your browser. If you would rather have an icon on your home screen, you can add the page to your home screen or download the Android APK from the main page — but neither is required.
Does it work without mobile data?
GPS receives signals directly from satellites, so the positioning itself needs no internet connection at all. You need data only to load the page the first time. After that the page is cached and works offline.
Why does my reading differ from the official summit height?
Two reasons. First, GPS vertical error of 10–20 m is normal. Second, official summit heights are surveyed against a specific geoid model, while your receiver may use a slightly different reference. A difference of a few dozen metres does not mean anything is broken.
Is my location stored anywhere?
No. Your coordinates are used in your browser to calculate and display the reading, and are not sent to a server or saved. See the privacy policy.
Does it work on iPhone?
Yes — on iPhone, Android, iPad, Windows and Mac. Any modern browser with location permission works.
Find out how high you are
Takes about five seconds. Free, no account, no download.