Houston to New Orleans distance

Houston to New Orleans by road

The fastest driving route is 347 miles (559 km) long and takes about 6 hr 25 min without stops or traffic. Almost all of it is on I-10: 345 mi of 347 mi.

It goes through 2 states: Texas (112 mi) and Louisiana (235 mi). That’s an average of 54 mph (87 km/h). AAA recommends a break every two hours or 100 miles: with 3 stops of 20 minutes, the trip takes about 7 hr 25 min. The time is OSRM’s estimate with OpenStreetMap data: no traffic and speeds somewhat below the limits, so real trips can differ.

Straight-line distance and bearing

In a straight line, the shortest distance over the Earth’s surface, Houston and New Orleans are 318 miles (511 km) apart. That’s the geodesic on the WGS84 ellipsoid, the distance “as the crow flies”.

The road is 9% longer: for every 100 miles in a straight line you drive 109. The route runs almost straight. Of the 110 US driving pairs in this series, it ranks 86th for detour (the average is 16%).

From Houston, New Orleans lies to the east (bearing 86°), and from New Orleans, Houston lies to the west. The straight line reaches New Orleans on a bearing of 89°: on a sphere the bearing keeps changing along the way, which is why the shortest route looks slightly curved on a flat map.

Halfway between Houston and New Orleans

Halfway along the straight line, 159 miles (256 km) from each city, is the point 29.8855° N, 92.7217° W. It falls near Hayes (Louisiana, pop. 690), 19.7 mi away.

By road, the halfway point is 174 miles (280 km) from each city, near Roanoke (Louisiana, pop. 482), 2.9 mi away. The two midpoints are 24.9 mi apart: if you want to meet halfway, the one on the road is the useful one.

Time zone and flight

Houston and New Orleans share the same time all year: both are on Central Time.

A direct flight would take about 1 hr 10 min. That’s an estimate: 30 minutes for takeoff, climb, descent and landing, plus the 511 km straight line at 800 km/h (about 497 mph), a typical airliner cruising speed. Real schedules depend on wind, routing and airports, and not every pair has a direct flight.

The two cities

Houston and New Orleans sit at almost the same elevation: 36 ft (11 m) and 0 ft (0 m).

Houston has 2.4 million people and New Orleans 362,154 people (Census Bureau estimate for 2025).