An antipode is the point on Earth's surface diametrically opposite another point — the place you would surface if you could dig straight through the centre of the planet and keep going. Every point on Earth has exactly one antipode, and the two are always separated by about 12,742 km through the core.
Finding an antipode takes two steps, and no special tools:
Put together: Madrid sits at 40.40° N, 3.69° W. Flip the latitude to 40.40° S, shift the longitude to 176.31° E, and you land in New Zealand — which is why Spain and New Zealand are the classic antipodal pair.
Earth's land is distributed very unevenly between the hemispheres, and the result is that land rarely sits opposite land. Only around 15% of land area has land at its antipode; the rest opens onto ocean. That covers roughly 4% of Earth's total surface.
The effect shows up clearly in real cities. Of the 391 major cities catalogued here, just 66 have an antipode on dry land. Every other one surfaces in open water.
The "dig a hole to China" idea is a myth almost everywhere it is repeated. Both the contiguous United States and China sit in the northern hemisphere, so neither can be the other's antipode — antipodal points are always in opposite hemispheres. Dig straight down from most of the United States and you would surface in the Indian Ocean, well southwest of Australia.
The pairing that does work is Argentina and China: much of eastern China is antipodal to Argentina and Chile, which is why Beijing and Shanghai both point to Argentina.
The rare case — most cities open onto ocean.
| City | Antipode |
|---|---|
| Shanghai, China 🇨🇳 | Argentina 🇦🇷 |
| Beijing, China 🇨🇳 | Argentina 🇦🇷 |
| Manila, Philippines 🇵🇭 | Brazil 🇧🇷 |
| Jakarta, Indonesia 🇮🇩 | Colombia 🇨🇴 |
| Guangzhou, China 🇨🇳 | Argentina 🇦🇷 |
| Lima, Peru 🇵🇪 | Cambodia 🇰🇭 |
| Shenzhen, China 🇨🇳 | Argentina 🇦🇷 |
| Wuhan, China 🇨🇳 | Argentina 🇦🇷 |
| Hong Kong, Hong Kong S.A.R. 🇭🇰 | Argentina 🇦🇷 |
| Tianjin, China 🇨🇳 | Argentina 🇦🇷 |
| Taipei, Taiwan 🇹🇼 | Argentina 🇦🇷 |
| Santiago, Chile 🇨🇱 | China 🇨🇳 |
Browse antipodes for all 391 cities →
Antipodal is a free daily geography game built on this one idea. You are shown a hidden location on a 3D globe and get five guesses to name its antipode, with warmer and colder hints after each try. Read the rules, or jump in.