---
title: "London to São Paulo (LHR → GRU): distance and flight time · Orbit"
description: "London to São Paulo is 9,460 km (5,878 mi) great circle, an estimated 12h 15m in the air. The route, what it flies over, and why the short way is not the straight line on a map."
url: https://orbitflights.app/routes/lhr-to-gru
---

LHR → GRU

# London to São Paulo: distance, flight time and the route it really takes

London Heathrow to São Paulo/Guarulhos–Governor André Franco Montoro is 9,460 km of great circle — 5,878 mi — and an estimated 12h 15m in the air. It crosses from Europe to South America.

**Great circle**
9,460 km
5,878 mi

**Estimated in the air**
12h 15m
block time

**Furthest from equator**
51.5°N
at 0% along

**One lap of Earth**
23.6%
of 40,075 km

Of the [292 routes catalogued here](https://orbitflights.app/routes), this is the 53rd longest.

The London to São Paulo route drawn as a great circle arc on a globe

## What the aircraft actually flies over

From London the path crosses United Kingdom, then 6,693 km of open water, then Brazil.

The furthest the great circle gets from the equator is 51.5°N, 0% of the way along.

Flying the line that looks straight on a Mercator map — one constant compass bearing — would cover 9,487 km. That is 28 km further, about 0% more, and roughly 2m of extra flying.

Leaving London the aircraft points south-west (221°); it arrives into São Paulo heading south-west (207°). That is 15° of drift without a single turn — the compass moves because the path is a curve on a sphere, not because the aircraft does.

One economy seat on it is about 1.34 t of CO₂e each way, counting non-CO₂ warming.

[LHR–GRU carbon footprint →](https://orbitflights.app/tools/flight-carbon-calculator?from=LHR&to=GRU) [Map this route →](https://orbitflights.app/tools/flight-route-map?r=LHR-GRU)

From

LHR

## London Heathrow

London, United Kingdom · Europe

51.5°N, 0.5°W

[LHR airport →](https://orbitflights.app/airports/lhr) [Flights to London →](https://orbitflights.app/flights-to/london)

To

GRU

## São Paulo/Guarulhos–Governor André Franco Montoro

São Paulo, Brazil · South America

23.4°S, 46.5°W

[GRU airport →](https://orbitflights.app/airports/gru) [Flights to São Paulo →](https://orbitflights.app/flights-to/sao-paulo)

## London to São Paulo, asked and answered

**How far is London to São Paulo?**
London to São Paulo (LHR to GRU) is 9,460 km, or 5,878 mi, measured as great circle distance between the two airports.

**How long is the flight from London to São Paulo?**
About 12h 15m in the air. That is an estimate from the distance at a typical airliner block speed, plus half an hour for taxi, climb and descent; published schedules vary with winds and routing.

**What route does a London to São Paulo flight take?**
The great circle passes over United Kingdom, then 6,693 km of open water, then Brazil. It reaches 51.5°N at its furthest from the equator.

## Where these numbers come from

Distances are computed from the two airports’ own coordinates, not looked up from published routes. Times are estimates, not schedules.

[Why the shortest path is a curve →](https://orbitflights.app/blog/great-circle-routes-explained)

## Flown this one?

Orbit logs it in two taps and draws the arc on your own globe, along with every other flight you can remember. Free for your first 15.

[Download now](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.qwertybit.orbit)

## Nearby routes

[LHR → BKK London to Bangkok 9,578 km](https://orbitflights.app/routes/lhr-to-bkk) [LHR → NRT London to Tokyo 9,591 km](https://orbitflights.app/routes/lhr-to-nrt) [LHR → HND London to Tokyo 9,592 km](https://orbitflights.app/routes/lhr-to-hnd) [LHR → HKG London to Hong Kong 9,630 km](https://orbitflights.app/routes/lhr-to-hkg) [LHR → PVG London to Shanghai 9,241 km](https://orbitflights.app/routes/lhr-to-pvg) [LHR → CPT London to Cape Town 9,682 km](https://orbitflights.app/routes/lhr-to-cpt)

## Further reading

[How many miles do you have to fly around the world?](https://orbitflights.app/blog/how-many-miles-to-fly-around-the-world) [What is on the exact opposite side of the world?](https://orbitflights.app/blog/opposite-side-of-the-world) [What's actually worth counting in a flight log](https://orbitflights.app/blog/what-is-worth-counting-in-a-flight-log)

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Markdown copy of https://orbitflights.app/routes/lhr-to-gru for language models and agents. Site index: https://orbitflights.app/llms.txt