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TerraLab

MGRS to latitude and longitude

Paste MGRS grid references, with or without spaces, and read the WGS 84 latitude and longitude. Switch the two sides to turn GPS points into MGRS.

How it works

  1. 1

    From is already MGRS and To is WGS 84. Swap them to convert latitude and longitude to MGRS, or pick any other system in the list.

  2. 2

    Paste the grid references, one per line: 18S UJ 23487 06483 or 18SUJ2348706483, at any precision from 1 to 5 digits. Text after the reference is kept as a label.

  3. 3

    Read the latitude and longitude with the degrees-minutes-seconds form next to it, copy the table, or download it as CSV.

What an MGRS coordinate means

Take 18S UJ 23487 06483, a point by the Washington Monument. It reads from the largest square to the smallest.

PartWhat it says
18SThe grid zone: UTM zone 18 (a six-degree strip of longitude) and latitude band S (eight degrees tall). Bands run from C in the south to X in the north.
UJThe 100 km square inside that zone: a column letter, then a row letter.
23487 06483The easting then the northing inside the square, always the same number of digits each.
Precision5 digits each is 1 m, 4 is 10 m, 3 is 100 m, 2 is 1 km, 1 is 10 km. The page reads any of them and places the point at the centre of that square.

Questions people ask

How do I convert MGRS to latitude and longitude?
Paste the grid reference above, with or without spaces, and press Convert. 18S UJ 23487 06483 gives 38.8895 N, 77.0352 W. The result is WGS 84 degrees, the system GPS receivers and Google Maps use.
How do I convert latitude and longitude to MGRS?
Press the swap button so From is WGS 84 and To is MGRS, paste the latitude and longitude, and convert. The result is a 1 m grid reference such as 31U DQ 48251 11932.
Is MGRS the same as UTM?
It is UTM written with letters. The zone and band replace the hemisphere, and the two letters of the 100 km square replace the leading digits of the easting and northing, so the numbers stay short.
Does it work near the poles?
No. North of 84 N and south of 80 S, MGRS uses the polar UPS grid, which this page does not handle. Those points are reported and left out rather than placed wrongly.
Are my coordinates sent anywhere?
No. The conversion runs in your browser tab and the page makes no request while you use it.

More coordinate systems

The same tool converts between Lambert 93, every UTM zone, Web Mercator and a dozen national grids.