US State Geographic Centers: Where Is the Exact Middle of Every State?

How this tool works

Pick a state and its geographic center appears as a red dot on a US map with full state borders, with exact coordinates in decimal degrees and DMS. The center shown is the area centroid, the balance point of the state's shape computed from Census boundary polygons with an equal-area projection. You can also show all 50 centers at once to compare. Note that officially recognized state centers sometimes use different definitions, so small differences from other published values are expected.

What you can do with it

• Find the balance point of any state, from compact Colorado to sprawling Alaska
• Show all 50 centers at once and spot patterns, like how far west most centers sit
• Use centers as neutral reference points for distance and travel comparisons
• Get exact coordinates in decimal degrees and DMS

Why use it

The center of my state is a common curiosity and school assignment, and published answers vary because there are several defensible definitions. This tool gives the mathematically unambiguous centroid, computed identically for every state, shown on an actual state map rather than as bare numbers.

Data sources and methods

• US Census Bureau cartographic boundary files (2023)

Related tools