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Google Earth Coordinate System Grids



8/13/2009: No longer free; there’s a subscription fee from which a small charge is deducted for every use. A free grid link is still available here for MGRS and UTM.

Earthpoint has a new beta Google Earth function – grid overlays for multiple coordinate systems:

  • Deg – Decimal degrees
  • DegSec – Degrees, Decimal seconds
  • DegSecMin  – Degrees, Seconds, Decimal minutes
  • Georef – World Geographic Reference System
  • UTM/UPS – Universal Transverse Mercator / Universal Polar Stereographic
  • MGRS – Military Grid Reference System

Click the button for the desired grid KML file, and open it in Google Earth (UTM here):

utm grid Google Earth

As you zoom in, the grids become finer; you may have to wait a bit for the network link to catch up:

fine utm grid Google Earth

Roll your mouse over one of the “balls” defining the grid, and get a pop-up with the coordinates (and UTM zone here):

3-18-2009-2.56.29 PM

The crosshair marks the center of the display, the location for which Google Earth shows the coordinates and elevation in the bottom toolbar.


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2 Responses to “Google Earth Coordinate System Grids”


  1. 1 bacos

    You have many nice posts and useful tools.
    I would also like to suggest you a free tool you might find useful because it creates placemarks and reads coordinates from Google Earth for 2.000 coordinate systems around the world.

    It’s named Plex.Mark!:
    http://www.plexscape.com

    Best regards and keep up the good work!

  2. 2 Ben

    These overlays are not free: “If you are not using an account, then you are limited to five moves in Google Earth.

    Annual, Quarterly, Monthly subscriptions – unrestricted use.

    “Pay For Use” subscription – first five moves are free. After that, $0.01 is deducted from your pre-paid account for each move in Google Earth.”

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