How far is Pluto from the Sun?

Today, 10 October 2026, Pluto is 5,328,316,511 km from the Sun — 5.33 billion kilometres, or 35.62 astronomical units. That figure changes constantly: the orbit is an ellipse, so Pluto is closer at one end than the other.

What is Pluto's average distance from the Sun?

39.48 AU — 5.91 billion km. This is the semi-major axis, which is the number most references quote as "the" distance. It is an average, and Pluto is actually at it only twice per orbit.

What are Pluto's closest and furthest distances?

Closest (perihelion) 29.65 AU or 4.43 billion km, next on 16 September 2237. Furthest (aphelion) 49.32 AU or 7.38 billion km, next on 20 February 2114. The difference between them is 2,943,337,104 km.

How long does sunlight take to reach Pluto?

4.94 hours at today's distance. Light from the Sun reaches Earth in about 8 minutes 20 seconds, so sunlight arrives at Pluto roughly 35.6 times later than it reaches us.

Pluto

Pluto's distance from the Sun

Not the average everyone quotes — the figure for today, and the two extremes it swings between.

Right now

5.33 billion km

5,328,316,511 km · 35.62 AU · sunlight takes 4.94 hours to get there

Computed 10 October 2026 and rebuilt through the day.

Closest to the Sun: 29.65 AU; 4.43 bn km · 16 September 2237
Furthest from the Sun: 49.32 AU; 7.38 bn km · 20 February 2114
Average: 39.48 AU; the figure most tables give
Orbital speed: 5.22 km/s; right now, from the ephemeris

Why there is no single answer

Pluto’s orbit is an ellipse with the Sun at one focus rather than at the centre, so the distance changes continuously. Over one orbit it swings by 2,943,337,104 km — aphelion is 1.66 times further out than perihelion. At 0.249 this is one of the most elliptical orbits of any major body — far enough from a circle to see it in a drawing without being told.

That is why the number in an encyclopedia and the number here differ. Theirs is the semi-major axis, an average over the whole orbit; this one is where Pluto is today. Both are correct, and they answer different questions.

Looking down on the plane of the ecliptic, traced from the ephemeris over one full orbit of 248 years. The faint ellipse is Neptune’s orbit — Pluto crosses inside it. The Sun sits off the centre of the ellipse — that offset is the eccentricity, and it is why the two distances differ.

Where it is heading

Pluto reaches aphelion — its furthest point from the Sun — on 20 February 2114, in 87 years, at 49.32 AU. It is currently 30% of the way from perihelion to aphelion, moving at 5.22 km/s.

Distance from Earth is a different question again, and a more variable one: today it is 35.33 AU, and it changes as both planets move. Pluto right now carries that figure.

Common questions

How far is Pluto from the Sun?: Today, 10 October 2026, Pluto is 5,328,316,511 km from the Sun — 5.33 billion kilometres, or 35.62 astronomical units. That figure changes constantly: the orbit is an ellipse, so Pluto is closer at one end than the other.
What is Pluto's average distance from the Sun?: 39.48 AU — 5.91 billion km. This is the semi-major axis, which is the number most references quote as "the" distance. It is an average, and Pluto is actually at it only twice per orbit.
What are Pluto's closest and furthest distances?: Closest (perihelion) 29.65 AU or 4.43 billion km, next on 16 September 2237. Furthest (aphelion) 49.32 AU or 7.38 billion km, next on 20 February 2114. The difference between them is 2,943,337,104 km.
How long does sunlight take to reach Pluto?: 4.94 hours at today's distance. Light from the Sun reaches Earth in about 8 minutes 20 seconds, so sunlight arrives at Pluto roughly 35.6 times later than it reaches us.

Positions from VSOP87 via Astronomy Engine, accurate to within one arcminute. Perihelion and aphelion are found by search rather than taken from a table, which is why the dates are exact and why the extremes differ slightly from one orbit to the next — the other planets pull on this one. See Pluto’s orbit, Pluto right now, or watch it move in the live simulation.