New Orleans · the midpoint
New Orleans is a consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. Read more →
Meet halfway between Houston and Memphis
The fair place to meet is New Orleans, LA — the city closest to the midpoint of Houston and Memphis. From the farther side that’s about 7 hr 32 min of driving.
Recommended midpoint
New Orleans, LA
From Houston
6 hr 40 min
318 mi to New Orleans
From Memphis
7 hr 32 min
359 mi to New Orleans
Houston has the shorter trip; the split is off by about 52 min. The alternatives below can even it out. Houston and Memphis are about 484 miles apart.
More meetups from Houston
Meeting in New Orleans
Houston and Memphis are about 484 miles apart by road. Split the difference and you arrive near New Orleans, the city closest to the halfway point between them. That puts roughly 6 hr 40 min of driving on the Houston side and 7 hr 32 min on the Memphis side — the fairest single meeting point among the cities near the middle.
That's a half-day drive from each side, so New Orleans suits an overnight or a weekend rather than a quick coffee — long enough to want a reason to stay, short enough to drive.
If New Orleans doesn't have what you're after, Dallas and Austin are also close to the midpoint and worth a look — each keeps the drive reasonably balanced between Houston and Memphis.
About the cities
Houston
Houston is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and the Southern United States. It is the fourth-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 2.3 million at the 2020 census. Read more →
Memphis
Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. Read more →
City descriptions adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA); photos via Wikimedia Commons, credited above.
Questions
- Where is the halfway point between Houston and Memphis?
- New Orleans, LA is closest to the geographic midpoint, which makes it the fairest place to meet.
- How far apart are they?
- About 484 miles by road.
- How long is the drive to meet in the middle?
- Roughly 7 hr 32 min from the farther city to New Orleans.
Estimates use straight-line distance and typical road speeds; real drive times vary with route and traffic.