Map of Nelson, New Zealand

Nelson is the administrative centre of Nelson Region, New Zealand, with a population of about 54,400. It lies at 41.2708°S, 173.2840°E. Nelson is about 125 km (77 mi) west of Wellington, the capital. The nearest city on our map is Wellington, 125 km to the east.

Nelson at a glance

Where is Nelson?

• The 17th largest city in New Zealand by recorded population.
• Located in the Southern and Eastern hemispheres.
• Daylight ranges from about 9 h 11 min on the shortest day to 15 h 09 min on the longest day (around 21 June and 21 December).

Cities near Nelson

• Wellington — 125 km east
• Porirua — 132 km east
• Lower Hutt — 137 km east
• Upper Hutt — 148 km east
• Whanganui — 211 km northeast
• Palmerston North — 221 km northeast
• New Plymouth — 254 km north
• Christchurch — 257 km south
• Rolleston — 268 km south
• Hastings — 352 km northeast

Largest cities in New Zealand

• Auckland — 1,547,200
• Christchurch — 419,200
• Wellington — 381,900
• Manukau City — 362,000
• Hamilton — 192,100
• Tauranga — 161,000
• Dunedin — 132,800
• Lower Hutt — 114,200
• Palmerston North — 90,500
• New Plymouth — 90,100

Map of New Zealand and all its cities →

Sources: place names, coordinates, populations and time zones from GeoNames (CC BY 4.0, data retrieved October 2026). Population figures are the latest values recorded in GeoNames; depending on the country they refer to the city proper, a municipality or a wider urban area, so they can differ from census or metro-area figures. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.