What is Mount Everest’s official surveyed height?

Mount Everest’s official surveyed height is 8,848.86 metres above sea level.

Nepal and China announced this jointly agreed height in December 2020. The measurement includes the mountain’s snow and ice cap, which can change over time, while the underlying rock height is slightly different.

Everest lies in the Himalayas on the border between Nepal and Tibet, an autonomous region of China. Nepal commonly calls it Sagarmatha, while Tibetans call it Chomolungma. The mountain was named Everest in the nineteenth century after George Everest, a former Surveyor General of India.

Earlier official measurements gave slightly different figures, including 8,848 metres. Improvements in satellite positioning, gravity surveys and snow-depth measurement helped produce the 2020 value. K2 is the world’s second-highest mountain, but Everest remains the highest point above sea level.