What is the officially measured elevation of Mount Everest's summit?

Mount Everest’s officially measured elevation is 8,848.86 metres above sea level.

Nepal and China announced this jointly determined height in December 2020. The measurement includes the mountain’s snow and ice cap, rather than reporting only the rock summit. Everest stands in the Mahalangur Himal sub-range of the Himalayas on the Nepal–China border.

Earlier surveys produced slightly different figures. A widely used 1954 survey gave 8,848 metres, while China announced a rock height of 8,844.43 metres in 2005. Differences arise from surveying methods and from deciding whether the summit snow and ice should be included.

Everest is the highest mountain above sea level, but it is not the mountain farthest from Earth’s centre. Because Earth bulges at the equator, Ecuador’s Chimborazo reaches farther from the planet’s centre despite having a lower elevation.