Distance between cities › Australia › Northern Territory › Darwin, NT › Distance from Darwin to Cairns Book Hotels

Distance from Darwin, NT to Cairns, QLD

Distance

2,766 km

Time

1 day 7 hours

Gas Cost

$207 - $539

There are 1,680 km (1,043.90 miles) from Darwin to Cairns in southeast direction and 2,764.85 km (1,718 miles) by car, following the 66 route.

Darwin and Cairns are 1 day 7 hours far apart, if you drive non-stop .

This is the fastest route from Darwin, NT to Cairns, QLD.

Please note the time difference between Darwin, NT and Cairns, QLD is 30 minutes. The current time in Darwin is 12:32 am and the current time in Cairns is 1:02 am.

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Lowest Price Rental Cars in Darwin, NT

Planning on renting a car to go from Darwin, NT to Cairns, QLD? Here there are some offers to rent a car in Darwin, NT

Small

From $14

Intermediate

From $18

Full-size

From $24

SUVs

From $28

Vans

From $40

Compare rental car prices in Darwin »

Gas Consumption and Emissions

A car with a fuel efficiency of 10.8 l/100 km will need 298.68 liters of fuel to cover the route between Darwin, NT and Cairns, QLD.

The estimated cost of fuel to go from Darwin to Cairns is $448.02.

During the route, an average car will release 7,144.48 kilograms of CO₂ to the atmosphere. The carbon footprint would be 2.58 kilograms of CO₂ per kilometer.

Average Australia gas price used for calculation is $1.50 per liter of regular gas. Price last updated on March 10, 2026.
Read more about our CO₂ calculation.

Halfway Point Between Darwin, NT and Cairns, QLD

If you want to meet halfway between Darwin, NT and Cairns, QLD or just make a stop in the middle of your trip, the exact coordinates of the halfway point of this route are -20.026855 and 137.593430, or 20º 1' 36.678" S, 137º 35' 36.348" E. This location is 859.23 miles away from Darwin, NT and Cairns, QLD and it would take approximately 15 hours 30 mins to reach the halfway point from both locations.

Distance conversions

Checkout the distance in miles, kilometers and nautical miles between Darwin, NT and Cairns, QLD in this table:

Distance type	Miles	Kilometers	Nautical miles
Straight line distance	1,043.90 mi	1,680 km	907.13 nautical mi
Driving distance	1,718 mi	2,765.58 km	1,493.29 nautical mi

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