Everest Base Camp Altitude: How High Is EBC in Metres and Feet?

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If you want to know where on this profile people actually struggle, and what our guides check each day, read my EBC altitude profile guide.

;p><em>Written by Shreejan Simkhada, CEO of The Everest Holiday and third-generation Himalayan guide. TAAN Member #1586.</em></p> <div style="background:#f5f5f5;padding:18px;border-radius:8px;margin:25px 0;border-left:4px solid #c8102e;"> <p><strong>Everest Base Camp is at 5,364 m (17,598 ft)</strong> above sea level, on the Nepal side, at the foot of the Khumbu Icefall. The highest point on the trek is Kala Patthar at 5,645 m (18,520 ft). Our 12-day trek takes you there with two rest days to adjust: <a href="/everest-base-camp-trek-12-days">Everest Base Camp Trek 12 Days, from USD 1,255 per person</a>. Questions? <a href="https://wa.me/9779810351300">Message me on WhatsApp</a>.</p> </div> <p>I get asked &quot;how high is Everest Base Camp?&quot; almost every week. The short answer is above. The longer answer is more useful, because the number on its own does not tell you how the trek will feel. How fast you climb to it matters more than the number itself.</p> <p>Below I go through the height of every stop on our 12-day itinerary, how it compares with mountains you may know, what the thin air does to your body, and what we do to keep the climb sensible. Prices on this page are for 2 to 4 people. Solo travellers and bigger groups pay a different rate, which is on the package page.</p> <h2>Everest Base Camp altitude at a glance</h2> <table border="1" cellpadding="8" style="border-collapse:collapse;width:100%;"> <tbody> <tr> <th align="left">Place</th> <th align="left">Metres</th> <th align="left">Feet</th> </tr> <tr> <td>Kathmandu</td> <td>1,400 m</td> <td>4,593 ft</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Lukla (where you land)</td> <td>2,860 m</td> <td>9,383 ft</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Namche Bazaar</td> <td>3,440 m</td> <td>11,286 ft</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Gorak Shep (highest night)</td> <td>about 5,164 m</td> <td>about 16,942 ft</td> </tr> <tr> <td><strong>Everest Base Camp</strong></td> <td><strong>5,364 m</strong></td> <td><strong>17,598 ft</strong></td> </tr> <tr> <td>Kala Patthar (highest point)</td> <td>5,645 m</td> <td>18,520 ft</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <p>You cannot sleep at base camp on this trek. There are no lodges there. You sleep at Gorak Shep, a few hundred metres lower, and walk to base camp and back. Kala Patthar, a small black hill above Gorak Shep, is higher than base camp and gives the better view of Everest. Base camp itself is in the glacier valley, so the summit is hidden behind Nuptse. I wrote about that in <a href="/blog/can-you-see-everest-from-base-camp-truth">can you see Everest from base camp</a>.</p> <h2>Day-by-day altitude on our 12-day trek</h2> <p>This is the sleeping height each night, from our itinerary. &quot;Height gained&quot; is the change in sleeping height from the night before. Day 1 is measured from Kathmandu.</p> <table border="1" cellpadding="8" style="border-collapse:collapse;width:100%;"> <tbody> <tr> <th align="left">Day</th> <th align="left">Where</th> <th align="left">Metres</th> <th align="left">Feet</th> <th align="left">Height gained</th> </tr> <tr> <td>1</td> <td>Fly to Lukla, trek to Phakding</td> <td>2,610 m</td> <td>8,563 ft</td> <td>+1,210 m from Kathmandu</td> </tr> <tr> <td>2</td> <td>Phakding to Namche Bazaar</td> <td>3,440 m</td> <td>11,286 ft</td> <td>+830 m</td> </tr> <tr> <td>3</td> <td>Rest and acclimatisation, Namche</td> <td>3,440 m</td> <td>11,286 ft</td> <td>0</td> </tr> <tr> <td>4</td> <td>Namche to Tengboche</td> <td>3,860 m</td> <td>12,664 ft</td> <td>+420 m</td> </tr> <tr> <td>5</td> <td>Tengboche to Dingboche</td> <td>4,410 m</td> <td>14,469 ft</td> <td>+550 m</td> </tr> <tr> <td>6</td> <td>Rest and acclimatisation, Dingboche</td> <td>4,410 m</td> <td>14,469 ft</td> <td>0</td> </tr> <tr> <td>7</td> <td>Dingboche to Lobuche</td> <td>4,940 m</td> <td>16,207 ft</td> <td>+530 m</td> </tr> <tr> <td>8</td> <td>Lobuche to Gorak Shep, then Everest Base Camp (5,364 m) and back</td> <td>about 5,164 m (night)</td> <td>about 16,942 ft</td> <td>+224 m</td> </tr> <tr> <td>9</td> <td>Kala Patthar at sunrise (5,645 m), then down to Pangboche</td> <td>lower</td> <td>lower</td> <td>big drop</td> </tr> <tr> <td>10</td> <td>Pangboche to Namche Bazaar</td> <td>3,440 m</td> <td>11,286 ft</td> <td>down</td> </tr> <tr> <td>11</td> <td>Namche to Lukla</td> <td>2,860 m</td> <td>9,383 ft</td> <td>down</td> </tr> <tr> <td>12</td> <td>Fly Lukla to Kathmandu</td> <td>1,400 m</td> <td>4,593 ft</td> <td>down</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <p>Look at the pattern. The first night is the biggest jump, because the flight puts you at 2,860 m in 40 minutes. After that, most nights go up by about 400 to 550 m, and twice we stop altogether for a rest day. Going up slowly and sleeping lower than your highest point is what keeps most people well. Our <a href="/blog/how-long-is-the-everest-base-camp-trek">guide to how long the trek takes</a> explains why we do not shorten these days.</p> <h2>How Everest Base Camp compares with other high places</h2> <table border="1" cellpadding="8" style="border-collapse:collapse;width:100%;"> <tbody> <tr> <th align="left">Place</th> <th align="left">Height</th> </tr> <tr> <td>Mont Blanc summit</td> <td>4,808 m (15,774 ft)</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Everest Base Camp</td> <td>5,364 m (17,598 ft)</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Kala Patthar</td> <td>5,645 m (18,520 ft)</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Kilimanjaro summit</td> <td>5,895 m (19,341 ft)</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <p>So base camp is about 556 m higher than the top of Mont Blanc and about 531 m lower than the top of Kilimanjaro. Kilimanjaro is usually climbed in under a week. The Everest trek gives your body more time, which is a big reason most healthy walkers manage it.</p> <h2>How we help your body adjust</h2> <p>We do three things, and none of them is secret.</p> <ul> <li><strong>Two rest days.</strong> One in Namche Bazaar at 3,440 m and one in Dingboche at 4,410 m. On those days you stay at the same sleeping height. If you feel well, your guide may suggest a short walk up and a return to sleep lower. Climb high, sleep low.</li> <li><strong>A slow pace.</strong> Your guide sets the speed. If you can talk while you walk, you are going right.</li> <li><strong>Daily checks.</strong> Your guide asks how you slept, how your head feels and whether you are eating. Be honest. Saying &quot;I&#39;m fine&quot; when you are not is the most common mistake I see.</li> </ul> <p>Weather and season change how the trail feels too. See <a href="/blog/everest-base-camp-weather-month-by-month">Everest Base Camp weather month by month</a> before you choose your dates.</p> <h2>How much oxygen is there at base camp?</h2> <p>At 5,364 m there is roughly half the oxygen per breath that you get at sea level. The air is the same mix, but the pressure is lower, so each breath carries less. Your body copes by breathing faster and making more red blood cells, and that takes days. This is why the first few nights are the ones to take seriously. You will feel breathless on stairs, and some people sleep badly at Dingboche and Gorak Shep. That is normal.</p> <h2>Altitude sickness: what to watch for</h2> <p>I am not a doctor, so please speak to yours before you travel. Here is what trekkers and guides are generally told to look out for.</p> <ul> <li><strong>Mild signs:</strong> headache, poor sleep, loss of appetite, feeling sick, tiredness. Stop going up and rest.</li> <li><strong>Worrying signs:</strong> a headache that gets worse, being sick, dizziness, trouble walking in a straight line, breathlessness while resting, a wet cough, or confusion. These mean going down, and quickly. Tell your guide at once.</li> </ul> <p>Never go higher with symptoms that are getting worse. Going down is the cure. Some people ask their doctor about medicines such as Diamox. I explain what it does and does not do in <a href="/blog/diamox-and-altitude-medication-for-nepal-treks-what-works-what-does-not-and-what">this blog on Diamox</a>. Whether it is right for you is a question for your doctor.</p> <p>Insurance matters here. Check that your policy covers trekking to the highest point of your route. Kala Patthar is 5,645 m, so we ask for cover to at least 6,000 m. Our rule is to round the highest point up to the next 500 m.</p> <h2>So, how hard is it?</h2> <p>Honestly, it is hard, but not technical. There is no climbing and no ropes. You walk for five to eight hours on most days, and the air gets thinner as you go. People who train for a few months by walking hills with a loaded pack usually enjoy it. The hardest parts are the cold at night, the broken sleep and the last two days up to Gorak Shep, when every step feels slower. Some people have to turn back. A good itinerary lowers that chance but cannot remove it. Please read the weather and permit pages too: <a href="/blog/everest-base-camp-trek-permits-fees-2026-27">Everest Base Camp trek permits and fees</a>.</p> <h2>What our 12-day trek costs for 2027</h2> <p>For 2 to 4 people, the prices per person are:</p> <ul> <li><strong>Budget, USD 1,255:</strong> no meals and no porter. You carry your own bag.</li> <li><strong>Standard, USD 2,320:</strong> all meals, and one porter for every two trekkers.</li> <li><strong>Luxury, USD 4,650:</strong> all meals with fruit, nuts and drinks, your own porter and a helicopter flight to and from Lukla.</li> </ul> <p>Kathmandu hotels are quoted separately. Full details are on the <a href="/everest-base-camp-trek-12-days">12-day Everest Base Camp trek page</a>.</p> <h2>Frequently asked questions</h2> <h3>How high is Everest Base Camp in feet?</h3> <p>17,598 feet, which is 5,364 metres. That is the south base camp in Nepal, the one our trek reaches.</p> <h3>What is the Everest Base Camp elevation compared with the summit?</h3> <p>The summit of Everest is far above. We only walk to base camp and Kala Patthar. Base camp at 5,364 m is the starting point for climbers, and you never go higher than Kala Patthar at 5,645 m on this trek.</p> <h3>What is the highest point on the Everest Base Camp trek?</h3> <p>Kala Patthar, at 5,645 m (18,520 ft). You climb it before sunrise from Gorak Shep. The highest place you sleep is Gorak Shep, at about 5,164 m.</p> <h3>Can you get altitude sickness at Everest Base Camp?</h3> <p>Yes. It can happen to anyone, fit or not. Lukla at 2,860 m is already high. Rest days, a slow pace and honest reporting to your guide lower the risk. Talk to your doctor before you go.</p> <h3>How much oxygen is there at Everest Base Camp?</h3> <p>About half of what you breathe at sea level. You adjust over several days, which is why the itinerary climbs slowly.</p> <h3>Is Everest Base Camp higher than Kilimanjaro?</h3> <p>No. Base camp is 5,364 m. Kilimanjaro is 5,895 m, about 531 m higher. Kala Patthar at 5,645 m is closer, but still lower.</p> <h3>How many days does it take to reach Everest Base Camp?</h3> <p>On our itinerary you reach base camp on day 8, and you are back in Kathmandu on day 12. Longer itineraries give more time to adjust.</p> <h3>Do I need to be very fit to reach 5,364 m?</h3> <p>You need decent fitness and a few months of walking practice. Fitness helps you enjoy it, but it does not stop altitude sickness, so the pace matters more.</p> <h2>Ready to plan?</h2> <p>If you want to talk it through, message me on <a href="https://wa.me/9779810351300">WhatsApp</a>. Tell me your dates and how many of you are going, and I will answer personally. You can also see the <a href="/everest-base-camp-trek-12-days">12-day Everest Base Camp trek</a>.</p> <p><em>Updated 12 November 2026.</em></p>