The full 32-point compass rose
This reference lists all 32 points of the traditional compass rose, each with its abbreviation, full name and centre bearing in degrees. It is useful for sailing, aviation, surveying, meteorology and any work that translates between numeric bearings and named directions. A built-in converter maps any bearing to its nearest heading.
How it works
The compass divides a full circle of 360 degrees into 32 equal sectors. Each
sector spans 360 / 32 = 11.25 degrees, and the centre of point number i
(starting at North = 0) sits at i * 11.25 degrees. To convert a bearing to a
heading:
index = round(bearing / 11.25) mod 32
heading = points[index]Bearings are normalised into the 0 to 360 range first, so 370 degrees folds back to 10 degrees and a negative bearing wraps around. Rounding to the nearest sector centre chooses the closest named direction.
The four tiers of the compass rose
The 32 points build up from a simple four-layer hierarchy:
| Tier | Count | Examples | Spacing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cardinal | 4 | N, E, S, W | 90° apart |
| Intercardinal (ordinal) | 4 | NE, SE, SW, NW | 45° apart |
| Secondary intercardinal | 8 | NNE, ENE, ESE, SSE, SSW, WSW, WNW, NNW | 22.5° apart |
| By-points | 16 | NbE, NEbN, NEbE, EbN… | 11.25° apart |
By-points are named “North by east”, “Northeast by north”, and so on — each sitting exactly one point (11.25°) clockwise or anticlockwise of a named cardinal or intercardinal.
Quick reference: key bearings
| Bearing (°) | Point | Abbreviation |
|---|---|---|
| 0 / 360 | North | N |
| 11.25 | North by east | NbE |
| 22.5 | North-northeast | NNE |
| 45 | Northeast | NE |
| 90 | East | E |
| 135 | Southeast | SE |
| 180 | South | S |
| 225 | Southwest | SW |
| 247.5 | West-southwest | WSW |
| 270 | West | W |
| 315 | Northwest | NW |
| 337.5 | North-northwest | NNW |
Wind direction convention
In meteorology, wind direction is reported as where the wind comes from, not where it is going. A “westerly” (W, 270°) comes from the west and blows toward the east. A “northeasterly” (NE, 45°) blows from the northeast toward the southwest. This is the opposite convention from currents and course headings, which describe direction of movement — a source of confusion when switching between weather forecasts and navigation charts.
Worked conversion examples
- 247.5° — divide by 11.25 = 22 exactly → WSW (West-southwest)
- 10° — divide by 11.25 = 0.89, rounds to 1 → NbE (North by east)
- 355° — divide by 11.25 = 31.56, rounds to 32 mod 32 = 0 → N (North)
The modulo wraps values near 360° back to North, ensuring the converter handles any full-circle bearing without error.