The habitable zone: every known world in or near it
Of the 6,335 confirmed exoplanets, 177 orbit inside their star's habitable zone and 107 more skirt its edges, as computed by gravityfinder from each star's temperature and brightness (the Kopparapu 2013 boundaries).
The habitable zone is the band of orbits where a rocky world gets about the right amount of light for liquid water: not so close that it boils away, not so far that it freezes solid. Being inside the zone is a hint, not a promise; it says the sunlight is right and nothing more. Read the plain-English definition →
The nearest known habitable-zone world is Proxima Cen b, 4.2 light-years from Earth.
| # | World | ESI | Zone | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ★ 1 | Wolf 1069 b | 0.97 | Inside | 31.3 ly |
| 2 | TRAPPIST-1 e | 0.95 | Inside | 40.5 ly |
| 3 | TOI-700 d | 0.95 | Inside | 102 ly |
| 4 | TOI-700 e | 0.94 | Near the edge | 102 ly |
| 5 | Teegarden's Star b | 0.94 | Near the edge | 12.5 ly |
| 6 | Kepler-1649 c | 0.93 | Inside | 301 ly |
| 7 | GJ 1061 d | 0.93 | Inside | 12.0 ly |
| 8 | GJ 1002 b | 0.93 | Inside | 15.8 ly |
| 9 | Kepler-442 b | 0.91 | Inside | 1,194 ly |
| 10 | GJ 3378 b | 0.91 | Near the edge | 25.2 ly |
| 11 | Kepler-438 b | 0.89 | Near the edge | 639 ly |
| 12 | Proxima Cen b | 0.89 | Inside | 4.2 ly |
| 13 | TRAPPIST-1 f | 0.88 | Inside | 40.5 ly |
| 14 | K2-72 e | 0.88 | Near the edge | 217 ly |
| 15 | Kepler-452 b | 0.87 | Near the edge | 1,799 ly |
| 16 | Kepler-1652 b | 0.87 | Inside | 822 ly |
| 17 | Ross 128 b | 0.87 | Near the edge | 11.0 ly |
| 18 | Teegarden's Star c | 0.86 | Inside | 12.5 ly |
| 19 | L 98-59 f | 0.86 | Near the edge | 34.6 ly |
| 20 | TOI-715 b | 0.85 | Inside | 138 ly |
| 21 | TRAPPIST-1 d | 0.85 | Near the edge | 40.5 ly |
| 22 | GJ 1061 c | 0.84 | Near the edge | 12.0 ly |
| 23 | Kepler-1544 b | 0.84 | Inside | 1,093 ly |
| 24 | GJ 273 b | 0.83 | Near the edge | 19.3 ly |
| 25 | Kepler-283 c | 0.83 | Near the edge | 1,527 ly |
| 26 | LHS 1140 b | 0.82 | Inside | 48.9 ly |
| 27 | TOI-7166 b | 0.82 | Near the edge | 116 ly |
| 28 | Kepler-1229 b | 0.82 | Inside | 866 ly |
| 29 | Kepler-22 b | 0.81 | Near the edge | 635 ly |
| 30 | TOI-2257 b | 0.81 | Inside | 188 ly |
| 31 | TRAPPIST-1 g | 0.80 | Inside | 40.5 ly |
| 32 | Kepler-296 f | 0.80 | Inside | 545 ly |
| 33 | TOI-2094 b | 0.80 | Near the edge | 163 ly |
| 34 | TOI-1266 d | 0.80 | Near the edge | 117 ly |
| 35 | Kepler-705 b | 0.80 | Inside | 903 ly |
| 36 | Kepler-440 b | 0.79 | Near the edge | 982 ly |
| 37 | Wolf 1061 c | 0.79 | Near the edge | 14.0 ly |
| 38 | Kepler-1410 b | 0.79 | Near the edge | 1,197 ly |
| 39 | GJ 682 b | 0.79 | Inside | 16.3 ly |
| 40 | K2-288 B b | 0.78 | Inside | 214 ly |
| 41 | Ross 508 b | 0.78 | Near the edge | 36.6 ly |
| 42 | K2-18 b | 0.77 | Near the edge | 124 ly |
| 43 | GJ 251 c | 0.77 | Inside | 18.2 ly |
| 44 | Kepler-1701 b | 0.77 | Near the edge | 1,905 ly |
| 45 | GJ 433 d | 0.76 | Inside | 29.6 ly |
| 46 | HD 40307 g | 0.76 | Inside | 42.2 ly |
| 47 | GJ 1002 c | 0.76 | Inside | 15.8 ly |
| 48 | HN Lib b | 0.76 | Inside | 20.4 ly |
| 49 | GJ 887 d | 0.76 | Inside | 10.7 ly |
| 50 | 55 Cnc B c | 0.75 | Inside | 40.7 ly |
The list continues past the top 50: browse all 284 worlds in or near the zone →
What is the habitable zone?
The habitable zone, sometimes called the Goldilocks zone, is the band of orbits around a star where a rocky planet could keep liquid water on its surface: close enough in that the water does not freeze solid, far enough out that it does not boil away. Where the band sits depends on the star. A dim red dwarf's zone hugs in tight; a hot, bright star's zone sweeps far out.
How many planets are in the habitable zone?
Of the 6,335 confirmed exoplanets, 177 orbit inside their star's habitable zone and 107 more skirt its edges, as computed by gravityfinder from each star's temperature and brightness (the Kopparapu 2013 boundaries).
What is the nearest habitable-zone planet?
The nearest known habitable-zone world is Proxima Cen b, 4.2 light-years from Earth.
Does being in the habitable zone mean a planet is habitable?
No. The zone only says the sunlight is about right for liquid water; it says nothing about whether a world actually has water, an atmosphere, or a breathable sky. Venus and Mars both skirt the Sun's zone, and neither is a place you could take a drink. Read the zone as a shortlist, not a verdict.
Keep exploring: every world ranked by Earth similarity · the best places to visit · the most Earth-like record · the ESI calculator
Habitable-zone boundaries computed by gravityfinder from each star's temperature and brightness (the Kopparapu 2013/14 flux boundaries), and each world classed as inside, near, or outside the zone. A world with no stellar data is never classed at all.