EPSG:25832 vs EPSG:4326 — ETRS89 / UTM 32N vs WGS 84
EPSG:25832 (ETRS89 / UTM zone 32N) is the standard projected CRS for Germany and neighbouring central-European countries between 6°E and 12°E: a Universal Transverse Mercator projection in meters on the ETRS89 datum. EPSG:4326 (WGS 84) is global longitude/latitude in degrees. Because ETRS89 is the European realization of a WGS 84-like frame, the datum difference is only a few centimeters — but the projection difference is total: a Cologne point is about (6.96, 50.94) degrees in 4326 versus around (356000, 5645000) meters in 25832. UTM 32N gives near-true distances and areas in meters within its zone, which is why German official data uses it.
| Property | EPSG:25832 | EPSG:4326 |
|---|---|---|
| EPSG code | EPSG:25832 | EPSG:4326 |
| Name | ETRS89 / UTM zone 32N | WGS 84 |
| Type | Projected | Geographic |
| Units | metres | degrees |
| Datum | ETRS89 | WGS 84 |
| Area of use | Germany, Norway, Sweden, Denmark (between 6°E and 12°E) | Worldwide |
| proj4 | +proj=utm +zone=32 +ellps=GRS80 +towgs84=0,0,0,0,0,0,0 +units=m +no_defs | +proj=longlat +datum=WGS84 +no_defs |
When to use EPSG:25832
Use EPSG:25832 for German and central-European official data (ALKIS, ATKIS, state geoportals), and any work measured in meters within the 6°E–12°E zone. It's the authoritative grid there.
When to use EPSG:4326
Use EPSG:4326 for global interchange, web maps, GeoJSON and GPS data, or when the audience spans multiple UTM zones and a single degree-based CRS is simpler.
Converting between EPSG:25832 and EPSG:4326 is a reprojection, not a relabel. Convert and reproject a file or detect your CRS.
Frequently asked questions
What is EPSG:25832 used for?
EPSG:25832 (ETRS89 / UTM zone 32N) is the standard projected CRS for Germany and central Europe between 6°E and 12°E. Official German datasets (ALKIS, ATKIS, state geoportals) use it, measured in meters.
Why are my German coordinates around 32xxxxx or 5xxxxxx?
Those are UTM zone 32N eastings and northings in meters (EPSG:25832). Eastings sit near 300000–700000 and northings in the millions. They're projected grid values, not degrees, and must be reprojected to EPSG:4326 for degree-based tools.
How different is ETRS89 from WGS 84?
The datums differ by only a few centimeters today (ETRS89 is the plate-fixed European frame, coincident with WGS 84 in 1989). The big difference between 25832 and 4326 is the projection — meters versus degrees — not the datum.
How do I convert EPSG:25832 to lat/lng?
Reproject from EPSG:25832 to EPSG:4326. This applies the inverse UTM zone 32N projection (and a negligible ETRS89→WGS 84 datum step), turning meters into longitude/latitude degrees. Relabeling alone will not work.