Compiled and reviewed by the US Trip Planner planning team at COD Solutions Oy · Last reviewed Sep 6, 2026 · Editorial standards
Drive Time
31m
Distance
19.7 mi
32 km
Drive Score
6/10
Good drive
Same Day?
Yes, doable
Fuel Cost
$3
one way
EV Charging
Good
8 stations
Estimated drive times based on typical traffic patterns. Actual times may vary with weather, construction, and real-time conditions.
Cranford, NJ
Wikimedia Commons
Hoboken, NJ
Wikimedia Commons
Cranford, NJ to Hoboken, NJ is 19.7 miles and takes about 31 minutes via the New Jersey Turnpike Newark Bay Extension, with a fuel budget near $3 and enough daylight to finish in a day. This short trip stays entirely within New Jersey, connecting two points in the Northeast region. Given its proximity and primarily highway profile, this route is ideal for a quick commute or a brief inter-city hop. You won't need extensive planning, as it's easily manageable within a single day.
| Road | Distance | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| New Jersey Turnpike Newark Bay Extension | 8.2 mi | 11m |
| Phillipsburg-Newark Expressway | 4.9 mi | 6m |
| Garden State Parkway | 3.5 mi | 4m |
| North Avenue East | 0.7 mi | 1m |
| Jersey Avenue | 0.5 mi | 1m |
| Clinton Street | 0.4 mi | 1m |
| Newark Street | 0.2 mi | <1m |
| Observer Highway | 0.2 mi | <1m |
Step-by-step road directions between Cranford, NJ and Hoboken, NJ.
Start on Forest Avenue
At end of road, turn left onto NJ 28
Turn left
Merge onto GSP
Take the exit
Keep slight right at fork
Merge onto I 78
Keep slight left at fork onto I 78; NJTP
Continue on I 78; NJTP
Turn left onto Jersey Avenue
Turn left onto Jackson Street
Turn right onto Observer Highway
Continue on Newark Street
Turn left onto Clinton Street
Turn right onto 5th Street
Turn left onto CR 677
Turn left onto 6th Street
Arrive at destination
5 decision points cluster between mile 0.8 and 18.2 — GPS handles the exact turns, but know they're coming. Your lane choice matters more than the turn itself.
Turn left toward GSP Toll North
Lane positioning matters here
Merge onto GSP / Garden State Parkway
Merge point - match speed before joining. Lane positioning matters here
Keep slight right at fork toward I 78 East: Newark Airport, Newark
Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one
Merge onto I 78 / Phillipsburg-Newark Expressway
Merge point - match speed before joining. Lane positioning matters here
Turn left onto Jersey Avenue
Lane positioning matters here
Regular Gas
$3.29 one way
$6.58 round trip
| Fuel Type | $/gal | One Way | Round Trip |
|---|---|---|---|
| midgrade | $4.67 | $3.62 | $7.25 |
| premium | $5.01 | $3.89 | $7.77 |
| diesel | $5.60 | $4.34 | $8.69 |
Estimated Tolls: $1.37
Toll estimates based on average 2024-2025 rates. EZ-Pass/SunPass discounts may lower the actual cost.
Drive Cost (one way)
Fuel
$3
Tolls
$1
Total
$5
Estimated CO2 emission: 6.9 kg one way. Prices: EIA weekly data, 2026-08-31.
Driving Electric?
About $2 in charging · 0 stops · 71% less CO2
| Vehicle Type | kWh | Stops | DC Fast | Home Charge |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average EV | 5.9 | 0 | $2.07 | $0.95 |
| Efficient EV | 4.9 | 0 | $1.72 | $0.79 |
| EV Truck/SUV | 7.9 | 0 | $2.76 | $1.26 |
Gas CO2
7 kg
EV CO2
2 kg (71% less)
This trip is well within single-charge range for most EVs. No charging stops needed if you start fully charged.
DC fast charging avg $0.35/kWh. Home charging avg $0.16/kWh. US grid CO2: 0.39 kg/kWh.
Current conditions at both ends of the drive.
Origin
Late night in Cranford on Sunday
Local time
12:03 AM
EDT
Current temp
69°F
Mostly Clear
Destination
Late night in Hoboken on Sunday
Local time
12:03 AM
EDT
Current temp
70°F
Slight Chance Rain Showers then Partly Cloudy
Time zone
Origin and destination are on the same clock, so arrival timing is easier to judge at a glance.
Temperature spread
A meaningful temperature swing is a good cue to rethink layers, water, and how soon you want to arrive.
Road read
The weather snapshot is not static. If you are leaving later, give both cities one more quick forecast check before departure.
Weather data from the National Weather Service. Conditions may change; check closer to your travel date.
This is an 84% highway drive, so expect most of your 31 minutes to be spent on limited-access roads. The longest continuous stretch on a highway is 8.2 miles on the New Jersey Turnpike Newark Bay Extension. You'll encounter dense traffic and frequent exit ramps as you approach the urban areas of Hoboken. The highway portion will likely conclude with a transition to surface streets for the final approach.
This is a straightforward highway drive that stays mostly on New Jersey Turnpike Newark Bay Extension and Phillipsburg-Newark Expressway. This route has several spots where lane changes, forks, or exits need your full attention. The trickiest moment comes around 0.8 miles in.
Focused - lots of decisions in a short distance, but it is over quickly
Balances navigation complexity with total wheel time.
This is a short but busy drive. With 15 decision points packed into just 19.7 miles, you will need to pay attention to lane changes and exits — but the whole thing is over in 31m.
Where does it get tricky?
The main spots that need attention: at 0.8 miles: Lane positioning matters here; at 1.2 miles (GSP / Garden State Parkway): Merge point - match speed before joining. Lane positioning matters here; at 4.8 miles: Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one.
Mostly flat terrain
Total Climb
165 ft
Total Descent
221 ft
Highest Point
147 ft
~6.4 mi in
Elevation Range
144 ft
Based on OSRM destination-sign hints, not a full list of every settlement the road passes.
On the drive from Cranford, NJ to Hoboken, NJ, road signs begin pointing toward Newark along the way.
Newark
Central Union County is a rural area of Union County, New Jersey.
Founded 1849
Hoboken (HOH-boh-kən) is a small city on the Hudson River in northeastern New Jersey. Once known only as the birthplace of baseball and crooner Frank Sinatra and the site of Stevens Institute of Technology, Hoboken has become a party town, rich in bars and clubs, and a bedroom community for young, mostly twenty-something professionals who work across the river in New York City
Top landmarks
City content from Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA 4.0) and Wikidata (CC0).
Weekend Trip
Doable as a same-day drive at 31m. Total distance: 19.7 miles.
Family Friendly
Moderate complexity with 0 natural rest stops along the way.
Solo Traveler
31m drive, comfortable solo distance.
EV Driver
0 DC fast chargers along the route. Coverage: unknown.
First-Time Driver
Mostly highway driving (84%). Some complex stretches to watch for.
Compiled by the US Trip Planner planning team at COD Solutions Oy from open government datasets — OSRM over OpenStreetMap for geometry, EIA for fuel prices, USGS 3DEP for elevation, and NPS for national parks. See our methodology for refresh cadence and limitations.
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