Origin
Lawndale, CA
Night in Lawndale on Friday
Local time
10:05 PM
PDT
Current temp
68°F
Unavailable
Live forecast
Trip from Lawndale, CA to Santa Ana, CA
Compiled and reviewed by the Trip.ovh planning team at COD Solutions Oy · Last reviewed Apr 18, 2026 · Editorial standards
Drive Time
41m
Distance
33.7 mi
54 km
Drive Score
6/10
Good drive
Same Day?
Yes, doable
Fuel Cost
$8
one way
EV Charging
Unknown
Best Time to Leave
4 AM
0h 38m
★
6 AM
0h 41m
8 AM
0h 48m
10 AM
0h 44m
12 PM
0h 43m
3 PM
0h 44m
5 PM
0h 48m
8 PM
0h 39m
Estimated drive times based on typical traffic patterns. Actual times may vary with weather, construction, and real-time conditions.
Lawndale, CA
Stephen Leonardi
Santa Ana, CA
Wikimedia Commons
Trip Overview
Lawndale, CA to Santa Ana, CA is 33.7 miles and takes about 41 minutes via San Diego Freeway, with a fuel budget near $8 and enough daylight to finish in a day. This drive stays within the Pacific Coast region, traversing a largely urban and suburban landscape. It's a straightforward trip, ideal for when you need to get from one point to another efficiently without a significant time commitment. Consider this route for a quick relocation of your vehicle or a short jaunt between these Southern California locales.
Who Is This Route For?
Weekend Trip
Doable as a same-day drive at 41m. Total distance: 33.7 miles.
Family Friendly
Moderate complexity with 0 natural rest stops along the way.
Solo Traveler
41m drive, comfortable solo distance.
EV Driver
0 DC fast chargers along the route. Coverage: unknown.
First-Time Driver
Mostly highway driving (91%). Some complex stretches to watch for.
Drive Character
Expect a highway-focused drive for this 33.7-mile journey, with 91% of your travel time spent on freeways. You'll primarily navigate the San Diego Freeway and the Garden Grove Freeway, with a portion on North Broadway. The longest uninterrupted stretch is a solid 20.5 miles on the San Diego Freeway, offering a consistent pace. This route is characterized by its urban setting, so anticipate typical freeway traffic patterns as you make your way across the Los Angeles metropolitan area.
Most of the miles stay on highways, which makes pacing and fuel planning easier than turn-by-turn city driving.
There are about 18 navigation steps in the underlying route data, so the final approach matters more than the middle miles.
San Diego Freeway is the longest continuous segment at about 20.5 miles.
How Hard Is This Drive?
This is a straightforward highway drive that stays mostly on San Diego Freeway and Garden Grove Freeway. This route has several spots where lane changes, forks, or exits need your full attention. The trickiest moment comes around 0.3 miles in.
Driving Effort
9/10
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 16 decision points packed into just 33.7 miles, you will need to pay attention to lane changes and exits — but the whole thing is over in 41m.
Where does it get tricky?
The main spots that need attention: at 0.3 miles: Lane positioning matters here; at 21 miles (CA 22 / Garden Grove Freeway): Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here; at 31.1 miles: Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one.
Critical Maneuvers
5 of 16 key pointsThese are the spots where you need to pay the most attention. Preview them before you drive.
7
0.3 mi into trip
|
~1m in
Take the ramp toward I 405 South: Long Beach
Lane positioning matters here
Use the right lane.
Toward I 405 South: Long Beach
8
21 mi into trip
|
~25m in
|
CA 22 / Garden Grove Freeway
Keep slight right at fork onto CA 22 / Garden Grove Freeway toward CA 22 East: Garden Grove
Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here
Use the straight / right lanes.
Exit 21
Toward CA 22 East: Garden Grove
10
31.1 mi into trip
|
~36m in
Keep slight right at fork toward I 5 South: Santa Ana, Broadway, Main Street
Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
Exit 14C; 105B
Toward I 5 South: Santa Ana, Broadway, Main Str...
8
31.3 mi into trip
|
~36m in
Keep slight right at fork toward Broadway, Main Street
Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one
Use the slight right lane.
Toward Broadway, Main Street
8
31.8 mi into trip
|
~37m in
Keep slight right at fork toward Main Street North, Broadway
Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
Toward Main Street North, Broadway
Towns Mentioned on Route Signs
Based on OSRM destination-sign hints, not a full list of every settlement the road passes.
Between Lawndale, CA and Santa Ana, CA, road signs point toward Broadway and Main Street North.
Broadway
31.1 mi in
|
~36m
Main Street North
31.8 mi in
|
~37m
Main Roads
| Road | Distance | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| San Diego Freeway | 20.5 mi | 23m |
| Garden Grove Freeway | 10.1 mi | 11m |
| North Broadway | 1.3 mi | 2m |
| North Main Street | 0.2 mi | <1m |
| Hawthorne Boulevard | 0.2 mi | <1m |
| West 5th Street | 0.1 mi | <1m |
| Manhattan Beach Boulevard | <0.1 mi | <1m |
| West 1st Street | <0.1 mi | <1m |
Longest stretch:
San Diego Freeway
— 20.5 mi, about 23m
Turn-by-Turn Driving Directions
Step-by-step road directions between Lawndale, CA and Santa Ana, CA.
1
Start on Manhattan Beach Boulevard
163 ft
·
4 sec
·
Manhattan Beach Boulevard
2
Turn right
175 ft
·
14 sec
3
Turn right onto Hawthorne Boulevard
66 ft
·
3 sec
·
Hawthorne Boulevard
4
Turn left onto Manhattan Beach Boulevard
156 ft
·
13 sec
·
Manhattan Beach Boulevard
Use the left / uturn lanes.
5
Turn left onto Hawthorne Boulevard
0.2 mi
·
25 sec
·
Hawthorne Boulevard
6
Take the ramp
0.1 mi
·
19 sec
Toward I 405 South: Long Beach
Use the right lane.
7
Merge onto I 405
18 mi
·
21 min
·
San Diego Freeway
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
8
Keep slight right at fork onto I 405
2.3 mi
·
2 min
·
San Diego Freeway
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
9
Keep slight right at fork onto CA 22
9.8 mi
·
11 min
·
Garden Grove Freeway
Exit 21
Toward CA 22 East: Garden Grove
Use the straight / right lanes.
10
Take the exit onto CA 22
0.3 mi
·
20 sec
·
Garden Grove Freeway
Exit 14C
Toward I 5 South: Santa Ana
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
11
Keep slight right at fork
0.3 mi
·
17 sec
Exit 14C; 105B
Toward I 5 South: Santa Ana, Broadway, Main Street
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
12
Keep slight right at fork
0.5 mi
·
32 sec
Toward Broadway, Main Street
Use the slight right lane.
13
Keep slight right at fork
0.3 mi
·
21 sec
Toward Main Street North, Broadway
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
14
Turn straight onto North Broadway
1.3 mi
·
2 min
·
North Broadway
Use the left lane.
15
Turn left onto West 5th Street
0.1 mi
·
16 sec
·
West 5th Street
Use the left lane.
16
Turn right onto North Main Street
0.2 mi
·
30 sec
·
North Main Street
Use the right lane.
17
Turn right onto West 1st Street
52 ft
·
1 sec
·
West 1st Street
Use the right lane.
18
Arrive at destination
West 1st Street
Fuel & Cost
Regular Gas
$7.75 one way
$15.49 round trip
$5.84/gal
25.4 MPG avg
12 kg CO2
| Fuel Type | $/gal | One Way | Round Trip |
|---|---|---|---|
| midgrade | $6.02 | $7.98 | $15.96 |
| premium | $6.18 | $8.20 | $16.39 |
| diesel | $5.61 | $7.44 | $14.88 |
No toll roads detected on this route.
Drive Cost (one way)
Fuel
$8
Estimated CO2 emission: 11.8 kg one way. Prices: EIA weekly data, 2026-04-13.
Driving Electric?
About $4 in charging · 0 stops · 67% less CO2
| Vehicle Type | kWh | Stops | DC Fast | Home Charge |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average EV | 10.1 | 0 | $3.54 | $1.62 |
| Efficient EV | 8.4 | 0 | $2.95 | $1.35 |
| EV Truck/SUV | 13.5 | 0 | $4.72 | $2.16 |
Gas CO2
12 kg
EV CO2
4 kg (67% 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.
Travel Intel
Current conditions at both ends of the drive.
Destination
Santa Ana, CA
Night in Santa Ana on Friday
Local time
10:05 PM
PDT
Current temp
72°F
Unavailable
Live forecast
Time zone
Same local time
Origin and destination are on the same clock, so arrival timing is easier to judge at a glance.
Temperature spread
4 degrees warmer at arrival
A meaningful temperature swing is a good cue to rethink layers, water, and how soon you want to arrive.
Road read
41m on the road
Use the two city cards together: check the sky where you start, then compare it with the local time and temperature at arrival.
Weather data from the National Weather Service. Conditions may change; check closer to your travel date.
Frequently Asked Questions
The drive from Lawndale, CA to Santa Ana, CA covers 33.7 miles and takes about 41m without stops. Add 15-30 minutes for a fuel or rest stop on longer drives.
The main roads are San Diego Freeway, Garden Grove Freeway, North Broadway. Most of the drive stays on highways, so watch for ramps and exits.
This is a comfortable same-day trip.
The midpoint is about 16.9 miles from Lawndale, CA. Look for rest areas, gas stations, or food options near the halfway mark.
At current regular gas prices, expect to spend about $7.75 one way. This estimate uses 25.4 MPG — your actual cost will vary with your vehicle's fuel efficiency and current gas prices.
Leave by 9 AM and you'll arrive before lunch. Even a 4 PM departure gets you there before dark in summer.
This is a short but busy drive. With 16 decision points packed into just 33.7 miles, you will need to pay attention to lane changes and exits — but the whole thing is over in 41m.
The main spots that need attention: at 0.3 miles: Lane positioning matters here; at 21 miles (CA 22 / Garden Grove Freeway): Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here; at 31.1 miles: Highway fork - watch signs carefully. Lane positioning matters here. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one.
Between Lawndale, CA and Santa Ana, CA, road signs point toward Broadway and Main Street North.
Yes. Nearby national parks include Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area.
How this page is built
Compiled by the Trip.ovh planning team at COD Solutions Oy from open government datasets — OSRM over OpenStreetMap for geometry, EIA for fuel prices, and NPS for national parks. See our methodology for refresh cadence and limitations.
Was this helpful?
Thanks for your feedback!
Your tip has been submitted. Thanks!
/500
Recent Tips
·
Explore More
Continue From Santa Ana, CA
More trips to Santa Ana, CA
Explore more options from Lawndale, CA or browse trips ending in Santa Ana, CA.
Looking for more statewide routes? Browse CA road trips.