30° Comfort Angle Calculator
Starting from a blank campsite: enter your tree distance and ridgeline length, and get the strap height that delivers the classic 30-degree hang.
Attach your straps at
Plan the hang before you climb the tree
Most hammock-hanging advice describes the 30-degree angle in the abstract, leaving you to eyeball the strap height and hope. This calculator works the geometry forward instead: from your tree distance and ridgeline length, it finds exactly how much vertical drop a 30-degree hang requires, and adds that to your desired seat height to give you a concrete number in feet — something you can actually measure against the trunk before you tie anything off.
It shares its underlying geometry with the Hang & Sag and Tree-Friendly Spacing calculators; together the three cover planning a hang from any starting point — known trees, known straps, or nothing yet picked at all.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is this different from the Hang & Sag calculator?
The Hang & Sag calculator is diagnostic — you tell it the strap height you've already used, and it tells you what angle you ended up with. This one is prescriptive — you tell it your target angle (30° by default) and it tells you where to put the strap in the first place, before you've hung anything.
Why 30 degrees specifically?
It's the angle most commonly cited across the hammock-camping community as the balance point: flat enough to lie fairly flat rather than folded into a cocoon, but steep enough that the strap tension (see the Strap Load calculator) stays reasonable rather than multiplying sharply the way it does under about 20 degrees.
Can I target a different angle than 30 degrees?
Yes — the target angle is adjustable. Some campers prefer a slightly deeper hang (a bit under 30°) for extra fabric wrap and warmth, or a flatter one (a bit over 30°) for a more open lie, as long as they've checked the strap load at that angle is still within their hardware's rating.
General guidance only. Always check your straps, hardware, and anchor trees before trusting your full weight to them.