Planets in Order from the Sun
The 8 planets in order from the Sun are Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. The first four are small and rocky; the last four are giants.
- 1Mercury
- 2Venus
- 3Earth
- 4Mars
- 5Jupiter
- 6Saturn
- 7Uranus
- 8Neptune
Memory trickMyVeryEducatedMotherJustServedUsNoodles
Can you put them in order?
Tap a planet to drop it in the next spot, or drag it to any spot. Press Check: the right ones stay, the rest come back for another go. Then try them by size.
Tap or drag a planet into spot 1.
The planets in order, with size, moons and year
Distance is the average distance from the Sun. One AU is Earth's distance, about 150 million km.
| Planet | From the Sun | Width | Moons | Day | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Mercury | 58 million km0.39 AU | 4,879 km | 0 | 59 Earth days | 88 days |
| 2. Venus | 108 million km0.72 AU | 12,104 km | 0 | 243 Earth days | 225 days |
| 3. Earth | 150 million km1 AU | 12,742 km | 1 | 24 hours | 365 days |
| 4. Mars | 228 million km1.52 AU | 6,779 km | 2 | 24.6 hours | 687 days |
| 5. Jupiter | 778 million km5.2 AU | 139,820 km | 115 | 9.9 hours | 12 years |
| 6. Saturn | 1,434 million km9.6 AU | 116,460 km | 293 | 10.7 hours | 29 years |
| 7. Uranus | 2,871 million km19.1 AU | 50,724 km | 29 | 17.2 hours | 84 years |
| 8. Neptune | 4,495 million km30 AU | 49,244 km | 16 | 16.1 hours | 165 years |
A day here is one full spin; Venus and Uranus spin backwards. A year is one trip around the Sun, in Earth days or Earth years. Moon counts are NASA's from mid 2026, and new small moons are still being found.
Inner planets and outer planets
The inner planets
Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars are small and made of rock and metal. They have few moons or none, and no rings.
The outer planets
Jupiter and Saturn are gas giants; Uranus and Neptune are ice giants. All four have rings and many moons.
Between the two groups lies the asteroid belt, between Mars and Jupiter. Past Neptune is the Kuiper Belt, home to Pluto and other dwarf planets.
The planets in order of size
From biggest to smallest: Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Earth, Venus, Mars and Mercury. Bars show each planet's width.
How to remember the order of the planets
Pick a sentence whose words start with the same letters as the planets: M, V, E, M, J, S, U, N. Say it a few times and the order sticks.
- My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Noodles
- My Very Easy Method Just Speeds Up Naming
- Many Very Eager Mice Jumped Swiftly Under Nets
Another way: remember the two groups. Four small rocky planets, then the asteroid belt, then four giants. Mars is the red one just before the belt, and Saturn with its rings is the sixth.
Know them by sight?
The Planet Quiz shows you a planet and asks which one it is, then tests your planet facts.
Play the Planet QuizQuestions people ask
What is the order of the planets from the Sun?
Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. Mercury is the closest to the Sun and Neptune is the farthest, about 30 times farther out than Earth.
How do you remember the order of the planets?
Use a sentence where each word starts with the first letter of a planet: My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Noodles. That gives M, V, E, M, J, S, U, N for Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune.
What are the planets in order of size?
From biggest to smallest: Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Earth, Venus, Mars and Mercury. Jupiter is about 11 times as wide as Earth, and Mercury is only a bit more than a third of Earth's width.
Why is Pluto no longer a planet?
In 2006 the International Astronomical Union said a planet must go around the Sun, be round, and have cleared its path of other objects. Pluto is round and goes around the Sun, but it shares its path with many other icy bodies in the Kuiper Belt, so it is now called a dwarf planet.
Which planet is closest to Earth?
Venus comes the closest, about 38 million km away at its nearest. On average, though, Mercury is the closest planet to Earth, because it always stays near the Sun while Venus and Mars spend long stretches on the far side of it.
What number planet is Earth?
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, after Mercury and Venus. It is the fifth biggest planet.
How many planets are in the solar system?
There are 8 planets. There were 9 until 2006, when Pluto was moved to the new group of dwarf planets.
Which are the inner and outer planets?
The inner planets are Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars: small, rocky worlds. Then comes the asteroid belt. The outer planets are the giants: Jupiter and Saturn, made mostly of gas, and Uranus and Neptune, the ice giants.