diff --git a/docs/sphinx/source/reference/index.rst b/docs/sphinx/source/reference/index.rst
index 0f1902325a..b96ca4114f 100644
--- a/docs/sphinx/source/reference/index.rst
+++ b/docs/sphinx/source/reference/index.rst
@@ -20,3 +20,4 @@ API reference
    modelchain
    bifacial
    scaling
+   location
diff --git a/docs/sphinx/source/reference/location.rst b/docs/sphinx/source/reference/location.rst
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..28ef46812a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/docs/sphinx/source/reference/location.rst
@@ -0,0 +1,11 @@
+.. currentmodule:: pvlib
+
+Location
+========
+
+Methods for information about locations.
+
+.. autosummary::
+   :toctree: generated/
+
+   location.lookup_altitude
diff --git a/docs/sphinx/source/whatsnew/v0.9.3.rst b/docs/sphinx/source/whatsnew/v0.9.3.rst
index d916ffb558..2f3c643d05 100644
--- a/docs/sphinx/source/whatsnew/v0.9.3.rst
+++ b/docs/sphinx/source/whatsnew/v0.9.3.rst
@@ -9,7 +9,9 @@ Deprecations
 
 Enhancements
 ~~~~~~~~~~~~
-
+* Low resolution altitude lookup map
+  :py:func:`~pvlib.location.lookup_altitude`
+  (:issue:`1516`, :pull:`1518`)
 
 Bug fixes
 ~~~~~~~~~
@@ -33,4 +35,5 @@ Requirements
 
 Contributors
 ~~~~~~~~~~~~
-João Guilherme (:ghuser:`joaoguilhermeS`)
+* João Guilherme (:ghuser:`joaoguilhermeS`)
+* Nicolas Martinez (:ghuser:`nicomt`)
diff --git a/pvlib/clearsky.py b/pvlib/clearsky.py
index 2f5cd68c62..ffc7ac9b55 100644
--- a/pvlib/clearsky.py
+++ b/pvlib/clearsky.py
@@ -14,6 +14,7 @@
 import h5py
 
 from pvlib import atmosphere, tools
+from pvlib.tools import _degrees_to_index
 
 
 def ineichen(apparent_zenith, airmass_absolute, linke_turbidity,
@@ -286,67 +287,6 @@ def _calendar_month_middles(year):
     return middles
 
 
-def _degrees_to_index(degrees, coordinate):
-    """Transform input degrees to an output index integer. The Linke
-    turbidity lookup tables have three dimensions, latitude, longitude, and
-    month. Specify a degree value and either 'latitude' or 'longitude' to get
-    the appropriate index number for the first two of these index numbers.
-
-    Parameters
-    ----------
-    degrees : float or int
-        Degrees of either latitude or longitude.
-    coordinate : string
-        Specify whether degrees arg is latitude or longitude. Must be set to
-        either 'latitude' or 'longitude' or an error will be raised.
-
-    Returns
-    -------
-    index : np.int16
-        The latitude or longitude index number to use when looking up values
-        in the Linke turbidity lookup table.
-    """
-    # Assign inputmin, inputmax, and outputmax based on degree type.
-    if coordinate == 'latitude':
-        inputmin = 90
-        inputmax = -90
-        outputmax = 2160
-    elif coordinate == 'longitude':
-        inputmin = -180
-        inputmax = 180
-        outputmax = 4320
-    else:
-        raise IndexError("coordinate must be 'latitude' or 'longitude'.")
-
-    inputrange = inputmax - inputmin
-    scale = outputmax/inputrange  # number of indices per degree
-    center = inputmin + 1 / scale / 2  # shift to center of index
-    outputmax -= 1  # shift index to zero indexing
-    index = (degrees - center) * scale
-    err = IndexError('Input, %g, is out of range (%g, %g).' %
-                     (degrees, inputmin, inputmax))
-
-    # If the index is still out of bounds after rounding, raise an error.
-    # 0.500001 is used in comparisons instead of 0.5 to allow for a small
-    # margin of error which can occur when dealing with floating point numbers.
-    if index > outputmax:
-        if index - outputmax <= 0.500001:
-            index = outputmax
-        else:
-            raise err
-    elif index < 0:
-        if -index <= 0.500001:
-            index = 0
-        else:
-            raise err
-    # If the index wasn't set to outputmax or 0, round it and cast it as an
-    # integer so it can be used in integer-based indexing.
-    else:
-        index = int(np.around(index))
-
-    return index
-
-
 def haurwitz(apparent_zenith):
     '''
     Determine clear sky GHI using the Haurwitz model.
diff --git a/pvlib/data/Altitude.h5 b/pvlib/data/Altitude.h5
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..2921233212
Binary files /dev/null and b/pvlib/data/Altitude.h5 differ
diff --git a/pvlib/location.py b/pvlib/location.py
index ddd2d1b96a..0fb3b42a04 100644
--- a/pvlib/location.py
+++ b/pvlib/location.py
@@ -4,13 +4,16 @@
 
 # Will Holmgren, University of Arizona, 2014-2016.
 
+import os
 import datetime
 import warnings
 
 import pandas as pd
 import pytz
+import h5py
 
 from pvlib import solarposition, clearsky, atmosphere, irradiance
+from pvlib.tools import _degrees_to_index
 
 class Location:
     """
@@ -356,3 +359,88 @@ def get_sun_rise_set_transit(self, times, method='pyephem', **kwargs):
                              'one of pyephem, spa, geometric'
                              .format(method))
         return result
+
+
+def lookup_altitude(latitude, longitude):
+    """
+    Look up location altitude from low-resolution altitude map
+    supplied with pvlib. The data for this map comes from multiple open data
+    sources with varying resolutions aggregated by Mapzen.
+
+    More details can be found here
+    https://github.com/tilezen/joerd/blob/master/docs/data-sources.md
+
+    Altitudes from this map are a coarse approximation and can have
+    significant errors (100+ meters) introduced by downsampling and
+    source data resolution.
+
+    Parameters
+    ----------
+    latitude : float.
+        Positive is north of the equator.
+        Use decimal degrees notation.
+
+    longitude : float.
+        Positive is east of the prime meridian.
+        Use decimal degrees notation.
+
+    Returns
+    -------
+    altitude : float
+        The altitude of the location in meters.
+
+    Notes
+    -----------
+    Attributions:
+
+    * ArcticDEM terrain data DEM(s) were created from DigitalGlobe, Inc.,
+      imagery and funded under National Science Foundation awards 1043681,
+      1559691, and 1542736;
+    * Australia terrain data © Commonwealth of Australia
+      (Geoscience Australia) 2017;
+    * Austria terrain data © offene Daten Österreichs - Digitales
+      Geländemodell (DGM) Österreich;
+    * Canada terrain data contains information licensed under the Open
+      Government Licence - Canada;
+    * Europe terrain data produced using Copernicus data and information
+      funded by the European Union - EU-DEM layers;
+    * Global ETOPO1 terrain data U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric
+      Administration
+    * Mexico terrain data source: INEGI, Continental relief, 2016;
+    * New Zealand terrain data Copyright 2011 Crown copyright (c) Land
+      Information New Zealand and the New Zealand Government
+      (All rights reserved);
+    * Norway terrain data © Kartverket;
+    * United Kingdom terrain data © Environment Agency copyright and/or
+      database right 2015. All rights reserved;
+    * United States 3DEP (formerly NED) and global GMTED2010 and SRTM
+      terrain data courtesy of the U.S. Geological Survey.
+
+    References
+    ----------
+    .. [1] `Mapzen, Linux foundation project for open data maps
+        <https://www.mapzen.com/>`_
+    .. [2] `Joerd, tool for downloading and processing DEMs, Used by Mapzen
+        <https://github.com/tilezen/joerd/>`_
+    .. [3] `AWS, Open Data Registry Terrain Tiles
+        <https://registry.opendata.aws/terrain-tiles/>`_
+
+    """
+
+    pvlib_path = os.path.dirname(os.path.abspath(__file__))
+    filepath = os.path.join(pvlib_path, 'data', 'Altitude.h5')
+
+    latitude_index = _degrees_to_index(latitude, coordinate='latitude')
+    longitude_index = _degrees_to_index(longitude, coordinate='longitude')
+
+    with h5py.File(filepath, 'r') as alt_h5_file:
+        alt = alt_h5_file['Altitude'][latitude_index, longitude_index]
+
+    # 255 is a special value that means nodata. Fallback to 0 if nodata.
+    if alt == 255:
+        return 0
+    # Altitude is encoded in 28 meter steps from -450 meters to 6561 meters
+    # There are 0-254 possible altitudes, with 255 reserved for nodata.
+    alt *= 28
+    alt -= 450
+    return float(alt)
diff --git a/pvlib/tests/test_clearsky.py b/pvlib/tests/test_clearsky.py
index d603cbcdfe..6e620f3c79 100644
--- a/pvlib/tests/test_clearsky.py
+++ b/pvlib/tests/test_clearsky.py
@@ -511,13 +511,6 @@ def monthly_lt_nointerp(lat, lon, time=months):
         monthly_lt_nointerp(38.2, -181)  # exceeds min longitude
 
 
-def test_degrees_to_index_1():
-    """Test that _degrees_to_index raises an error when something other than
-    'latitude' or 'longitude' is passed."""
-    with pytest.raises(IndexError):  # invalid value for coordinate argument
-        clearsky._degrees_to_index(degrees=22.0, coordinate='width')
-
-
 @pytest.fixture
 def detect_clearsky_data():
     data_file = DATA_DIR / 'detect_clearsky_data.csv'
diff --git a/pvlib/tests/test_location.py b/pvlib/tests/test_location.py
index a4b69e5cb2..b3c1576bdf 100644
--- a/pvlib/tests/test_location.py
+++ b/pvlib/tests/test_location.py
@@ -12,7 +12,7 @@
 from pytz.exceptions import UnknownTimeZoneError
 
 import pvlib
-from pvlib.location import Location
+from pvlib.location import Location, lookup_altitude
 from pvlib.solarposition import declination_spencer71
 from pvlib.solarposition import equation_of_time_spencer71
 from .conftest import requires_ephem
@@ -326,3 +326,23 @@ def test_get_sun_rise_set_transit_valueerror(golden):
 def test_extra_kwargs():
     with pytest.raises(TypeError, match='arbitrary_kwarg'):
         Location(32.2, -111, arbitrary_kwarg='value')
+
+
+def test_lookup_altitude():
+    max_alt_error = 125
+    # location name, latitude, longitude, altitude
+    test_locations = [
+        ('Tucson, USA', 32.2540, -110.9742, 724),
+        ('Lusaka, Zambia', -15.3875, 28.3228, 1253),
+        ('Tokio, Japan', 35.6762, 139.6503, 40),
+        ('Canberra, Australia', -35.2802, 149.1310, 566),
+        ('Bogota, Colombia', 4.7110, -74.0721, 2555),
+        ('Dead Sea, West Bank', 31.525849, 35.449214, -415),
+        ('New Delhi, India', 28.6139, 77.2090, 214),
+        ('Null Island,  Atlantic Ocean', 0, 0, 0),
+    ]
+
+    for name, lat, lon, expected_alt in test_locations:
+        alt_found = lookup_altitude(lat, lon)
+        assert abs(alt_found - expected_alt) < max_alt_error, \
+            f'Max error exceded for {name} - e: {expected_alt} f: {alt_found}'
diff --git a/pvlib/tests/test_tools.py b/pvlib/tests/test_tools.py
index e6b8e9091a..167dca8cec 100644
--- a/pvlib/tests/test_tools.py
+++ b/pvlib/tests/test_tools.py
@@ -72,3 +72,10 @@ def test__golden_sect_DataFrame_nans():
     v, x = tools._golden_sect_DataFrame(params, lower, upper,
                                         _obj_test_golden_sect)
     assert np.allclose(x, expected, atol=1e-8, equal_nan=True)
+
+
+def test_degrees_to_index_1():
+    """Test that _degrees_to_index raises an error when something other than
+    'latitude' or 'longitude' is passed."""
+    with pytest.raises(IndexError):  # invalid value for coordinate argument
+        tools._degrees_to_index(degrees=22.0, coordinate='width')
diff --git a/pvlib/tools.py b/pvlib/tools.py
index dd5730ee6f..991568f9e0 100644
--- a/pvlib/tools.py
+++ b/pvlib/tools.py
@@ -412,3 +412,61 @@ def _get_sample_intervals(times, win_length):
             'periods, leap days, etc.'
         )
         raise NotImplementedError(message)
+
+
+def _degrees_to_index(degrees, coordinate):
+    """Transform input degrees to an output index integer.
+    Specify a degree value and either 'latitude' or 'longitude' to get
+    the appropriate index number for these two index numbers.
+    Parameters
+    ----------
+    degrees : float or int
+        Degrees of either latitude or longitude.
+    coordinate : string
+        Specify whether degrees arg is latitude or longitude. Must be set to
+        either 'latitude' or 'longitude' or an error will be raised.
+    Returns
+    -------
+    index : np.int16
+        The latitude or longitude index number to use when looking up values
+        in the Linke turbidity lookup table.
+    """
+    # Assign inputmin, inputmax, and outputmax based on degree type.
+    if coordinate == 'latitude':
+        inputmin = 90
+        inputmax = -90
+        outputmax = 2160
+    elif coordinate == 'longitude':
+        inputmin = -180
+        inputmax = 180
+        outputmax = 4320
+    else:
+        raise IndexError("coordinate must be 'latitude' or 'longitude'.")
+
+    inputrange = inputmax - inputmin
+    scale = outputmax/inputrange  # number of indices per degree
+    center = inputmin + 1 / scale / 2  # shift to center of index
+    outputmax -= 1  # shift index to zero indexing
+    index = (degrees - center) * scale
+    err = IndexError('Input, %g, is out of range (%g, %g).' %
+                     (degrees, inputmin, inputmax))
+
+    # If the index is still out of bounds after rounding, raise an error.
+    # 0.500001 is used in comparisons instead of 0.5 to allow for a small
+    # margin of error which can occur when dealing with floating point numbers.
+    if index > outputmax:
+        if index - outputmax <= 0.500001:
+            index = outputmax
+        else:
+            raise err
+    elif index < 0:
+        if -index <= 0.500001:
+            index = 0
+        else:
+            raise err
+    # If the index wasn't set to outputmax or 0, round it and cast it as an
+    # integer so it can be used in integer-based indexing.
+    else:
+        index = int(np.around(index))
+
+    return index