CalcKit
Length Converter
Table of Contents
Length definition
Length is a fundamental physical quantity that represents the magnitude of a distance between two points in space. In physics, lengths are expressed in units of measurement, which are standardized so that everyone can understand them.
How to convert lengths
Type a value into any field, and every other unit is calculated at once. For example, a 5 mile run:
-
In kilometers: multiply by 1.609344.
5 * 1.609344 = 8.047 km -
In meters: multiply by 1,609.344.
5 * 1,609.344 = 8,046.72 m
Heights in feet and inches go into the Foot, Inch (ft.in) field, with the inches after the point as two digits: 5 ft 10 in is typed as 5.10, and 5 ft 3 in as 5.03. A result in this field is rounded to the nearest inch.
5.10 ft.in = 177.8 cm
The calculation behind it is (5 * 12 + 10) * 2.54 = 177.8 cm.
Common conversions
| Value | Equals |
|---|---|
| 1 in | 2.54 cm |
| 1 cm | 0.393701 in |
| 1 ft | 30.48 cm |
| 1 m | 3.28084 ft |
| 1 m | 39.3701 in |
| 1 yd | 0.9144 m |
| 1 mi | 1.60934 km |
| 1 km | 0.621371 mi |
| 1 nmi | 1.852 km |
| 1 mil | 0.0254 mm |
| Height | Equals |
|---|---|
| 5′ 0″ | 152.4 cm |
| 5′ 6″ | 167.6 cm |
| 6′ 0″ | 182.9 cm |
| 170 cm | 5.07 ft.in (5′ 7″) |
| 180 cm | 5.11 ft.in (5′ 11″) |
Length units
Length units can be used to express the size of objects, distances between objects, and distances traveled.
-
Kilometer (km) - A kilometer is a metric unit of length, which is equivalent to 1000 meters. It is used for measuring large distances, such as the distance between two cities or the length of a road.
-
Meter (m) - A meter is the standard unit of length in the metric system. It is defined as the distance traveled by light in a vacuum in 1 / 299,792,458 of a second. The meter is used for measuring distances, lengths, and heights.
-
Centimeter (cm) - A centimeter is a unit of length in the metric system, which is equivalent to 1 / 100 of a meter. It is commonly used for measuring smaller lengths, such as the size of a sheet of paper or the width of a pencil.
-
Millimeter (mm) - A millimeter is a unit of length in the metric system, which is equivalent to 1 / 1000 of a meter. It is used for measuring very small lengths, such as the thickness of a sheet of metal or the diameter of a wire.
-
Mile (mi) - A mile is an imperial unit of length that is used mainly in the United States and the United Kingdom. It is equivalent to 1760 yards, or 1.609 kilometers and is used for measuring distances, such as the distance between two cities or the length of a road.
-
Yard (yd) - A yard is an imperial unit of length that is used mainly in the United States. It is equivalent to 3 feet, or 0.9144 meters and is used for measuring lengths, such as the size of a football field or the distance between the bases in a baseball field.
-
Foot (ft) - A foot is an imperial unit of length that is used mainly in the United States. It is equivalent to 12 inches, or 0.3048 meters and is used for measuring lengths, such as the height of a person or the width of a door.
-
Inch (in) - An inch is an imperial unit of length, 1/12 of a foot, that is used mainly in the United States. It is equivalent to 2.54 centimeters and is used for measuring small lengths, such as the size of a screen or the thickness of a book.
-
Foot, Inch (ft.in) - This is a special unit in CalcKit, that combines the foot and inch units together, separated by a decimal point. For example: 5ft 3in can be written as 5.03 ft.in, or 3ft 11in as 3.11 ft.in.
-
Furlong (fur) - A furlong is an imperial unit of length that is no longer widely used today. It is equivalent to 220 yards (1 / 8 of a mile), or 201.168 meters and is now mostly used to measure distances in horse racing.
-
Nautical Mile (nmi) - A nautical mile is a unit of length that is used in navigation and is equivalent to 1852 meters. It is used for measuring distances at sea and in the air.
-
Nautical Mile (UK) - The old British Admiralty nautical mile, equal to 6,080 feet, or 1,853.184 meters. The United Kingdom replaced it with the international nautical mile in 1970.
-
Micrometer (µm) - A micrometer, or micron, is 1 / 1,000,000 of a meter, or 0.001 millimeters. It is used for measuring very small lengths, such as the thickness of a human hair (about 50 to 100 µm) or tolerances in machining.
-
Mil - A mil is a unit of length that is used in the United States for measuring very small lengths, such as the thickness of a wire or the diameter of a pin. It is equivalent to 1 / 1000 of an inch, or 0.0254 millimeters.
-
Angstrom (Å) - An angstrom is a unit of length that is used to measure very small lengths, such as the distances between atoms or the wavelengths of light. It is equivalent to 10^-10 meters.
-
Astronomical unit (AU) - An astronomical unit is a unit of length used in astronomy to express the average distance between the Earth and the Sun. It is equal to 149,597,870.7 kilometers, or 92,955,807.3 miles. The AU provides a convenient way to express distances within our solar system.
-
Light year (ly) - A light year is a unit of length used to measure astronomical distances. It is defined as the distance that light travels in a vacuum in one year, or about 9.46 trillion km (5.88 trillion miles). A light year is used to express the vast distances between stars and galaxies. For example, the nearest star to our Sun, Proxima Centauri, is located about 4.25 light years away.
-
Parsec (pc) - A parsec is a unit of length that is used in astronomy to measure large distances. It is equivalent to 3.26 light-years and is used for measuring the distances between stars and galaxies.
Metric and imperial system
Metric and imperial units are two systems of units of measurement that are used in different parts of the world.
Metric system
Metric units, also known as the International System of Units (SI), is a decimal system of units that is widely used in scientific and technical applications, as well as in everyday life. It is the most widely used system of measurement, official in almost every country. The main exception is the United States, and the United Kingdom still uses miles, feet and inches alongside it.
The basic unit of length in the metric system is the meter. Other units of length, such as the centimeter and millimeter, are defined as fractions or multiples of the meter.
The metric system is based on multiples of 10, which makes it easy to convert between different units.
Imperial system
Imperial units, also known as the British system, is an older system of units that was originally used in the British Empire and is still used in some countries, such as the United States and the United Kingdom.
The basic unit of length in the imperial system is the yard. Other units of length, such as the inch, foot and mile, are defined as fractions or multiples of the yard. Since 1959, the yard has been defined as exactly 0.9144 meters.
The imperial system is not based on multiples of 10 and can make it more difficult to convert between different units, compared to the metric system.