Convert Length and Distance Units Instantly
India officially uses the metric system, yet we still describe our height in feet and inches, buy TVs by the inch, measure plots in feet and see road distances abroad in miles. Switching between these systems is something most of us need to do regularly. This length converter handles 11 units — from nanometres to nautical miles — and converts in both directions as you type.
How to Use the Length Converter
- Enter a value in the From box.
- Choose the unit you are converting from, and the unit you want in the To box.
- The result updates instantly. You can also type in the To box to convert the other way, or use the swap button to reverse the units.
- The formula used is shown below the result, so you can see exactly how it was calculated.
Common Length Conversions
| From | To | Multiply by |
|---|---|---|
| Inches | Centimetres | 2.54 |
| Feet | Metres | 0.3048 |
| Yards | Metres | 0.9144 |
| Miles | Kilometres | 1.609344 |
| Centimetres | Inches | 0.3937 |
| Metres | Feet | 3.2808 |
| Kilometres | Miles | 0.6214 |
| Nautical miles | Kilometres | 1.852 |
Practical Examples
Height in feet to centimetres
Forms for passports, visas and medical check-ups often ask for height in centimetres. For 5′7″: 5 × 30.48 = 152.4 cm, plus 7 × 2.54 = 17.78 cm, giving 170.18 cm.
| Height | Centimetres |
|---|---|
| 5′0″ | 152.4 cm |
| 5′4″ | 162.6 cm |
| 5′8″ | 172.7 cm |
| 6′0″ | 182.9 cm |
Screen sizes
TV and phone screens are measured diagonally in inches. A 55-inch TV is 55 × 2.54 = 139.7 cm across the diagonal; a 6.7-inch phone is about 17 cm.
Running distances
A 5K run is 3.11 miles, a 10K is 6.21 miles, and a full marathon (42.195 km) is 26.2 miles.
Metric Units at a Glance
The metric system is easy because every unit is a power of 10 apart:
- 10 millimetres = 1 centimetre
- 100 centimetres = 1 metre
- 1,000 metres = 1 kilometre
- 1 micrometre (µm) = one-millionth of a metre; 1 nanometre = one-billionth of a metre
Imperial units are less tidy: 12 inches make a foot, 3 feet make a yard and 1,760 yards make a mile.
Quick Mental Tricks
- Feet to metres: divide by 3.3. A 10-foot room is about 3 metres.
- Miles to km: multiply by 1.6, or use the Fibonacci trick — 5 miles ≈ 8 km, 8 miles ≈ 13 km.
- Inches to cm: multiply by 2.5 for a rough figure.
Related Converters
- Area Converter — square feet, square metres, acres and hectares.
- Volume Converter — litres, gallons and cups.
- Weight Converter — kilograms, pounds and ounces.