cm to Inches Converter

How to convert cm to inches

inches = cm ÷ 2.54   cm = inches × 2.54

The inch is defined as exactly 2.54 centimeters, so these formulas are exact, not approximations.

Example: 30 cm ÷ 2.54 = 11.81102362 inches, a little under 12 inches (one foot is 30.48 cm). In the other direction, a 15.6-inch laptop screen is 15.6 × 2.54 = 39.624 cm measured diagonally.

Heights in feet and inches

To express a height in feet and inches, convert to inches, then divide by 12: the whole number is feet and the remainder is inches. 170 cm is 66.9291 inches, which is 5 feet and 6.9 inches (5 ft 6.9 in).

cm to inches table

Inches to cm table

Height conversion table

Common questions

Is it exactly 2.54?

Yes. Since 1959 the international inch has been defined as exactly 25.4 mm. Older approximations such as 2.5 cm are fine for rough estimates but give an error of about 1.6%.

Why does my tape measure show 1/16 inches rather than decimals?

Imperial tape measures divide the inch into halves, quarters, eighths and sixteenths. 0.5 in is 1/2, 0.25 in is 1/4, 0.125 in is 1/8 and 0.0625 in is 1/16. The fraction calculator can turn a decimal into the nearest simple fraction.