Length Converter
Convert length and distance between metric and imperial units.
Results update as you type.
About this calculator
A length converter turns any distance measurement into another unit — millimeters, centimeters, meters and kilometers on the metric side, and inches, feet, yards and miles on the imperial side, plus the nautical mile and even the light-year for astronomical distances.
It works by converting your value to meters as a common base and then out to the unit you want, so any pair works in both directions. The key relationships are fixed by international definition: 1 inch = 2.54 cm exactly, 1 foot = 0.3048 m, 1 yard = 0.9144 m and 1 mile = 1,609.344 m.
Worked example: to convert 5 meters to feet, divide by 0.3048 (or multiply by 3.28084), giving about 16.4 feet. Going the other way, 100 feet is 100 × 0.3048 = 30.48 meters. Alongside the single conversion, a full table restates your distance in every unit from nanometers to light-years, so you never have to chain two conversions by hand.
Frequently asked questions
How many feet are in a meter?
One meter equals about 3.28084 feet. To go the other way, one foot is exactly 0.3048 meters, because a foot is defined as 30.48 centimeters.
How many kilometers are in a mile?
One mile equals 1.609344 kilometers exactly, and one kilometer is about 0.621371 miles. The mile here is the international statute mile of 1,609.344 meters.
What is a nautical mile?
A nautical mile is 1,852 meters — the length of one minute of latitude — and is used in sea and air navigation. It is about 15% longer than a land (statute) mile.
How many centimeters are in an inch?
There are exactly 2.54 centimeters in an inch, so a foot (12 inches) is 30.48 cm. To go from centimeters to inches, divide by 2.54.
How do I convert meters to feet?
This length converter multiplies meters by 3.28084 (or divides by 0.3048), so 5 meters is about 16.4 feet and 2 meters is about 6.56 feet.
How many yards are in a meter?
One meter is about 1.09361 yards, and one yard is exactly 0.9144 meters. The two are close, which is why a meter and a yard are often loosely treated as similar lengths.
What is a light-year?
A light-year is the distance light travels in one year — about 9.46 trillion kilometers. It is a unit of distance, not time, used for measuring the vast gaps between stars.
API — use this calculator from code
Call this calculator as a free JSON endpoint — no key required. Send the field values below as query parameters or JSON. Read the full API docs →
Endpoint
GET https://calculator.free/api/v1/length/curl
curl "https://calculator.free/api/v1/length/?amount=1&from=m&to=ft"JavaScript fetch()
const r = await fetch(
"https://calculator.free/api/v1/length/?" + new URLSearchParams({
"amount": "1",
"from": "m",
"to": "ft"
}));
const data = await r.json();
console.log(data.results);Results are estimates for general guidance only, not financial, medical or tax advice.