Metric to Inches Converter
1 meter equals about 39.37 inches, and 1 inch is exactly 25.4 mm. This converter switches between millimeters, centimeters, or meters and inches. Pick your source unit, enter a value, and convert in either direction without doing the math by hand.
Quick answer
1 inch is defined as exactly 25.4 millimeters.
Result
39.370079 in
What this tells you
- •1 inch is defined as exactly 25.4 millimeters.
- •1 centimeter is about 0.3937 inches, and 1 meter is about 39.37 inches.
- •To convert a metric length to inches, divide by 25.4 after converting to mm.
- •Switch the direction to convert inches back to mm, cm, or m.
How to Use
- 1Enter the measurement you want to convert.
- 2Choose the metric unit: millimeters, centimeters, or meters.
- 3Choose the direction: metric to inches, or inches to metric.
- 4Read the converted measurement below.
How It Works
Formula
inches = (value in mm) / 25.4Every metric length first converts to millimeters using its fixed factor: 1 cm is 10 mm and 1 m is 1000 mm. Dividing that mm figure by 25.4 gives inches, since the inch has been defined as exactly 25.4 mm since 1959. Reversing the direction multiplies inches by 25.4 to get mm, then converts to the chosen metric unit.
Calculation note: values are processed in the order shown above, using the current input units.
Worked Examples
Convert 1 meter to inches
1 m is 1000 mm. Divide 1000 by 25.4 to get about 39.37 inches.
Convert 5 cm to inches
5 cm is 50 mm. Divide 50 by 25.4 to get about 1.97 inches.
Convert 10 inches back to centimeters
Multiply 10 by 25.4 to get 254 mm, which is 25.4 cm.
Common Metric to Inches Conversions
Frequent values for each metric unit, rounded to 4 decimal places.
| Metric length | Inches |
|---|---|
| 1 mm | 0.0394 in |
| 1 cm | 0.3937 in |
| 10 cm | 3.937 in |
| 1 m | 39.3701 in |
| 2 m | 78.7402 in |
| 25.4 mm | 1 in |
| 2.54 cm | 1 in |
Millimeters, centimeters, and meters all convert through the same 25.4 mm-per-inch factor.
Common mistakes
- Forgetting which metric unit is selected. 5 cm and 5 m convert to very different inch values.
- Dividing by 25 instead of 25.4. The rounding error grows on larger measurements.
- Assuming the result is in feet. This converter outputs inches only, not feet plus inches.