How to convert centimeters to inches
Divide the number of centimeters by 2.54. There are exactly 2.54 centimeters in one inch, so each inch takes up 2.54 of your centimeters.
Worked example: a shelf is 170 cm wide. 170 ÷ 2.54 = 66.9291 in, which is 5 ft 6.9 in. To check, multiply back: 66.9291 × 2.54 ≈ 170.
Many people multiply by 0.3937 instead. That is the same sum, because 1 ÷ 2.54 is 0.393700787 and so on. Dividing by 2.54 is shorter and avoids the rounding.
Why the answer is rarely a tidy number
Going from inches to centimeters always gives a number that ends, because 2.54 has only two decimal places. Going back is different. 1 ÷ 2.54 is the same as 50 ÷ 127, and since 127 is a prime number with no factor of 2 or 5, the decimal repeats forever: 0.39370078740157480314... and onward.
That is why the converter shows a rounded figure and says so. It keeps the exact fraction inside and rounds only for display. Choose more digits under Precision if you need them, but for most jobs 2 to 4 decimal places is already finer than a tape measure.
Heights in centimeters, feet and inches
Heights are the most common reason to convert centimeters to inches, and they are usually quoted as feet and inches. Each row below is exact before rounding to one decimal place of an inch:
- 150 cm is 59.06 in, or 4 ft 11.1 in.
- 160 cm is 62.99 in, or 5 ft 3 in.
- 170 cm is 66.93 in, or 5 ft 6.9 in.
- 175 cm is 68.9 in, or 5 ft 8.9 in.
- 180 cm is 70.87 in, or 5 ft 10.9 in.
- 185 cm is 72.83 in, or 6 ft 0.8 in.
- 190 cm is 74.8 in, or 6 ft 2.8 in.
To do it by hand, divide by 2.54 to get inches, then divide by 12. The whole number is the feet and the remainder is the inches.
Where centimeters to inches comes up
- Cabin bags. Limits are often quoted in centimeters on European airlines and in inches on American ones. A bag of 55 × 40 × 20 cm is 21.7 × 15.7 × 7.9 in.
- Photo prints. A 10 × 15 cm print is 3.94 × 5.91 in, close to the 4 × 6 inch print that is the common size in the US.
- Clothing. Waist, chest and inseam measurements are given in centimeters in much of the world and in inches in the US and the UK.
- Furniture and screens. Dimensions on a product page may be listed in one unit while your room plan or a bracket is in the other.
Going the other direction? Use the inches to cm converter. For meters, see meters to feet.