Meters to Feet Converter — Convert Meters to feet
Convert meters to feet with the exact factor, a common-values table, and the formula shown.
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Meters to Feet Converter
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Meters to Feet — the Quick Answer
One meter equals 3.28084 feet(more precisely, 3.280839895… ft). To convert any length in meters to feet, multiply by 3.28084. For the reverse, divide by 3.28084 or multiply by 0.3048. That inverse factor — 0.3048 m per foot — is the exact legal definition of the foot, agreed internationally in 1959, so the meter-to-foot factor is not an approximation that drifts; it is a fixed derived constant.
For everyday use the rounded factor 1 m ≈ 3.28 ftis close enough: a 1.8 m tall person is about 5 ft 11 in, and a 10 m swimming lane is about 32.8 ft. But for architecture drawings, aviation altimetry, or anything that is summed across many spans, use 3.28084 — the rounding error at 3.28 is about 0.025%, which adds up to nearly 1 inch over every 100 m.
When a measurement falls between feet marks it is common to express the remainder in inches rather than decimal feet. To convert decimal feet to feet-and-inches, take the whole number of feet, multiply the fractional part by 12, and round. For instance, 1.8 m = 5.9055 ft = 5 ft and 0.9055 × 12 = 10.9 in, written 5 ft 10.9 in.
The Meters-to-Feet Formula
Meters → Feet
feet = meters × 3.28084exact inverse: meters = feet × 0.3048
The factor 3.28084 is 1 ÷ 0.3048 — the reciprocal of the legally-defined foot. Because the foot is defined in terms of the meter (not the reverse), the meter is the primary unit and the conversion is exact to as many digits as you carry. For a 5 m span: 5 × 3.28084 = 16.4042 ft.
Source:NIST SP 811 — Guide for the Use of the International System of Units· National Institute of Standards and Technology
The foot’s exact metric value — 0.3048 m — was set by the international yard-and-pound agreement of 1959, the same treaty that fixed the pound in kilograms. Before 1959 the US survey foot differed slightly (0.3048006… m), and that legacy definition persisted in US geodetic surveys until the Federal Register formally retired it in 2023. Modern engineering and everyday measurement uses the international foot exclusively.
Common Meter-to-Foot Values
The table below covers the distances most commonly searched: human heights (1–2 m), room dimensions (3–5 m), building heights (10–100 m), and track distances. All values use the exact 3.28084 factor, rounded to three decimal places.
Exact factor 3.28084, rounded to 3 decimal places
Common meters to feet conversions
| Scenario | Meters | Feet (decimal) | Feet & Inches | Everyday reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 m | 3.281 ft | 3 ft 3.4 in | a door handle height | |
| 1.5 m | 4.921 ft | 4 ft 11.1 in | average 10-year-old height | |
| 1.7 m | 5.577 ft | 5 ft 6.9 in | global average adult height | |
| 1.8 mRecommended | 5.906 ft | 5 ft 10.9 in | common male height target | |
| 2 m | 6.562 ft | 6 ft 6.7 in | NBA center range | |
| 5 m | 16.404 ft | 16 ft 4.8 in | garden shed length | |
| 10 m | 32.808 ft | 32 ft 9.7 in | standard lane in a pool | |
| 20 m | 65.617 ft | 65 ft 7.4 in | sprint start block zone | |
| 50 m | 164.042 ft | 164 ft 0.5 in | Olympic pool length | |
| 100 m | 328.084 ft | 328 ft 1.0 in | standard sprint distance |
To convert a value not in the table, multiply the meters by 3.28084. For the feet-and-inches form, take the whole feet, then multiply the decimal remainder by 12 to get inches. Example: 3.6 m = 11.811 ft = 11 ft 9.7 in.
Worked Examples
Example 1
Convert 1.8 m to feet and inches
- Height
- 1.8 m
- Factor
- 3.28084 ft/m
Multiply meters by the conversion factor.
1.8 × 3.28084 = 5.90551 ftTake the whole number of feet.
5 ftMultiply the fractional remainder by 12 to get inches.
0.90551 × 12 = 10.87 inRound inches to one decimal.
≈ 10.9 in
1.8 m = 5 ft 10.9 in (5.906 ft).
This is the conversion most people want for height: 1.8 m is just under 5′11″. Using the rounded factor 3.28 gives 5.904 ft — only 0.02 ft (0.2 in) lower, negligible for height but visible if you stack many spans.
Example 2
Convert 45 m (diving platform height) to feet
- Height
- 45 m
- Factor
- 3.28084 ft/m
Multiply meters by the factor.
45 × 3.28084 = 147.638 ftTake the whole feet.
147 ftConvert the 0.638 ft remainder to inches.
0.638 × 12 = 7.7 in
45 m = 147 ft 7.7 in (147.638 ft).
Cliff diving competitions use platforms of 20–28 m (65–92 ft). The 45 m threshold is where most sanctioned diving stops — terminal velocity is reached around 60 m (197 ft).
How to Use This Converter
- Enter the length in meters in the field above.
- The result shows the equivalent in feet (decimal) and feet & inches instantly, using the exact 3.28084 factor.
- Need other unit pairs? Use the all-in-one unit converter with the length domain.
Common Mistakes
- Stopping at decimal feet. A result like 5.906 ft only makes intuitive sense in countries that use decimal feet (mostly engineering). For everyday communication, always convert to feet-and-inches: 5 ft 10.9 in.
- Using the old US survey foot.The US survey foot (0.3048006… m) was retired in 2023. Any modern conversion should use the international foot (0.3048 m exactly). The difference is 3 mm per kilometer — small but real for GPS and land survey work.
- Rounding too early.If you round 1.8 m to “5.9 ft” before extracting inches, you get 10.8 in instead of 10.9 in — a tiny but visible error when marking out lumber or fabric.
- Confusing meters with yards.A yard is 0.9144 m (about 3.28% shorter than a meter). In American football the field is 100 yards (91.4 m), not 100 meters (328 ft). Mixing these up inflates distances by ≈ 9%.
Background
Why There Are 3.28084 Feet in a Meter
The meter and the foot evolved on entirely different philosophical foundations. The foot is anthropometric: it traces to the length of a human foot, codified in Roman times at roughly 296 mm, drifting through medieval Europe until Henry I of England supposedly standardized the yard (three feet) to the distance from his nose to his outstretched thumb. By the 18th century the English foot had settled near 304 mm, but with enough regional variation that international trade was a constant source of disputes.
The meter was born from precision science rather than anatomy. In 1791 the French Academy of Sciences defined it as one ten-millionth of the distance from the North Pole to the equator along the Paris meridian. Surveyors Delambre and Méchain spent six years triangulating the arc from Dunkirk to Barcelona to establish the value. The result — the original platinum metre des Archives bar deposited in Paris in 1799 — came out to 443.296 Paris lines, a unit so tightly defined by a natural constant that it was meant to be valid for all people and all time.
The 1875 Metre Convention (Convention du Mètre) formalized international cooperation, producing a new platinum-iridium prototype meter bar distributed to signatory nations. The United States received a copy, and in 1893 Mendenhall Order formally grounded US customary units in the metric system: the yard was defined as 3600/3937 meters, making the foot 1200/3937 m (approximately 0.30480061… m). This was the US survey foot that persisted in geodetic work for over a century.
In 1959 the international yard-and-pound agreement — signed by the US, UK, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and South Africa — fixed the international yard at exactly 0.9144 m, making the international foot exactly 0.3048 m. The conversion factor 3.28084… (= 1 ÷ 0.3048) has been exact since that date [1]. In 1983 the meter itself was redefined as the distance light travels in vacuum in 1/299,792,458 of a second [2], anchoring it to a universal constant. The foot came along for the ride: it is still 0.3048 of whatever the meter is.
The US survey foot lingered in geospatial datasets — NAD 83 state-plane coordinates, USGS topographic data — until the National Geodetic Survey and NIST jointly deprecated it effective 1 January 2023. The difference (about 3.05 mm per kilometer) was consequential for land surveying and GPS control but invisible for everyday height and distance conversions. Today every general-purpose conversion from meters to feet uses the 3.28084 factor exclusively.
- International yard and pound agreement (1959) — NIST Weights and Measures · National Institute of Standards and Technology · 1959
- NIST SP 811 — Guide for the Use of the International System of Units · National Institute of Standards and Technology · 2008
Length Conversion Terms
Quick reference
Length & distance glossary
Meter (m)
The SI base unit of length, defined since 1983 as the distance light travels in vacuum in 1/299,792,458 s.
- One meter is slightly longer than a yard (0.9144 m) and about 3.28 feet. It is the primary unit in science, engineering, and everyday measurement outside the US, UK, and a handful of other countries.
Foot (ft)
A US customary and imperial unit equal to exactly 0.3048 m, divided into 12 inches.
- The international foot (0.3048 m) superseded the US survey foot (0.3048006… m) for everyday use in 1959. The difference is only 3 mm per kilometer, invisible for height but relevant for land survey coordinates.
Inch (in)
1/12 of a foot, exactly 25.4 mm. The fractional unit used after decimal feet are converted to feet-and-inches.
- To convert the decimal part of a feet value to inches, multiply by 12. So 5.906 ft = 5 ft and 0.906 × 12 = 10.9 in. Fractional inches (¼, ½, ¾) are common in carpentry.
Yard (yd)
3 feet, exactly 0.9144 m. Used in American football fields, fabric, and some construction.
- One yard is 0.9144 m — about 8.6% shorter than a meter. Confusing yards and meters inflates or deflates distances by that margin.
International foot
The 1959 definition: exactly 0.3048 m. Standard for all modern general-purpose conversions.
- Distinct from the US survey foot (0.3048006… m) that was used in geodetic datasets until 2023. Any calculator or table published after 2023 should use the international foot.
Decimal feet
Feet expressed as a single decimal number rather than feet-and-inches. Common in engineering.
- 5.906 ft and 5 ft 10.9 in describe the same length. Decimal feet are convenient for arithmetic; feet-and-inches are conventional for human height and carpentry in the US.
SI (Système international)
The modern metric system, with the meter as the base unit of length. Maintained by the BIPM.
- Seven base units (meter, kilogram, second, ampere, kelvin, mole, candela) underpin all derived units. The BIPM (Bureau International des Poids et Mesures) defines and disseminates them.
Conversion factor
A fixed multiplier between two units. For m → ft the factor is 3.28084 (= 1 ÷ 0.3048).
- Because the foot is defined in terms of the meter, the conversion factor is exact. Rounding it introduces systematic error: 3.28 instead of 3.28084 gives 0.025% error, visible over distances above 50 m.
Related Converters and Tools
For the reverse direction see the feet-to-meters converter. For longer distances, the km-to-miles converter handles road trip and race planning. The all-in-one unit converter covers centimeters, millimeters, yards, and miles in a single interface. If you are calculating room areas, the square footage calculator accepts meter inputs directly.
Frequently Asked Questions
The most common questions we get about this calculator — each answer is kept under 60 words so you can scan.
What is the meters to feet conversion factor?
1 m = 3.28084 ft. To convert, multiply your meters value by 3.28084.What is 10 meters in feet?
10 meters = 32.81 feet. Multiply 10 by 3.28084 to get the result.How do I convert feet back to meters?
Divide your feet value by 3.28084 (or multiply by the reciprocal). The page shows the exact reverse rate.Is this conversion exact or rounded?
The factor itself is exact by international standard; only the displayed result is rounded for readability. Internally full precision is kept.Is the Meters to Feet converter free?
Yes — free, instant, no signup. All math runs in your browser; nothing is stored.