Feet and inches to centimeters
Heights in the United States and the United Kingdom are written as feet plus inches, which a plain converter cannot take in one go. Enter both parts here, or a value in centimeters to get feet and inches back.
5 ft 10 in = 177.8 cm · 6 ft = 182.88 cm · 180 cm = 5 ft 10.87 in
ft + in → cm
= 1.778 m · 70 in total
cm → ft + in
How the conversion works
A foot is 12 inches and an inch is exactly 2.54 centimeters, so a height of F feet and I inches is (12 × F + I) × 2.54 centimeters. Going back, divide the centimeters by 2.54 to get inches, take the whole number of feet with a division by 12, and keep the remainder as inches. The converter above rounds that remainder to two decimals; forms and medical records usually want it rounded to the nearest inch.
The same arithmetic is used for anything measured in feet and inches, not only people: door and ceiling heights, lumber, TV stands. For lengths that are only in inches or only in feet, the ordinary inches to cm and feet to meters pages are simpler.
Height chart, 4 ft 10 in to 6 ft 8 in
Every inch between the two ends, with the total in inches and the metric height in centimeters and meters.
| Feet and inches | Short form | Total inches | cm | m |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 ft 10 in | 4'10" | 58 | 147.32 | 1.4732 |
| 4 ft 11 in | 4'11" | 59 | 149.86 | 1.4986 |
| 5 ft 0 in | 5'0" | 60 | 152.4 | 1.524 |
| 5 ft 1 in | 5'1" | 61 | 154.94 | 1.5494 |
| 5 ft 2 in | 5'2" | 62 | 157.48 | 1.5748 |
| 5 ft 3 in | 5'3" | 63 | 160.02 | 1.6002 |
| 5 ft 4 in | 5'4" | 64 | 162.56 | 1.6256 |
| 5 ft 5 in | 5'5" | 65 | 165.1 | 1.651 |
| 5 ft 6 in | 5'6" | 66 | 167.64 | 1.6764 |
| 5 ft 7 in | 5'7" | 67 | 170.18 | 1.7018 |
| 5 ft 8 in | 5'8" | 68 | 172.72 | 1.7272 |
| 5 ft 9 in | 5'9" | 69 | 175.26 | 1.7526 |
| 5 ft 10 in | 5'10" | 70 | 177.8 | 1.778 |
| 5 ft 11 in | 5'11" | 71 | 180.34 | 1.8034 |
| 6 ft 0 in | 6'0" | 72 | 182.88 | 1.8288 |
| 6 ft 1 in | 6'1" | 73 | 185.42 | 1.8542 |
| 6 ft 2 in | 6'2" | 74 | 187.96 | 1.8796 |
| 6 ft 3 in | 6'3" | 75 | 190.5 | 1.905 |
| 6 ft 4 in | 6'4" | 76 | 193.04 | 1.9304 |
| 6 ft 5 in | 6'5" | 77 | 195.58 | 1.9558 |
| 6 ft 6 in | 6'6" | 78 | 198.12 | 1.9812 |
| 6 ft 7 in | 6'7" | 79 | 200.66 | 2.0066 |
| 6 ft 8 in | 6'8" | 80 | 203.2 | 2.032 |
Reading heights written in feet and inches
5′10″ means 5 feet 10 inches, with the prime symbols standing for feet and inches; 5.10 does not mean the same thing, since 5.10 feet is 5 feet and 1.2 inches (155.4 cm). When a height is given in decimal feet, multiply the fractional part by 12 to recover the inches. Passport and driving-licence forms in the US typically list heights to the nearest inch, so 177.8 cm and 178 cm both appear as 5 ft 10 in.
Frequently asked questions
5 ft 10 in is 70 inches, and 70 × 2.54 = 177.8 cm (1.778 m).
Multiply the feet by 12, add the inches, then multiply the total inches by 2.54. Example: 6 ft 2 in = 74 in = 187.96 cm.
Divide the centimeters by 2.54 to get inches, divide by 12 for the whole feet, and the remainder is the inches. 180 cm = 70.87 in = 5 ft 10.87 in, usually written 5 ft 11 in.
Yes. Since the international yard and pound agreement of 1959, the inch is defined as exactly 25.4 mm, so every value on this page is exact before rounding.
Heights are usually stated to the nearest inch (or half inch), which is a range of ±1.27 cm. When a form asks for feet and inches, round the inch figure rather than quoting decimals.