Feet to Meters Conversion Guide

How many meters is six feet? The answer depends on one number that has not changed since 1959: 0.3048. That single decimal is the entire secret behind every feet to meters conversion, whether you are checking a doorway, a football field, or your own height. Once you know it, you can convert any length in seconds, with no guesswork and no rounding errors.

The Exact Feet to Meters Conversion Factor

One foot equals exactly 0.3048 meters. This is not a rounded approximation used for convenience. It is a fixed, agreed definition, so the number never changes no matter which calculator or textbook you check.

That precision comes from a 1959 international agreement. The United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and other countries agreed to define their foot and yard using the meter as the base unit. They set the international foot at exactly 0.3048 meters, and a yard, which is 3 feet, at exactly 0.9144 meters.

Because the factor is exact, you never lose accuracy converting feet to meters. Any rounding you see later comes only from how many decimal places you choose to keep.

How to Convert Feet to Meters

The formula is simple: meters equal feet multiplied by 0.3048. You do not need any other steps for a plain number of feet.

1. Take your measurement in feet.
2. Multiply that number by 0.3048.
3. The result is your length in meters.

For example, a 10-foot ladder converts as 10 x 0.3048, which equals 3.048 meters. A small 2-foot shelf converts as 2 x 0.3048, which equals 0.6096 meters. The same formula works for any distance, from a few inches to a full mile.

Prefer not to do the math by hand? Our Feet to Meters Converter gives you the exact result instantly, in both directions.

Worked Example: Feet and Inches to Meters

Heights and room measurements are rarely a whole number of feet. To convert feet and inches, first turn the inches into a decimal fraction of a foot.

1. Divide the inches by 12 to get a fraction of a foot.
2. Add that fraction to the whole feet.
3. Multiply the total by 0.3048.

Take a person who is 5 feet 10 inches tall. First, 10 divided by 12 equals 0.8333 feet. Add that to 5 feet for a total of 5.8333 feet.

Now multiply: 5.8333 x 0.3048 equals 1.7780 meters. That height is also commonly written as about 178 centimeters, a figure you will see on many international height charts.

You can also skip the fraction step by converting the whole height to inches first. Since 1 inch equals exactly 0.0254 meters, 70 inches x 0.0254 also equals 1.7780 meters, the same answer either way.

Meters to Feet: The Reverse Conversion

Sometimes you start with meters and need feet instead, such as reading a European product spec or a travel sign. The reverse formula is just as simple.

Multiply meters by 3.28084 to get feet, or divide the meters by 0.3048 for the same result. Both paths give the same answer, since dividing by 0.3048 is mathematically the same as multiplying by 3.28084.

For example, a 2-meter fence converts as 2 x 3.28084, which equals 6.56168 feet. That is about 6 feet 6.7 inches, since 0.56168 feet times 12 equals roughly 6.74 inches.

A 5-meter room wall converts as 5 x 3.28084, which equals 16.4042 feet. Rounding to whole feet, that is about 16 feet 5 inches.

A Quick Mental-Math Shortcut

You will not always have a calculator handy, and that is fine for a rough guess. To estimate meters to feet in your head, multiply by about 3.28 instead of 3.28084. To estimate feet to meters, multiply by about 0.3 instead of 0.3048.

These shortcuts are close enough for a quick check, like guessing whether a ceiling will clear your head or whether a rug will fit a room. They are approximations, not exact answers, so treat the small gap as normal.

For anything you measure, cut, order, or put on an official form, switch back to the exact factors of 0.3048 and 3.28084. Mount Everest shows why the difference matters. Its official height is 8848.86 meters. Using the exact factor, 8848.86 x 3.28084 equals about 29031.69 feet, the figure announced by China and Nepal in 2020. Using the rough shortcut instead, 8848.86 x 3.28 gives about 29024 feet, off by roughly 7 feet. That gap is harmless for a mental estimate but too much for a survey.

Quick Reference Chart: Feet to Meters

Some feet values come up again and again, in home projects, sports, and shopping. This table lets you skip the math for the most common ones.

Notice the pattern: every value is simply that number of feet multiplied by 0.3048. Multiply any feet figure by the same factor to fill in a value that is not on this list.

Comparing Feet and Meters Side by Side

Numbers on a page are one thing, but seeing the two units side by side makes the conversion easier to picture. Here is the same height measured on a feet scale and a meter scale.

A person who stands 5 feet 10 inches tall is exactly 1.7780 meters tall. Both labels point to the same real height, just measured with different rulers.

Everyday Places You Will Use This Conversion

Feet to meters conversions show up more often than most people expect, well beyond the classroom.

• Checking your own height on a form that asks for centimeters or meters.
• Reading room dimensions when buying furniture from an international retailer.
• Understanding sports distances, since some tracks and fields mix feet and meters.
• Following building or DIY plans that use metric measurements.
• Comparing travel or hiking distances between countries that use different units.

A standard interior door in the United States is about 6 feet 8 inches tall. Converted, that is 80 inches x 0.0254, which equals exactly 2.032 meters.

A 100-foot stretch of open ground, like part of a park or a running path, equals 100 x 0.3048, or 30.48 meters. Keeping this factor handy makes both examples quick to check.

Where Feet Are Still Used vs Where Meters Take Over

Feet have not disappeared, even in a mostly metric world. In the United States, building heights, home square footage, and highway signs still use feet. Aviation keeps feet worldwide, since pilots report altitude in feet no matter which country they fly over.

Elevation on many US trail signs and maps also uses feet. Meters take over almost everywhere else. Most other countries measure height, distance, and land in meters, and science, engineering, and international shipping default to meters too.

Knowing both units helps when you compare a US building plan against an international spec sheet, or read a hiking sign abroad after growing up on feet.

Common Mistakes When Converting Feet to Meters

A few small errors cause most wrong answers. Knowing them ahead of time helps you avoid them.

• Forgetting to convert inches into a fraction of a foot before multiplying.
• Multiplying by 3.28084 instead of 0.3048, which reverses the conversion.
• Rounding too early, which can shift the final answer slightly.
• Assuming every country’s old “foot” was identical before 1959.

One more detail worth knowing: the United States once used a slightly different measure called the US survey foot. It was fractionally longer than the international foot. In 2022, the National Institute of Standards and Technology retired the survey foot, leaving 0.3048 meters as the single standard foot for all uses.

Related Unit Conversions

Feet to meters is a length conversion, but everyday life involves other units too. These sibling guides cover the ones we do not teach here.

• Converting volume between liters and gallons: see Liters to Gallons Explained.
• Converting land area between acres, hectares, and square feet: see Acres to Hectares and Square Feet.

Frequently Asked Questions About Feet to Meters Conversion

Sources

This article is for general education only. Conversion factors are standard, but always double-check exact figures for critical uses like recipes, shipping, or legal documents. Reviewed for accuracy by Prof. Dr. Khalil Mudassar, PhD. Last updated September 13, 2026.