Inches to Centimeters
Fixpio’s inches to centimeters converter turns a measurement in inches into centimetres while you type — a screen size, a piece of furniture, a craft pattern written in imperial. One inch is exactly 2.54 centimetres by international agreement, so every result is exact, not estimated. The same card also converts millimetres, metres, kilometres, feet, yards and miles, in either direction, so a measurement that arrives in any length unit can leave in the one you need.
Convert Inches to Centimetres
Enter a length and choose your units — the result appears straight away.
Result = value × (from unit in metres ÷ to unit in metres). For example, 1 inch = 0.0254 ÷ 0.01 centimetres.
The inch measurements people convert most
Screens, furniture and patterns — the places inches still rule.
Screens and monitors
Phone, tablet, laptop and TV sizes are quoted in inches almost everywhere, almost always as the diagonal. A 6.1-inch phone screen is 15.49 cm corner to corner; a 55-inch TV is 139.7 cm.
Furniture and DIY
Flat-pack dimensions, lumber and hardware from US sources arrive in inches while your tape measure reads centimetres. Converting the plan before you cut avoids the expensive kind of surprise.
Craft and sewing patterns
Patterns from US designers measure in inches and fractions. Converting to centimetres first lets you work with the ruler you already own.
About this converter
Most people arrive here with a single number in inches and a centimetre ruler, tape or spec sheet in front of them. The conversion itself is the simplest in this library, because the inch is not an approximation: in 1959 the inch was fixed internationally at exactly 25.4 millimetres, so 1 inch = 2.54 cm with no rounding involved. Converting inches to cm is a single multiplication, and converting back is a division by the same exact number, which is why results here match any standards table exactly.
The card is not limited to this one pair. Every length is first expressed in metres, then converted into the unit you chose, which keeps the whole chain consistent: 12 inches make a foot (30.48 cm), 36 inches make a yard (91.44 cm), and a centimetre is 10 millimetres. Fractions are the one thing to handle with care — patterns often write 5½ inches, and the decimal to type is 5.5; a quarter inch is 0.25 and an eighth is 0.125.
Frequently asked questions
Straight answers about inches, centimetres and screen sizes.
How many centimetres are in an inch?
Exactly 2.54. The inch is defined as 25.4 millimetres by international agreement, so the figure never changes. To convert any inches figure to centimetres, multiply by 2.54: 10 inches = 25.4 cm, 12 inches = 30.48 cm.
How do I convert centimetres back into inches?
Divide by 2.54. A 50 cm shelf is 50 ÷ 2.54 = 19.69 inches. In the converter, set From to Centimetres and To to Inches — or use the Swap control — and the result updates as you type.
How big is a 32-inch TV in centimetres?
The screen measures 32 × 2.54 = 81.28 cm diagonally. Screen sizes are always the diagonal of the visible panel, not the width — the set itself is a little wider once the frame is counted, so check the maker’s full dimensions before a tight installation.
How do I convert fractional inches, like 5½″?
Turn the fraction into a decimal first, then multiply by 2.54. A half is 0.5, a quarter 0.25, an eighth 0.125 — so 5½ inches is 5.5, which converts to 13.97 cm. Type the decimal into the converter; it accepts decimals in any unit.
Is an inch the same everywhere?
Yes, for everyday purposes. The international inch of exactly 25.4 mm has been the standard in the US, UK and Commonwealth since 1959. A historical US survey inch differed by about two parts in a million — relevant to land surveying over miles, invisible on a ruler.
Is this converter free, and are my numbers uploaded?
Yes, it is free, and no. The conversion runs entirely in your browser — there is no sign-up, and the values you type are not sent to or stored on a server.