Distance Converter
Convert distance and length between metric, imperial, nautical, and astronomical units. Covers everyday distances (meters, miles, feet), scientific scales (nanometers, angstroms), and cosmic distances (light years, parsecs). See also our length converter and speed converter.
Value:
Popular Distance Converters:
What is a Distance Converter?
A distance converter is a tool that converts measurements between different units of distance including metric (meters, kilometers), imperial (miles, feet, yards), nautical (nautical miles, cables), and astronomical (light years, parsecs, AU). It is used in navigation, science, engineering, travel, and everyday measurements.
How to Convert Distance Units
Select the distance unit you want to convert from and the unit you want to convert to using the dropdown menus. Enter your value in the input field and the converter will instantly calculate the equivalent distance in your target unit.
Distance Conversion Formulas
History of Distance Measurement
Distance measurement dates back to ancient civilizations who used body parts (cubits, feet, paces) as units. The metric system was established in France in 1799, defining the meter based on the Earth's meridian. Today the meter is defined by the speed of light: the distance light travels in 1/299,792,458 of a second. The mile originated from the Roman "mille passus" (1,000 paces). Nautical miles were developed for sea navigation, based on one minute of latitude.
About This Distance Converter
This distance converter supports 48 units across four categories: SI metric prefixes (femtometer to exameter), imperial and historical units (thou, inch, foot, yard, mile, furlong, league), nautical units (nautical mile, cable, fathom), and astronomical units (AU, light year, parsec, gigaparsec). It handles distances from subatomic (Planck length) to cosmic (gigaparsecs) scales.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between distance and length?
In everyday use, distance and length are interchangeable. Technically, length is a measurement of an object's extent, while distance is the space between two points. Both use the same units (meters, miles, etc.) and the same conversion factors.
How many kilometers are in a mile?
One mile equals 1.609344 kilometers. To convert miles to km, multiply by 1.609344. To convert km to miles, multiply by 0.621371.
What is a nautical mile?
A nautical mile equals 1,852 meters (1.852 km or 1.15078 statute miles). It is defined as one minute of arc of latitude and is used in maritime and air navigation worldwide.
How far is a light year?
A light year is approximately 9.461 trillion kilometers (5.879 trillion miles). It is the distance light travels in one year in a vacuum at 299,792,458 meters per second.
What is a parsec?
A parsec equals about 3.26 light years (30.857 trillion km). It is defined as the distance at which one astronomical unit subtends an angle of one arcsecond. Astronomers use parsecs because they relate directly to parallax measurements.
How do I convert meters to feet?
Multiply meters by 3.28084 to get feet. For example, 10 meters × 3.28084 = 32.8084 feet. Conversely, multiply feet by 0.3048 to get meters.
What is the smallest unit of distance?
The Planck length (approximately 1.616 × 10⁻³⁵ meters) is the smallest meaningful unit in physics. In practical science, femtometers (10⁻¹⁵ m) are used to measure atomic nuclei, and angstroms (10⁻¹⁰ m) for atomic bonds.
Metric Conversion Factor Tables for Distance Converter
| Units to convert | Multiply By The Number | Convert as Unit |
|---|---|---|
| kilometer | 0.621371 | mile |
| mile | 1.60934 | kilometer |
| meter | 3.28084 | foot |
| foot | 0.3048 | meter |
| inch | 2.54 | centimeter |
| centimeter | 0.393701 | inch |
| yard | 0.9144 | meter |
| meter | 1.09361 | yard |
| nautical mile | 1.852 | kilometer |
| kilometer | 0.539957 | nautical mile |
| light year | 9.461 × 10¹² | kilometer |
| parsec | 3.26156 | light year |
| AU | 149,597,870.7 | kilometer |
| furlong | 201.168 | meter |
Distanceconverters & it's abbreviations
| Unit | Abbreviation | Unit | Abbreviation | Unit | Abbreviation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| meter | m | kilometer | km | centimeter | cm |
| millimeter | mm | micrometer | µm | nanometer | nm |
| mile | mi | yard | yd | foot | ft |
| inch | in | nautical mile | nmi | light year | ly |
| parsec | pc | astronomical unit | AU | fathom | fath |
| furlong | fur | chain | ch | angstrom | Å |
Complete list of Distance conversion units and its conversion.
- 1 kilometer = 0.621371 mile
km to miles → - 1 mile = 1.60934 kilometer
miles to km → - 1 meter = 3.28084 foot
meters to feet →
- 1 yard = 0.9144 meter
yards to meters → - 1 meter = 1.09361 yard
meters to yards → - 1 nautical mile = 1.852 kilometer
nautical mile to km →
- 1 millimeter = 0.001 meter
mm to m → - 1 centimeter = 10 millimeter
cm to mm → - 1 foot = 12 inch
feet to inches →
- 1 foot = 0.3048 meter
feet to meters → - 1 inch = 2.54 centimeter
inches to cm → - 1 centimeter = 0.393701 inch
cm to inches →
- 1 mile = 5280 foot
miles to feet → - 1 kilometer = 1000 meter
km to m → - 1 meter = 0.001 kilometer
m to km →
- 1 yard = 3 foot
yards to feet →