How it works
The international foot is defined as exactly 0.3048 metres (12 inches of 2.54 cm). Feet are used for height in the US and UK, for room and ceiling sizes in property listings, and for aircraft altitude worldwide — a plane cruising at 35,000 ft is about 10.7 km up.
The formula
m = ft × 0.3048 ft = m ÷ 0.3048 ≈ m × 3.28084Worked example. A height of 6 ft is 6 × 0.3048 = 1.8288 m. A 10-ft ceiling is 3.048 m. A 2-metre door is 2 ÷ 0.3048 = 6.56 ft (6 ft 6.7 in).
Quick reference table
| Feet | Metres | Metres | Feet |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 ft | 0.3048 m | 1 m | 3.2808 ft |
| 2 ft | 0.6096 m | 2 m | 6.5617 ft |
| 3 ft | 0.9144 m | 3 m | 9.8425 ft |
| 5 ft | 1.524 m | 5 m | 16.4042 ft |
| 6 ft | 1.8288 m | 6 m | 19.685 ft |
| 8 ft | 2.4384 m | 8 m | 26.2467 ft |
| 10 ft | 3.048 m | 10 m | 32.8084 ft |
| 20 ft | 6.096 m | 20 m | 65.6168 ft |
| 50 ft | 15.24 m | 50 m | 164.042 ft |
| 100 ft | 30.48 m | 100 m | 328.084 ft |
| 1,000 ft | 304.8 m | 1,000 m | 3,280.8399 ft |
| 35,000 ft | 10,668 m | 35,000 m | 114,829.3963 ft |
Height in feet and inches
For a height like 5 ft 9 in, convert the whole thing to inches first: 5 × 12 + 9 = 69 in, then × 2.54 = 175.26 cm. The cm to inches converter and the BMI calculator (imperial mode) both accept this.
Square feet are not feet
Areas use square feet: 1 ft² = 0.3048² = 0.092903 m², so a 1,000 ft² apartment is about 92.9 m². Use the area section of the unit converter for that.
For long distances, see the km to miles converter.