Supports integers, decimals, and negatives. Maximum: 999,999,999,999,999.
This converter provides instant, accurate results for your measurement conversions. The UK uses a mix of metric and imperial measurements in daily life, which can make conversions a frequent necessity. Road signs use miles, food is sold in grams and kilograms, and height is often quoted in feet and inches despite the metric system being the official standard.
Understanding the conversion formula helps verify results and perform quick mental calculations when a tool is not available.
Common UK conversion factors: 1 inch = 2.54 cm, 1 foot = 30.48 cm, 1 mile = 1.609 km, 1 pound (lb) = 0.4536 kg, 1 stone = 6.35 kg, 1 pint (UK) = 568 ml, 1 gallon (UK) = 4.546 litres, 1 acre = 0.4047 hectares. Temperature conversions use the formula: Celsius = (Fahrenheit - 32) x 5/9.
To convert 5 feet 10 inches to centimetres: first convert to total inches (5 x 12 + 10 = 70 inches), then multiply by 2.54 to get 177.8 cm. For weight, a person weighing 12 stone 7 lbs is 12.5 stone, which equals 79.4 kg (12.5 x 6.35).
Source: Based on international measurement standards. Last updated March 2026.
1,000 in words is one thousand. For a cheque amount of exactly £1,000, write "One thousand pounds only". There is no "and" after the word "thousand" unless hundreds follow: 1,001 is "one thousand and one" in British English, and 1,100 is "one thousand one hundred" (the "and" only appears before tens and units, not between thousands and hundreds).
Write the amount starting from the far left of the line. Capitalise the first letter. Include "and" before tens and units (British English standard).
Always spell out "pounds" and "pence" in full — do not abbreviate. For example: £1,234.56 = "One thousand two hundred and thirty-four pounds and fifty-six pence". Draw a line through any blank space remaining after the words to prevent fraud.
The main difference is the word "and". British English uses "and" to connect hundreds with tens and units: "one hundred AND twenty-three". American English omits "and": "one hundred twenty-three".
The names for large numbers (million, billion, trillion) are identical in both varieties since the UK adopted the American short scale in 1974. This tool offers both options via the dialect toggle.
The first three are irregular: 1st = first, 2nd = second, 3rd = third. From 4th onwards, most add -th: fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, tenth. Special cases: fifth (not fiveth), eighth (drops the 'e'), ninth (drops the 'e'), twelfth.
For compound ordinals: 21st = twenty-first, 42nd = forty-second, 100th = one hundredth. Our calculator handles all these automatically.
Using the modern short scale (UK standard since 1974): million = 106, billion = 109, trillion = 1012, quadrillion = 1015. So 2,500,000,000 is "two billion five hundred million". The UK previously used the long scale where billion meant 1012, but this was officially abandoned in 1974 when the government switched to align with US and international usage.
For general decimals, read each digit after the point individually: 3.14 = "three point one four". Do not say "three point fourteen". For currency, convert to pounds and pence: £3.14 = "three pounds and fourteen pence". Zero before the decimal can be "zero" or "nought": 0.5 = "zero point five" or "nought point five", both acceptable in British English.
Writing amounts in words is a fraud prevention measure with centuries of history. Numerals are easy to alter — a '1' becomes '7', a '4' becomes '9' — while words are much harder to change convincingly. Under English law (Bills of Exchange Act 1882), if a cheque shows a discrepancy between written words and numerals, the written words take legal precedence over the figures. This is why accuracy is critical when writing cheques and formal legal documents.
Data verified against official UK government sources. Last checked April 2026.