Convert Foot to Meter
Convert feet to meters instantly. 1 foot = 0.3048 meter — use the live calculator, the exact formula, a conversion table and worked examples. Also check the Meter to Foot converter for the reverse conversion.
Units explained
Foot
A foot is an Imperial and US customary unit of length equal to 12 inches or exactly 0.3048 meters. It is the most commonly used unit of length in everyday measurement in the United States.
The foot's origin is literally the length of a human foot, used as a measurement standard since antiquity. The English foot was standardized at various points in history; the modern international foot (0.3048 m exactly) was fixed by the 1959 International Yard and Pound Agreement.
Feet are used in the US for body height, building dimensions, room sizes, road sign clearances, aviation altitude (feet above sea level), and most everyday distance estimation. The UK uses feet informally for height despite officially being metric.
Used since antiquity; standardized to 0.3048 m exactly by the International Yard and Pound Agreement of 1959. Aviation worldwide uses feet for altitude despite metric adoption elsewhere.
Meter
The meter is the SI base unit of length. Since 2019, the meter has been defined by fixing the numerical value of the speed of light in vacuum to exactly 299,792,458 meters per second. Every other SI length unit derives from the meter.
The meter was originally defined in 1793 by the French Academy of Sciences as one ten-millionth of the distance from the equator to the North Pole along a meridian through Paris. It has been redefined multiple times — by physical prototype, then by atomic transitions, and finally in 2019 by fundamental physical constants.
The meter is the international standard for length in science, engineering, construction, athletics, and everyday measurement in metric countries. It underpins definitions of area (m²), volume (m³), and most derived SI units.
Established 1793 in France; ratified internationally via the Metre Convention 1875; redefined in 1960, 1983, and most recently 2019 when the SI redefinition fixed it to the speed of light.
Foot to Meter conversion formula
The relationship between feet and meters:
To convert feet to meters, multiply the value in feet by 0.3048. To reverse, multiply meters by 3.280839895.
How to use this converter
Type a value into the calculator. The result in meters updates as you type. Tap a quick value, copy the result with one click, or use the swap arrow to jump straight to the Meter to Foot converter for the reverse direction.
Step-by-step: convert feet to meters
- Write down the value in feet (ft).
- Multiply that value by the factor 0.3048.
- The product is the equivalent value in meters (m).
- To reverse, multiply the meter value by 3.280839895.
Worked examples
Example 1 — Convert 1 ft to m:
1 × 0.3048 = 0.3048 m
Example 2 — Convert 100 ft to m:
100 × 0.3048 = 30.48 m
Real-world example — Building heights for architects
A 100-foot-tall building equals 30.48 m. International architecture journals and developer marketing materials cite the same building height in both systems; converting feet to meters is daily routine for any architect publishing across continents.
100 ft × 0.3048 = 30.48 m
Real-world example — Ceiling-height for installation work
An 8-foot ceiling equals 2.44 m. Electrical contractors and HVAC installers measure ceiling height in feet in US documentation but receive European product specs (e.g., chandelier drops) in meters.
8 ft × 0.3048 = 2.4384 m
Real-world example — US adult height to metric
A 6-foot-tall person measures 1.83 m. American passport applications, international athletic registrations, and overseas medical records all require height converted from feet to meters — this is the most-searched feet-to-meters conversion globally.
6 ft × 0.3048 = 1.8288 m
Foot to Meter conversion table
Standard reference values for converting feet to meters:
| Foot [ft] | Meter [m] |
|---|---|
| 0.01 | 0.003048 |
| 0.1 | 0.03048 |
| 1 | 0.3048 |
| 2 | 0.6096 |
| 3 | 0.9144 |
| 4 | 1.2192 |
| 5 | 1.524 |
| 10 | 3.048 |
| 20 | 6.096 |
| 30 | 9.144 |
| 40 | 12.192 |
| 50 | 15.24 |
| 100 | 30.48 |
| 500 | 152.4 |
| 1000 | 304.8 |
Frequently asked questions
How many meters is 1 foot?
How do I convert feet to meters?
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Popular length unit conversions
Convert Foot to other length units
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Metric / SI (18 units)
Imperial / US Customary (26 units)
Nautical (1 units)
Astronomical (9 units)
Atomic / Physics (6 units)
Typographic (3 units)
Sources & references
Conversion factor (1 ft = 0.3048 m) verified against the following authoritative sources:
- BIPM — The International System of Units (SI Brochure 9th ed.)
Official BIPM publication defining the seven SI base units (including the meter) and the rules for their use. The global authority on units of measurement.
- NIST — Guide to the SI
US National Institute of Standards and Technology reference covering the SI base and derived units with definitions and usage rules for US technical practice.
- NIST Special Publication 811 — Guide for the Use of the International System of Units
Detailed NIST guide covering exact conversion factors between SI and US customary units along with formatting and rounding conventions.
- NIST — Refinement of values for the yard and pound (Federal Register 1959)
The treaty (signed by US
- International Astronomical Union — System of Astronomical Constants
The IAU defines astronomical units including the AU (149597870700 m exactly) light-year and parsec used in astronomy and astrophysics.