Scientific notation converter
Rewrite a number as a value from 1 up to 10 times a power of ten, such as 12345 = 1.2345 × 10^4. Science and engineering students use it to handle very large or very small numbers.
- Runs in your browser
- Free, no account needed
- Copy or download the result
Result
Example
12345
Scientific notation: 1.2345 × 10^4 E notation: 1.2345e4
How to use the scientific notation converter
- Type a number in the box, such as 12345 or 0.00042.
- You can also enter e notation, such as 6.02e23, to see it in × 10 form.
- Press Run to see the Scientific notation and E notation lines.
- Press Copy result or Download to keep both forms.
How it works
The exponent counts how many places the decimal point moves. 0.00042 becomes 4.2 × 10^-4.
No digits are rounded off. Every digit you type up to the last nonzero one is kept, and trailing zeros are dropped, so 1200 becomes 1.2 × 10^3.
Zero is shown as 0 × 10^0.
Use at most 80 digits and an input exponent from -100 to 100. Commas and text are rejected.
Everything runs in your browser. Your input is not uploaded or stored.
Questions and answers
How do you write a number in scientific notation?
Move the decimal point until one nonzero digit is left of it, then multiply by 10 raised to the number of moves. Moving the point left gives a positive exponent and moving it right gives a negative one.
What is E notation?
It is a short way to type scientific notation on computers and calculators. 1.2345e4 means 1.2345 × 10^4.
Does this keep significant zeros like 1.20 × 10^3?
No. Trailing zeros are dropped, so 1200 and 1200.0 both give 1.2 × 10^3. Use the significant figures tool when you need to keep a set precision.