We will teach you how to convert feet to meters using different ways. Both the foot and the meter are units of length expressed in different systems of measurement. Just as there are different languages and we can know how to say the same word in two different languages (the color red is red in English), the same length can also be expressed in different units, either from the same or different measurement systems.
What are the different measurement systems? They are the different ways of expressing basic units of length, mass and weight according to the places where they are applied. The main difference is in the International System of Units and the Anglo-Saxon System. Since what interests us is the length, we will say that the basic unit of length of the International System is the meter. When multiplying and dividing by multiples of 10, all the multiples and submultiples of the meter are obtained. This is relating a unit of length within the same measurement system. For example:
1m = 10 dm = 100cm = 1000 mm or also:
1m = 0.1 dam = 0.01 hm = 0.001 km
The Anglo-Saxon or English system is used mainly in Liberia, the United States and Burma. In England the Imperial is used, which is similar but with some differences.
In the United States, the units of length used are inches, feet, yards, and miles.
Just as if we talk about distances between cities we will name them in kilometers in the international system, we will talk about miles in the Anglo-Saxon system, or if we refer to the length of an insect we will express it in centimeters or millimeters in one system, in the other we will use the inch, for example. But the equivalences between the units of one system and another are obtained through a conversion factor that comes from comparing the different units. Some important relationships of this system are, for example:
1 league = 3 miles = 5280 yards = 15840 feet = 190080 inches or
1 foot = 12 inches
Today we will only show you the relationship between the foot of the Anglo-Saxon System and the meter of the International System.
What do you need to convert feet to meters?
- Lengths expressed in feet
- Conversion factor
- Pencil and paper
- Calculator
- Computer with Internet connection.
Instructions to convert feet to meters
- In some countries like the United States, lengths are measured in feet, for example the long jump of an athlete, and there are people who understand it better in meters, so it is important to know how to convert the units.
- If you want to convert feet to meters you will have to work with a conversion factor and do a multiplication: the conversion factor times the number you want to convert.
- The conversion factor is 3048and if you want to do it with a little less precision you can consider it 0.31.
- For example, if we want to convert 190 feet into meters, we simply have to multiply 190 x the conversion factor:
- 190 feet = 0.3048m x 190 = 59.912m or
- 190 feet = 0.31m x 190 = 58.9m
- The first result is more accurate than the second but both are around 59m.
- So that you can do it faster and if you have a computer with an internet connection you can use all the variety of unit converters that the Web offers you.
- There the conversion tools will appear on the screen at the top to be able to convert lengths, areas, volumes and weight. At the bottom you will see the conversion factors that you must use depending on which unit you want to do it to. Remember that the conversion factor is the number by which you must multiply a quantity to obtain its equivalent in another unit. You will see that it appears inches to centimeters; centimeters to inches, etc.
- In the case of converting feet to meters we must use the “lengths” tool. We display by touching the triangle and all the options will appear. We select feet to meters.
- Then in the box on the left, where it says longitude, we put the number, for example 50, then we click on “go” and we will automatically have the result in meters. So 50 feet = 5 meters.
- If we see the conversion factor chart and we want to test, we must multiply that conversion factor (0.31) by the 50 feet and obtain the same result:
- 50 feet = 0.31m x 50 = 5m
- If you try this result doing the opposite way, that is, converting 15.5 m feet, you will see that the result is not exactly the same as expected, that instead of obtaining 50 feet, you get 50.84 feet. This is because the conversion factor used is approximate, it is taken only with two decimal places and thus precision is lost.
- There the measurement converters will appear first: length, weight and volume or capacity with a variety of units in each one.
- We put the number we want to convert in the corresponding box, that is, we put the number 50 in the box that says “feet”.
- Then we click on ” convert” and we will see not only the measurement in meters but also all the units that appear, in our case: 50 feet = 15.24m
- If you are wondering why the result obtained with the first converter did not equal the answer is simple: the first converter works with a less exact conversion factor than the second: the first is 0.31 and the second is 0.3048, is closer to the real although both are approximate.
- The conversion factors will appear below. If you look at the one that converts feet to meters, it is not identical to the one we used in the converter on the previous page, but it uses more decimals so the values will be more exact. The factor to convert feet to meters is: 3048 and that of meters to feet: 3.201
- If we do the calculation we will see that the values are more approximate:
- 50 feet= 0.3048m x 50 = 15.24m
- 24 m = 3.201 x 15.24 = 48.78 feet (this value is closer to the number from which we started (50 feet)
- In cell phones there are also applications with converters to solve directly since when you travel, for example, you need to convert currency, or calculate distances expressed in other units.
Tips for Converting Feet to Meters
- You can search for other converters on the Web and try.
- Remember that any conversion you make of units must refer to the same magnitude, that is, either you work only with lengths, or only with areas, or only with speeds, you should not mix them.