What is a Centimeter?

The centimeter equals one hundredth of a meter (0.01 m) and is the everyday metric unit for body measurements, clothing, furniture, and household items. It bridges the gap between the meter (too large for personal items) and the millimeter (too small for clothing). The centimeter is widely used in countries with metric systems for height (a person is 160–185 cm tall), paper sizes (A4 is 21 × 29.7 cm), and medical measurements. Although not strictly an SI base unit, it is one of the most common units in daily metric usage. The centimeter relates to the inch (1 cm ≈ 0.394 in) and to the millimeter (1 cm = 10 mm). It became standard with the metric system's adoption across continental Europe in the 19th century.

Visual reference for how the centimeter relates to other length units. Each row links to the full converter for that pair.

See all 15 length units in matrix view →

• Height and body measurements in medical records
• Ready-to-wear clothing sizes in Europe and Asia
• Furniture and interior design dimensions

• ✓1 cm ≈ 0.394 inches — divide cm by 2.54 for a precise inch conversion.
• ✓Your little finger is about 1 cm wide at the nail — useful when no ruler is nearby.
• ✓100 cm = 1 metre exactly. Always convert to metres for architectural plans.

• ✗Confusing linear cm with square cm. 21 cm of ribbon is not the same as 21 cm² of fabric.
• ✗Using 2.5 instead of 2.54 for inch conversion — the 1.6% error grows on long measurements.
• ✗Reading a clothing size label as cm when it is actually an EU size code (e.g. size 42 ≠ 42 cm).