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Scientific Notation Calculator

Convert any number to scientific notation, E notation or standard form, or add, subtract, multiply and divide numbers in scientific notation, with significant figures handled correctly.

Enter a number to write it in scientific notation.

Exact calculation. Given your inputs, this is the answer — no estimation involved.

How this calculator works

Scientific notation writes a number as a coefficient between 1 and 10 times a power of ten: 0.00045 = 4.5 × 10⁻⁴ and 6,020,000 = 6.02 × 10⁶. The power counts how many places the decimal point moved: positive for big numbers, negative for numbers less than 1.

Type a number any way you like: 0.00045, 3,200,000, 4.5e-4 or 4.5 × 10^-4. In Convert mode you get scientific notation, E notation (4.5E-4, the form calculators and spreadsheets use) and the number written out in full. You can also round it to a set number of significant figures.

In Calculate mode, multiplying multiplies the coefficients and adds the powers; dividing divides the coefficients and subtracts the powers. Adding and subtracting line up the powers first. You get the exact answer and the answer rounded by the significant-figure rules used in chemistry and physics.

All arithmetic is exact, with no floating-point rounding: 0.1 + 0.2 is exactly 0.3. A division that never ends is shown to 15 significant figures and marked ≈.

The formula

Exactly what happens to your numbers, step by step.

Scientific notation

a × 10ⁿ, where 1 ≤ |a| < 10
and n is a whole number

Multiplying and dividing

(a × 10ᵐ)(b × 10ⁿ) = ab × 10ᵐ⁺ⁿ
(a × 10ᵐ) ÷ (b × 10ⁿ) = (a ÷ b) × 10ᵐ⁻ⁿ

Significant-figure rules

× and ÷: the fewest significant figures
+ and −: the fewest decimal places

A worked example

Write the measurement 0.000450 m in scientific notation.

What you enter

Number: 0.000450

Step by step

Move the point: 4.50 — four places to the right
Power of ten: 10⁻⁴, negative because the number is less than 1
Significant figures: 3: the leading zeros do not count, the trailing zero does
E notation: 4.50E-4

4.50 × 10⁻⁴ m, to 3 significant figures

The final zero matters. 0.000450 says the measurement is good to the millionth of a meter; dropping it to 4.5 × 10⁻⁴ would claim less precision than was measured.

Scientific notation questions, worked out

Conversions and arithmetic, with significant figures tracked the way chemistry and physics classes expect.

1.Write 0.00045 in scientific notation.
1. Move the decimal point so one non-zero digit is in front of it: 4.5.
2. The point moved 4 places to the right, so the power of ten is 10⁻⁴ (negative, because the number is less than 1).
4.5 × 10⁻⁴, or 4.5E-4 in E notation.
2.Write 6.02 × 10²³ in standard form.
1. A positive power of ten moves the decimal point right: 23 places.
602,000,000,000,000,000,000,000.
3.What is (3 × 10⁴) × (2 × 10⁵)?
1. Multiply the coefficients, 3 × 2 = 6, and add the powers, 10⁴ × 10⁵ = 10⁹.
2. So the exact result is 6 × 10⁹.
6 × 10⁹.
4.What is (8.4 × 10⁵) ÷ (2.1 × 10²), to the right number of significant figures?
1. Divide the coefficients, 8.4 ÷ 2.1 = 4, and subtract the powers, 10⁵ ÷ 10² = 10³.
2. So the exact result is 4 × 10³.
3. Significant figures: the inputs have 2 and 2, so the answer keeps the fewer, 2: 4.0 × 10³.
4.0 × 10³.
5.Round 0.004567 to 2 significant figures in scientific notation.
1. Move the decimal point so one non-zero digit is in front of it: 4.567.
2. The point moved 3 places to the right, so the power of ten is 10⁻³ (negative, because the number is less than 1).
3. Rounded to 2 significant figures: 4.6 × 10⁻³.
4.6 × 10⁻³.

Assumptions

Every result here rests on these. Change your inputs and the result changes with them.

Significant figures follow the standard rules: non-zero digits count, zeros between them count, leading zeros never count, and trailing zeros count only after a decimal point.
Trailing zeros in a whole number written without a decimal point, such as 3,200, are ambiguous and are treated as not significant. The result says when this applies.
Rounding is half away from zero (2.45 to two figures is 2.5), the convention in most school texts.

What this cannot tell you

Exponents from −1000 to 1000, and up to 40 digits in a number. Standard form is written out only when it stays readable.
Exact numbers, such as counted items or defined conversions, have unlimited significant figures, but the calculator cannot tell them apart from measurements. Ignore the rule-based answer if one input is exact.
Some courses use round-half-to-even, or carry extra figures through multi-step problems before rounding. Follow your instructor where they differ.

Questions people ask

How do you convert a number to scientific notation?

Move the decimal point until one non-zero digit is in front of it, and count the places moved. That count is the power of ten: positive if you moved left (big numbers), negative if you moved right (small numbers). 52,000 becomes 5.2 × 10⁴ and 0.0036 becomes 3.6 × 10⁻³.

How do you multiply numbers in scientific notation?

Multiply the coefficients and add the exponents, then tidy up. (3 × 10⁴)(2 × 10⁵) = 6 × 10⁹. If the coefficient comes out at 10 or more, move the point and add 1 to the exponent: 6.02 × 2.0 = 12.04, so 6.02 × 10²³ × 2.0 = 1.204 × 10²⁴.

What is E notation?

The same thing written on one line, as calculators and spreadsheets do: 4.5E-4 means 4.5 × 10⁻⁴, and 6.02E23 means 6.02 × 10²³. The E stands for "times ten to the power of".

How many significant figures does a number have?

Count every digit from the first non-zero one, except trailing zeros in a whole number with no decimal point. 0.00450 has 3 (4, 5 and the final 0). 4.50 × 10³ has 3. 3,200 has 2 for certain, and up to 4 if the zeros were measured, which is exactly the ambiguity scientific notation removes.

Sources and review

Sources

Methodology version 1.0.0 · Last reviewed October 12, 2026

Cite this calculator

For coursework, a resource list or your own site. How every calculator is built and checked is set out on the methodology page.

Citation

Chalk Calculator. (2026, October 12). Scientific Notation Calculator (Methodology version 1.0.0). https://chalkcalculator.com/scientific-notation-calculator/

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