Convert, normalize, and calculate with scientific notation instantly
Number to Scientific Notation
Enter any decimal number — positive, negative, or very large/small.
Result
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Quick Reference
Scientific notation expresses very large or very small numbers as a coefficient multiplied by a power of 10 — an essential skill in science, engineering, and math. This free scientific notation calculator lets you convert any decimal to scientific notation, convert scientific notation back to standard form, and perform addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division on numbers written in scientific notation, with step-by-step explanations.
Move the decimal point until only one non-zero digit is to the left of it. Count how many places you moved — that count is the exponent. Moving left gives a positive exponent; moving right gives a negative one. For example, 0.000602 becomes 6.02 × 10^-4.
For multiplication, multiply the coefficients and add the exponents: (a × 10^m) × (b × 10^n) = (ab) × 10^(m+n). For division, divide the coefficients and subtract the exponents: (a × 10^m) ÷ (b × 10^n) = (a/b) × 10^(m−n). Normalize the result so the coefficient is between 1 and 10.
E notation is a compact text representation: 1.23e4 means 1.23 × 10^4. It is mathematically identical to scientific notation and is used in calculators, spreadsheets, and programming languages when superscripts are not available.
Scientific notation makes very large numbers (like the distance to a star: 4.07 × 10^16 m) and very small numbers (like an electron's charge: 1.602 × 10^-19 C) easy to read, write, and compare. It also simplifies arithmetic by letting you handle the magnitude and precision separately.