Scientific Notation Calculator

The scientific notation calculator converts numbers to and from scientific notation, performs arithmetic with numbers in scientific notation, and displays results in multiple formats including E-notation and engineering notation.

What is Scientific Notation?

Scientific notation expresses numbers as a coefficient between 1 and 10 multiplied by a power of 10. It makes very large or very small numbers easier to work with. For example, the speed of light (299,792,458 m/s) becomes 2.998 × 10⁸ m/s.

Converting to Scientific Notation

1. Move the decimal point until you have a number between 1 and 10
2. Count how many places you moved the decimal
3. If you moved left, the exponent is positive; if right, it's negative

Example: 0.00045 → Move decimal 4 places right → 4.5 × 10⁻⁴

E-Notation

E-notation is a computer-friendly way to write scientific notation. The "E" represents "× 10^". For example:

• 3.5 × 10⁸ = 3.5E8
• 2.1 × 10⁻⁵ = 2.1E-5

Engineering Notation

Engineering notation is similar to scientific notation but uses exponents that are multiples of 3, corresponding to metric prefixes (kilo, mega, giga, milli, micro, nano). For example: 45,000 = 45 × 10³ (not 4.5 × 10⁴).

Operations in Scientific Notation

• Multiplication: Multiply coefficients, add exponents. (2 × 10³) × (3 × 10⁴) = 6 × 10⁷
• Division: Divide coefficients, subtract exponents. (6 × 10⁸) ÷ (2 × 10³) = 3 × 10⁵
• Addition/Subtraction: Convert to same exponent, then add/subtract coefficients.

Related Calculators

For tracking precision in calculations, use our sig fig calculator. For exponent calculations, try our exponent calculator.