This page converts chains into angstroms using the factor 2.01168e+11, and shows the reverse figure alongside it. Both units measure length, which is why one number does the whole job.
Sixty-six feet — the length of a cricket pitch, and the unit the US Public Land Survey was laid out in. One ten-billionth of a metre, sized to atoms: a carbon–carbon bond is about 1.5 Å.
The mil and the millimetre are not the same thing and are out by a factor of about forty. A mil is one thousandth of an inch — 0.0254 mm — and a spec sheet that quotes film thickness in mils means the small unit. British drawings write the same size as "thou". The tables underneath give both a plain step-by-step lookup and a list of real quantities expressed in angstroms, so you can sanity-check whether your answer is a plausible size.
The formula
chains- The amount you are converting, in chains
201,168,000,000- The exact number of angstroms in one chain
angstroms- The converted result
How it works, step by step
- Enter the value in chains.
- It is multiplied by 201,168,000,000, the exact factor between the two units.
- The answer is shown in angstroms, with the reverse conversion beneath it.
- Check the reference table if you want a figure of comparable size.
Worked examples
A marathon: 2100 ch in angstroms
A marathon comes to about 2100 ch. Multiplying by the factor: 2100 × 2.01168e+11 = 4.22453e+14 Å. Dividing the answer back by 2.01168e+11 returns the figure you started with, which is the quickest way to check you have the factor the right way up.
Earth’s diameter: 6.33e+05 ch in angstroms
Take earth’s diameter, roughly 6.33e+05 ch. The conversion is a single multiplication — 6.33e+05 × 2.01168e+11 — giving 1.27339e+17 Å. Because the relationship is proportional, doubling the input doubles the answer to 2.54679e+17 Å.
How to read your score
Frequently asked questions
How many angstroms are in one chain?
Exactly 201,168,000,000. Every figure on this page is that one number multiplied by your input, so the only rounding is at the display step.
What is the formula to convert chains to angstroms?
angstroms = chains × 201,168,000,000. Reversed, chains = angstroms ÷ 201,168,000,000, which is the same as multiplying by 4.97096953790e-12.
Which is the bigger unit, the chain or the angstrom?
The chain. One chain equals 2.01168e+11 angstroms.
What does this quantity actually measure?
Both units measure length. That is why a single factor is enough: there is no temperature offset and no material property involved, unlike conversions that cross between different quantities.
What is a chain?
Sixty-six feet — the length of a cricket pitch, and the unit the US Public Land Survey was laid out in.
What is a angstrom?
One ten-billionth of a metre, sized to atoms: a carbon–carbon bond is about 1.5 Å.
Why does my answer differ from another converter?
Almost always because the other tool rounded the factor before multiplying. This page keeps full double precision through the calculation and rounds only for display, and it prints the factor it used so you can see where any difference came from.
Is there a quick way to do ch to Å in my head?
Plenty of people do this in their head: multiply by 200000000000.000000 instead of using the exact factor 201168000000.000000. At 100 that shortcut gives 2.0000e+13 angstroms, off by 116800000000.000000 angstroms or about 0.58%. Fine for a rough estimate, not fine for anything you are cutting to size or dosing.
Chains to angstroms reference tables
| Chains | Angstroms |
|---|---|
| 0.5 ch | 1.00584e+11 Å |
| 1 ch | 2.01168e+11 Å |
| 2 ch | 4.02336e+11 Å |
| 3 ch | 6.03504e+11 Å |
| 5 ch | 1.00584e+12 Å |
| 10 ch | 2.01168e+12 Å |
| 20 ch | 4.02336e+12 Å |
| 25 ch | 5.0292e+12 Å |
| 50 ch | 1.00584e+13 Å |
| 75 ch | 1.50876e+13 Å |
| 100 ch | 2.01168e+13 Å |
| 250 ch | 5.0292e+13 Å |
| 500 ch | 1.00584e+14 Å |
| 1000 ch | 2.01168e+14 Å |
| 5000 ch | 1.00584e+15 Å |
Exact factor: 1 chain = 201,168,000,000 angstroms.
| Quantity | ch | Å |
|---|---|---|
| A credit card’s long edge | 0.004255 ch | 8.56e+08 Å |
| A door height | 0.101 ch | 2.032e+10 Å |
| An Olympic pool | 2.485 ch | 5e+11 Å |
| The Eiffel Tower | 16.4 ch | 3.3e+12 Å |
| A marathon | 2098 ch | 4.22e+14 Å |
| Earth’s diameter | 6.334e+05 ch | 1.274e+17 Å |
Published reference values, converted with the same factor this page uses.