Round to decimal places, the nearest 10, 100, or significant figures.
Round to the nearest tenth, hundredth, whole number, 10, 100 or million with this rounding calculator. Pick the precision and the rounding method, and you get the answer plus a table showing the same number rounded to every common precision, so you can compare them at a glance.
Quick answer: to round a number, look at the digit just to the right of the place you are rounding to. If it is 5 or more, round up. If it is 4 or less, leave the digit as it is. 3.146 to 2 decimal places is 3.15.
How to Use the Rounding Calculator
- Enter the number.
- Choose what to round to: a whole number, 1 to 4 decimal places, or the nearest 10, 100, 1,000 or million.
- Choose the method:
- Round half up (standard): the rule taught in school.
- Round half to even (banker’s): used in finance and some software.
- Always round up (ceiling) and always round down (floor).
- Truncate: cut off the extra digits.
- Read the result and the comparison table.
How to Round a Number
- Find the place you are rounding to, such as the hundredths.
- Look at the next digit to the right.
- If it is 5 or more, round up. If it is 4 or less, keep the digit as it is.
- Drop everything after the rounding place. For whole-number places, replace the dropped digits with zeros.
Rounding Examples
Rounding 1,234.56789:
| Round to | Result |
|---|---|
| 2 decimal places (hundredths) | 1,234.57 |
| 1 decimal place (tenths) | 1,234.6 |
| Whole number | 1,235 |
| Nearest 10 | 1,230 |
| Nearest 100 | 1,200 |
| Nearest 1,000 | 1,000 |
Decimal Place Names
| Place | Name | Example: 3.14159 |
|---|---|---|
| 1st after the point | Tenths | 3.1 |
| 2nd after the point | Hundredths | 3.14 |
| 3rd after the point | Thousandths | 3.142 |
Which Rounding Method to Use
| Method | 2.5 becomes | 3.5 becomes | −2.5 becomes | When it is used |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Half up (standard) | 3 | 4 | −3 | Schoolwork and everyday use |
| Half to even (banker’s) | 2 | 4 | −2 | Finance, statistics and some programming languages |
| Always up | 3 | 4 | −2 | Buying enough materials, seats or buses |
| Always down | 2 | 3 | −3 | Counting complete items, such as full boxes |
| Truncate | 2 | 3 | −2 | Cutting digits off without rounding |
In this calculator, “half up” rounds halves away from zero, so −2.5 becomes −3. This matches what most people expect.
Banker’s rounding sends halves to the nearest even number. Over many values, it avoids the small upward drift that standard rounding causes, which is why banks and statisticians use it.
Mistakes to Avoid
- Rounding in steps. Round 2.445 straight to 1 decimal place: 2.4. Rounding to 2.45 first and then to 2.5 is wrong.
- Rounding too early. In a long calculation, keep full values and round only the final answer.
- Confusing decimal places with significant figures. 0.004567 to 2 decimal places is 0.00, but to 2 significant figures it is 0.0046. Significant figures have their own calculator.
To write very large or small numbers in powers of 10, use the scientific notation calculator.
Rounding Calculator FAQs
How do you round to the nearest tenth?
Look at the hundredths digit, the second after the point. If it is 5 or more, add 1 to the tenths digit. 4.36 rounds to 4.4, and 4.34 rounds to 4.3.
How do you round to the nearest hundredth?
Look at the third digit after the point. 2.718 rounds to 2.72.
What is 0.5 rounded to the nearest whole number?
1, with standard rounding. With banker’s rounding it is 0, because 0 is the nearest even number.
When should I always round up?
When a shortfall is a problem: buying paint, booking buses for a group, or ordering enough tiles. 6.2 boxes means buying 7.
How we checked this page: every result in the tables was checked by hand against each method, and matches the calculator.