How to Convert Fractions to Decimals

The one rule that does everything

To turn any fraction into a decimal, divide the top number by the bottom number. The numerator goes inside the long-division bracket, the denominator goes outside, and you add a decimal point with as many zeros as you need.

That is the entire method. Whether the fraction is 1/2 or 17/64, you are always answering the same question: how many times does the denominator fit into the numerator, including the part after the decimal point?

A worked long division

Take 5/8. Set up 5 ÷ 8. Since 8 will not go into 5, you write 0, place the decimal point, and bring down a zero to make 50.

The division ended cleanly with a remainder of zero, so 5/8 is a terminating decimal. Every fraction whose denominator (in lowest terms) is built only from 2s and 5s behaves this way.

When the division never ends

Some fractions never reach a zero remainder. Divide 5 by 6 and you watch the same remainder return again and again:

These are repeating decimals. The block of digits that comes back forever is the period, and you mark it with a bar or with brackets. A handy shortcut: if the denominator has any prime factor other than 2 or 5 — like 3, 6, 7 or 11 — the decimal will repeat.

Rounding versus exactness

For everyday use you usually round a repeating decimal to two or three places: 5/6 ≈ 0.83, 2/7 ≈ 0.29. That is fine for money and measurement, but it is an approximation, not the true value. When precision matters — converting back to a fraction, for instance — keep the repeating notation, because 0.83 and 0.8(3) are genuinely different numbers.

• 0.83 is exactly 83/100.
• 0.8(3) is exactly 5/6.

The converter shows both the rounded form and the exact repeating form so you never lose information by accident.

A quick reference

Memorising the first column pays off quickly, because most fractions you meet are built from these unit fractions. Two-thirds is just twice one-third, so 0.(6); five-eighths is five times 0.125, so 0.625.