Number System Explorer
Number System Converter
Place Value Breakdown
Binary Bits Explorer
Click on the bits to toggle them and see the decimal value change!
Decimal to Binary Converter
Conversion Challenge
Decimal System (Base 10)
The decimal system is what we use every day. It uses 10 symbols: 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9.
Each position in a number represents a power of 10:
- 1's place (100 = 1)
- 10's place (101 = 10)
- 100's place (102 = 100)
- 1000's place (103 = 1000)
Example:
The number 357 means:
3 × 100 + 5 × 10 + 7 × 1
3 × 102 + 5 × 101 + 7 × 100
300 + 50 + 7 = 357
Binary System (Base 2)
The binary system only uses 2 symbols: 0 and 1. It's the language of computers!
Each position represents a power of 2:
- 1's place (20 = 1)
- 2's place (21 = 2)
- 4's place (22 = 4)
- 8's place (23 = 8)
- 16's place (24 = 16)
Example:
Binary 1011 means:
1 × 8 + 0 × 4 + 1 × 2 + 1 × 1
1 × 23 + 0 × 22 + 1 × 21 + 1 × 20
8 + 0 + 2 + 1 = 11 decimal
Hexadecimal System (Base 16)
Hexadecimal uses 16 symbols: 0-9 and A-F, where:
A = 10, B = 11, C = 12, D = 13, E = 14, F = 15
Each position represents a power of 16:
- 1's place (160 = 1)
- 16's place (161 = 16)
- 256's place (162 = 256)
Example:
Hexadecimal 2AF means:
2 × 256 + 10 × 16 + 15 × 1
2 × 162 + A × 161 + F × 160
512 + 160 + 15 = 687 decimal
Why Different Number Systems?
Decimal (Base 10)
Why we use it: Easy for humans because we have 10 fingers
Used for: Everyday counting, math, and most human calculations
Binary (Base 2)
Why we use it: Perfect for computers because electronic circuits have two states (on/off)
Used for: All data inside computers, from text to images to programs
Hexadecimal (Base 16)
Why we use it: Compact way to represent binary (every 4 binary digits = 1 hex digit)
Used for: Computer memory addresses, color codes (like #FF00CC), and programming
Real-World Applications
Computer Memory
Memory addresses are often shown in hexadecimal because they can represent large binary values in fewer digits.
Web Colors
Colors on websites use hexadecimal: #FF0000 is red, #00FF00 is green, and #0000FF is blue.
Digital Logic
Computer circuits work with binary signals (on/off), which represent 1s and 0s in the binary system.