Work out number system converter instantly with clear inputs, formula shown and shareable results.
Positional notation means each digit carries its base raised to the position index, so 2026 in decimal is 11111101010 in binary, 7EA in hexadecimal and 3752 in octal. Hexadecimal is favoured in computing because each digit maps to exactly four bits, making byte boundaries visible at a glance.
Positional value
value = sum of digit x base^position
Bit grouping
one hex digit = 4 bits; one octal digit = 3 bits
Because 8-bit bytes divide evenly into two hex digits but not into octal digits. Octal suited older 12, 24 and 36 bit machines.
Characters outside the chosen base are stripped before parsing, so entering 9 in a binary value simply drops it rather than producing nonsense.