Published
5 inches is 12.7 centimeters (127 mm), or 5/12 of a foot. It is the length of a 5-inch inseam, the short style of shorts that sits two inches higher on the leg than the classic 7-inch cut.
5 inches in other units
An inch is exactly 2.54 cm, so 5 × 2.54 = 12.7 cm. The table adds the quarter-inch steps around 5 inches, since that is how a US tape measure reads.
| Inches | Centimeters | Millimeters | Feet | Yards |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 ½ | 11.43 | 114.3 | 0.38 | 0.13 |
| 4 ¾ | 12.07 | 120.7 | 0.40 | 0.13 |
| 5 | 12.70 | 127.0 | 0.42 | 0.14 |
| 5 ¼ | 13.34 | 133.4 | 0.44 | 0.15 |
| 5 ½ | 13.97 | 139.7 | 0.46 | 0.15 |
5 inches in clothing and shoes
This is where most people meet the number 5: on a shorts label or a shoe box. Both are measured at very specific points.
1. Swim Trunks with a 5-Inch Inseam
The inseam is the inside leg seam, from the crotch to the hem. A 5-inch inseam is a short length, popular for swim trunks, running shorts and gym shorts. On many adults it ends at the upper or middle thigh.
The 7-inch inseam is the classic “regular” length and lands about 2 inches lower, closer to the knee. Your height changes where each one falls, so compare with a pair you already own before you order.
2. A 5-Inch Wedge Heel
Heel height is measured at the back, from the floor to the top of the heel or wedge. Five inches is a very high heel by any shoe guide’s standard; anything over 4 inches is usually called very high.
A wedge spreads that height along the whole sole instead of a thin stiletto, and most 5-inch wedges add a platform under the toes. That is why a 5-inch wedge is easier to walk in than a 5-inch stiletto.
Around the house
Hardware is sold by precise sizes, though each product measures them its own way.
3. A “5-Inch” Cabinet Pull
Cabinet pulls are sized by the distance between their two screw holes, measured center to center, not by their total length. US pulls come in 3, 3.5, 4 and 5 inches; metric pulls use 96, 128 and 160 mm. A 128 mm pull is 5.04 inches, so it is often sold as a 5-inch pull.
The two sizes differ by about 1 mm. That is usually close enough to swap them, but check the holes before you replace a whole kitchen’s worth of hardware.
4. A 40d Common Nail
Nails are still sized in the old “penny” system, written with a d. A 40d (40-penny) common nail is 5 inches long. For comparison, a 20d nail is 4 inches and a 60d nail is 6 inches.
Nails this long are used for heavy framing and landscape timbers; most house framing uses shorter 16d nails, which are 3.5 inches.
5. A 5-Inch Caster
A caster is sized by its wheel diameter, so a 5-inch caster has a 5-inch wheel. The fork and the mounting plate add a couple of inches on top, which matters when you need to know how much a cart or workbench will rise.
5-inch casters are a common size for tool chests, workbenches and utility carts: big enough to roll over cords and small bumps, small enough to keep the load low.
Party and crafts
6. A 5-Inch Balloon
Latex balloons are sold by their size when inflated, and 5-inch balloons are the small ones mixed into balloon garlands and arches between larger 11-inch and 18-inch balloons.
Decorators often underinflate them on purpose to fill gaps, so in a finished garland a “5-inch” balloon can be closer to 4 inches across.
7. A Charm Pack Square
Quilters buy charm packs: bundles of precut fabric squares, each exactly 5 × 5 inches with pinked (zigzag) edges, usually 40 or more per pack.
With a quarter-inch seam on each side, a 5-inch square finishes at 4.5 inches inside a quilt.
8. A 5-Inch Embroidery Hoop
Embroidery hoops are sold by diameter, and 5 inches is a popular size for small designs, monograms and beginner kits.
A hoop that size is also a handy way to picture a 5-inch circle: it is about the size of a small saucer.
9. Kids’ Blunt-Tip Scissors
The classic school scissors on supply lists are 5-inch scissors, with a blunt or rounded tip for younger kids and a pointed tip for older ones.
Adult office scissors are usually 7 or 8 inches long, so a 5-inch pair is noticeably small in a grown-up hand.
Hobbies
10. A 5-Inch Drone Propeller
FPV racing and freestyle drones are named after their propellers: a “5-inch drone” spins props that measure 5 inches tip to tip. It is the most popular size for freestyle flying.
The frame is sized to fit those props, so a typical 5-inch quad measures roughly 220 mm (about 8.7 inches) diagonally from motor to motor.
11. A 5-Inch Soft Plastic Worm
Soft plastic baits are sold by length, and the 5-inch stick bait is a classic for bass fishing. It is the size that made the Senko-style worm famous.
Anglers rig it weightless or wacky style; the 5-inch length is long enough to wiggle on the fall and short enough for a bass to inhale.
Weather: 5 inches of rain
12. 5 Inches of Rain
Rainfall is measured as the depth of water a flat-bottomed gauge collects. Five inches in a single day is a very heavy rain almost anywhere in the US, enough to cause flash flooding.
It is also a lot of water: the USGS puts one inch of rain on one acre at about 27,154 gallons, so 5 inches on an acre is about 135,800 gallons. Had it fallen as snow, at the usual rough ratio of 10 to 1, it would have been about 50 inches deep.
A blast from the past
13. A 5¼-Inch Floppy Disk
The 5¼-inch floppy disk, introduced in 1976, was the standard storage for personal computers into the late 1980s. Its square sleeve is 5.25 inches on each side.
A double-density disk for the original IBM PC held 360 KB, and later high-density disks held 1.2 MB, before the smaller, sturdier 3½-inch disk took over.
What does 5 inches look like on your hand?
Hands vary a lot, so use these as rough guides and check your own hand once against something exact, like a charm square or a 3 × 5 index card.
- Palm width: across the knuckles, many adult palms measure roughly 3 to 3.5 inches. 5 inches is about one and a half palm widths.
- Hand span: from thumb tip to pinky tip with the fingers spread, many adults span roughly 7 to 9 inches. 5 inches is a bit more than half a span.
- Index finger: from the base to the tip, often around 3 inches. 5 inches is that finger plus about two thirds of its length again.
5 inches in diameter
A circle 5 inches across, like the embroidery hoop or the balloon above, has a circumference of 15.71 inches (39.90 cm) and an area of 19.63 square inches (126.68 cm²). A circle twice as wide, 10 inches, covers four times that area.
5 inches vs. nearby sizes
| Length | In cm | Everyday example |
|---|---|---|
| 3 in | 7.62 cm | A hockey puck, 3 in across |
| 4 in | 10.16 cm | A cassette tape, 3.95 in long |
| 5 in | 12.7 cm | A charm pack fabric square |
| 6 in | 15.24 cm | A 6-inch sub |
| 7 in | 17.78 cm | A 5 × 7 photo, long side |
How to measure 5 inches without a ruler
- A 3 × 5 index card: the long side is exactly 5 inches.
- Six nickels: a nickel is 0.835 inches across, so six in a row measure 5.01 inches.
- A charm square: if you sew, a precut charm square is exactly 5 inches on each side.
- A printable ruler: print one at 100% scale (turn off “fit to page”), then check it against a credit card, which is 3.37 inches long.
Phone measuring apps work for rough estimates, but they can be off by a quarter inch or more at this size. For anything that has to fit, use a physical reference.
More sizes to compare
- What 6 inches looks like: 15.24 cm, from a 6-inch sub to 6 inches of snow
- 20 cm in inches: 7.87 in, just under 8 inches
- What 8 inches looks like: 20.32 cm, and why an “8-inch” block is 7⅝ inches
- What 9 inches looks like: 22.86 cm, from a pie dish to a paint roller
- Inches to cm converter: any length in inches, with a 1–100 inch chart and fractions
FAQs
5 inches is 12.7 cm tall, about the height of a 5¼-inch floppy disk standing on its edge, or a little more than a 12 oz soda can.
5 inches is exactly 12.7 cm, or 127 mm, because one inch is defined as 2.54 cm.
They are a short style, ending around the upper or middle thigh on many adults. They are popular for running, swimming and the gym; for a more classic look, a 7-inch inseam lands about 2 inches lower.
The number is the inseam. A 7-inch inseam is 2 inches longer, so the hem sits 2 inches lower on the leg, closer to the knee.
Yes. Five inches in a day is a very heavy rain in most of the US and can cause flash flooding. On a single acre it adds up to about 135,800 gallons of water.
5 inches is 5/12 of a foot, or about 0.42 feet.
Need a bit more? See what 6 inches looks like. For any other value, the inches to cm converter handles any length, and the cm to inches converter works the other way.