It is probably safe to say that the metric system is not a mode of measurement most shop owners or customers in the United States are proficient in deciphering despite the U.S. Government’s attempt some years ago to bring the metric system into practical use in the United States. Older Americans, in fact, tend to avoid using it altogether. Meanwhile, most of the rest of the world uses it exclusively. What this often means is if a buyer in the United States wants to purchase an item from a European or Australian online seller, and the seller has not included a measurement for the item in inches or feet, then a potential buyer from Arkansas or Oregon must convert the metric measurement given to inches and feet themselves.

Since struggling with a mathematical equation is not most people's idea of a good time, unless they really want the item badly, most metrically challenged individuals will simply move on without attempting a purchase. Some may fear that an item measuring 75cm will require the assistance of an extra fellow or two to help them get it out of their van and into the house. Or maybe it won't fit into their van at all.

Luckily, geographic peculiarities in regards to measurements seem to be well understood and dealt with by those who are familiar with metrics in their every day life. A good percentage of online e-commerce shops whose owners live outside of the United States will offer measurements in feet/inches in their item descriptions. Unfortunately, this excellent marketing strategy is not one that the majority of shop owners in the United States presently offer, even though most do gladly ship purchases to overseas buyers. A potential customer from anywhere outside of the U.S. finding an item of interest in a U. S. based e-commerce shop will almost always be faced with having to figure out how large said item is when converted to their metric equivalents.

Any step that can be taken by a shop owner to assist a customer in making a purchase decision is usually worth the effort. With that in mind, provided below is a brief listing of some potentially useful conversions. Conversion charts with formulas for quickly converting measurements from one form to the other can be easily found on the Web. Please note that some of the measurements below are not excruciatingly exact but have been rounded up or down for ease of use.

Feet/Inches.......Metric

2/5 in.....................1cm
4/5 in.....................2cm
1 in....................2.54cm
1 1/10 in.................3cm
1 3/5 in...................4cm
2 in.........................5cm
3 7/8 in..................10cm
5 9/10 in................15cm
7 3/4 in..................20cm
9 4/5 in..................25cm
11 4/5 in.................30cm
1 ft 3 3/4 in.............40cm
1 ft 7 2/3 in.............50cm
2 ft 5 1/2 in.............75cm
3 ft 3 1/3 in................1m
4 ft 1 1/5 in............1.25m
4 ft 11 in..................1.5m
5 ft 8 9/10 in...........1.75m
6 ft 6 3/4 in.................2m