Yard (yd) - Unit Information & Conversion

Symbol:yd

Plural:yards

Category:Length

What is a Yard?

Definition

The yard is a unit of length in the British imperial and United States customary systems of measurement. It is defined as exactly 3 feet or 36 inches, which equals 0.9144 meters.

History

The origin of the yard is uncertain, with historical links possibly related to the length of a stride or the distance from the nose to the fingertip of an outstretched arm (associated with King Henry I of England, though likely apocryphal). It became a standard unit in England for measuring cloth and land, and was later precisely defined relative to the meter.

Common Uses

Textiles: Measuring fabric length (often sold by the yard).
Sports: Dimensions of sports fields (e.g., American football, soccer pitch lengths can be expressed in yards).
Landscaping: Landscaping and gardening measurements (e.g., yards of mulch).
Short Distances: Shorter road distances or property dimensions in the US and UK.

Unit FAQs

How many feet are in a yard?

There are exactly 3 feet (ft) in 1 yard (yd).

How many inches are in a yard?

There are exactly 36 inches (in) in 1 yard (yd).

Is a yard longer or shorter than a meter?

A yard (0.9144 m) is slightly shorter than a meter (1 m).

Yard Conversion Formulas

To Meter:

1 yd = 0.9144 m

Example: 5 yards = 4.572 meters

To Kilometer:

1 yd = 0.000914 km

Example: 5 yards = 0.004572 kilometers

To Hectometer:

1 yd = 0.009144 hm

Example: 5 yards = 0.04572 hectometers

To Decimeter:

1 yd = 9.144 dm

Example: 5 yards = 45.72 decimeters

To Centimeter:

1 yd = 91.44 cm

Example: 5 yards = 457.2 centimeters

To Millimeter:

1 yd = 914.4 mm

Example: 5 yards = 4572 millimeters

To Inch:

1 yd = 36 in

Example: 5 yards = 180 inches

To Foot:

1 yd = 3 ft

Example: 5 yards = 15 feet

To Mile:

1 yd = 0.000568 mi

Example: 5 yards = 0.002841 miles

To Nautical Mile:

1 yd = 0.000494 NM

Example: 5 yards = 0.002469 nautical miles

To Micrometer:

1 yd = 914400 μm

Example: 5 yards = 4572000 micrometers

To Nanometer:

1 yd = 914400000 nm

Example: 5 yards = 4572000000 nanometers

To Light Year:

1 yd = 9.6649e-17 ly

Example: 5 yards = 4.8325e-16 light years

To Astronomical Unit:

1 yd = 6.1123e-12 AU

Example: 5 yards = 3.0561e-11 astronomical units

To Parsec:

1 yd = 2.9633e-17 pc

Example: 5 yards = 1.4817e-16 parsecs

To Angstrom:

1 yd = 9144000000 Å

Example: 5 yards = 45720000000 angstroms

To Point (Typography):

1 yd = 2591.998367 pt

Example: 5 yards = 12959.991836 points

To Mil/Thou:

1 yd = 36000 mil

Example: 5 yards = 180000 mils

To Fathom:

1 yd = 0.5 fath

Example: 5 yards = 2.5 fathoms

To Furlong:

1 yd = 0.004545 fur

Example: 5 yards = 0.022727 furlongs

To Link (Gunter's):

1 yd = 4.545455 li

Example: 5 yards = 22.727273 links

To Pace:

1 yd = 1.2 pace

Example: 5 yards = 6 paces

To Span:

1 yd = 4 span

Example: 5 yards = 20 spans

To Digit:

1 yd = 48 digit

Example: 5 yards = 240 digits

To Cable Length:

1 yd = 0.004937 cb

Example: 5 yards = 0.024687 cable lengths

To Ell:

1 yd = 0.8 ell

Example: 5 yards = 4 ells

To Finger:

1 yd = 8 finger

Example: 5 yards = 40 fingers

To Roman Mile:

1 yd = 0.000618 m.p.

Example: 5 yards = 0.003089 Roman miles

To Stadion:

1 yd = 0.004943 stadion

Example: 5 yards = 0.024714 stadia

To Chi (Chinese):

1 yd = 2.743474 chi

Example: 5 yards = 13.717372 chi

To Shaku (Japanese):

1 yd = 3.017822 shaku

Example: 5 yards = 15.089109 shaku

To Li (Chinese):

1 yd = 0.001829 li

Example: 5 yards = 0.009144 li

To Toise:

1 yd = 0.469164 toise

Example: 5 yards = 2.345818 toise

To Bolt:

1 yd = 0.03 bolt

Example: 5 yards = 0.15 bolts

To Rope:

1 yd = 0.15 rope

Example: 5 yards = 0.75 ropes

To Smoot:

1 yd = 0.537313 smoot

Example: 5 yards = 2.686567 smoots

To Sajene:

1 yd = 0.428571 sajene

Example: 5 yards = 2.142857 sajenes

To Ken:

1 yd = 0.50297 ken

Example: 5 yards = 2.514851 ken

To Wa:

1 yd = 0.4572 wa

Example: 5 yards = 2.286 wa

To Vara:

1 yd = 1.090909 vara

Example: 5 yards = 5.454545 varas

To Aln:

1 yd = 1.539394 aln

Example: 5 yards = 7.69697 alnar

To Cubit (Royal/Egyptian):

1 yd = 1.748375 cubit

Example: 5 yards = 8.741874 cubits

To Versta:

1 yd = 0.000857 versta

Example: 5 yards = 0.004286 versts

To Arpent:

1 yd = 0.015639 arpent

Example: 5 yards = 0.078193 arpents

To Ri (Japanese):

1 yd = 0.000233 ri

Example: 5 yards = 0.001164 ri

To Klafter:

1 yd = 0.482151 klafter

Example: 5 yards = 2.410757 klafter

To Yojana:

1 yd = 0.000068 yojana

Example: 5 yards = 0.000339 yojanas

To Skein:

1 yd = 0.008333 skein

Example: 5 yards = 0.041667 skeins

Convert Yard

Need to convert Yard to other length units? Use our conversion tool.

Go to Length Converter Convert from Yard