Template talk:Convert

Template:Convert

... in conception

... and in reality

Ritual expression of gratitude

As a content creator without any technical skill of any kind, I am cosmically obligated to come by here every so often and thank the developers of this template.

the fact that {{convert|80|impgal/min|ml/sec|abbr=on}} exists and works seems like an absolute miracle to me. I love you guys so much for this monument.

This thing is an apotheosis of Wikipedia. THANK YOU jengod (talk) 19:37, 11 August 2026 (UTC)

Thanks, and you’re right that it is a bit of a miracle! Johnuniq (talk) 11:46, 13 August 2026 (UTC)

Input value only

Has the ability to display the input value and suppress the unit been added? I saw it suggested back at Template talk:Convert/Archive January 2018#Return part of output: input value only. I'm trying to get 469.02 m.a.A. (1,538.8 ft) but the best I can get is 469.02 m .a.A. (1,538.8 ft) (using {{cvt|469.02|m|ft|adj=mid|.a.A.}}) which gives an odd space. CambridgeBayWeather (#1 deranged), Uqaqatigijaa (talk), Huliva 20:25, 28 August 2026 (UTC)

{{cvt|469.02|m|ft|disp=x|.a.A. (|)}} gives 469.02 m.a.A. (1,538.8 ft) . Be careful of the space in the middle.  Stepho  talk  00:22, 29 August 2026 (UTC)

Excellent. Thank you. CambridgeBayWeather (#1 deranged), Uqaqatigijaa (talk), Huliva 15:07, 29 August 2026 (UTC)

Plural bar or bars

Convert currently uses bars as the plural for Bar (unit). Example:

• {{convert|2|bar|kPa}} → 2 bars (200 kPa)

A recent edit by ~2026-46880-79 at Module:Convert/documentation/conversion data proposes that the plural be bar. Talk:Bar (unit) has a couple of mentions showing that there is disagreement about what is correct (search for "plural"). Should convert say 2 bar or 2 bars? Johnuniq (talk) 03:19, 29 August 2026 (UTC)

As an older Australian, I've always used "bar" as the plural. But not too fussed either way.  Stepho  talk  04:11, 29 August 2026 (UTC)

Disambiguate the unit 'erg'

Currently, the unit erg is linked to a disambiguation page, it should be linked to erg (unit). Rob3512 (Talk · C) 04:22, 6 September 2026 (UTC)

Thanks. I have updated the definition and it will be live in the next release. Let me know if that is needed soon because we wait for a few changes before updating. Johnuniq (talk) 06:57, 6 September 2026 (UTC)

an error

There is a technical error at the end of the Quick start section. I could not fix it. — Hamid Hassani (talk) 03:36, 9 September 2026 (UTC)

That error was intended to demonstrate what happens if the wrong code is used. It was confusing and perhaps the example could be omitted but I added a note to clarify. Johnuniq (talk) 05:55, 9 September 2026 (UTC)

MGD

Apparently this is a standard unit for volumetric flow rate. I think it means 100,000,000 U.S. gal/d (4.4 m³/s) but is there a way to incorporate the "M" for million? — Martin (MSGJ · talk) 09:01, 2 October 2026 (UTC)

Never mind, worked it out! — Martin (MSGJ · talk) 09:10, 2 October 2026 (UTC)

As Pakistan used to use imperial units before to some extent metricating, I'm nervous of assuming it's now using US gallons. NebY (talk) 09:20, 2 October 2026 (UTC)

I don't know anything about MGD but Google confidently points to https://waterunitconverter.com/volumetricflow which claims that 1 MGD = 1.547 cfs = 694.44 gpm = 43.813 L/s. That site uses US gallons.

• {{convert|1|E6USgal/day|L/s|3}} → 1 million US gallons per day (43.813 L/s)

Johnuniq (talk) 10:11, 2 October 2026 (UTC)

tenths of a thou

At Carbon fibers there was a recent change to show "5 to 10 micrometers (2⁄10,000 to 4⁄10,000 of an inch)". I'm not against how it displays to the reader but I can't find a way to use convert. |frac= doesn't seem to work with input units of |μm - just displays 0 . I could use {{convert|5|to(-)|10|μm|thou|sp=us|link=on}} to show 5 to 10 micrometers (0.20–0.39 thou) but thou is still a bit unknown for many readers (even in the US), so I'd like to keep the fraction form. Any clues?  Stepho  talk  23:44, 10 October 2026 (UTC)

Hmmm. Convert can do it but it cleverly reduces the fractions. For example, instead of saying something was 4⁄8 inches, it would say 1⁄2. The following is correct but is not as clean as the original using a tenth thou.

• {{convert|5|to(-)|10|μm|in|frac=10000|sp=us|link=on}} → 5 to 10 micrometers (1⁄5000–1⁄2500 in)

There is no way to specify that the fractions should not be reduced. Johnuniq (talk) 00:41, 11 October 2026 (UTC)

I happened to find a way to defeat the automatic reduction but it's not quite what anyone would want. 😒

{{convert|5|to(-)|10|μm|thou|sp=us|frac=10000|link=on}} → 5 to 10 micrometers (1969⁄10000–3937⁄10000 thou) NebY (talk) 00:53, 11 October 2026 (UTC)

Thanks guys. I had a typo in my attempts in the article, which is why it didn't work for me. Works now (albeit with reduced fractions and no commas in the fraction).  Stepho  talk  04:35, 12 October 2026 (UTC)

We should remember that the reason for converting measurements is to help people who are more familiar with visualizing the measure in the output units. Are there really any readers who will say, “5 to 10 micrometres? WTF’s that?” and then say, “1⁄5000 to 1⁄2500 inch, OK that’s better, that’s the type of measurement I deal with every day”? I think no conversion is necessary with things like this, as industries working with items this small use micrometres in all countries, even in the US. Indefatigable (talk) 05:00, 12 October 2026 (UTC)

Significant figures

For an input like {{convert|1000|km}}, I'm surprised that this template produces "620 miles," which has an additional significant figure compared to the input. I would assume, unless it were otherwise specified, that "1000 km" is a ballpark figure and would have expected the default conversion to be "600 miles". Should the behavior be changed? (I'm aware that it's possible to specify a specific number of significant figures, but I presume many editors never bother to do so, so I think it's important we set the default behavior to the most common use case.) Sdkb ^talk 00:45, 1 November 2026 (UTC)

Convert has retained two significant figures for a very long time, could even be 20 years, so it has a lot of testing. Interpreting 1000 as one sig fig means we're asserting the measurement is roughly from 500 to 1500. If someone's weight is 100 kg, we don't think 100±50. Johnuniq (talk) 01:41, 1 November 2026 (UTC)

When people say "1000 km" they sometimes mean ±500/100/50/10/1 km of sometimes down to the last cm. Convert doesn't know which one you want but 2 decimal places is a good compromise that seems to satisfy most people. However, you can override it by adding |round=500 or |round=5 or by specifying how many digits you want (positive numbers for after the point and negative numbers for before. There is also |signif= to specify how many digits to keep use at the start. You choose.  Stepho  talk  03:12, 1 November 2026 (UTC)