How to Convert Decimals to Fractions or Mixed Numerals

First Method of Converting Decimals to Fractions

• 1

  Write the decimal number with a denominator of 1. For example, take the decimal number .25 and write it thus: .25/1.

• 2

  Count how many digits there are after the decimal point. Multiply both numerator and denominator by a power of 10 that contains as many zeros are there are digits after the decimal point. There are two digits after the decimal point in the example. So multiply by 100. The decimal is converted to the fraction 25/100. For a single digit, for example .5, you would multiply by 10. The number of zeros after the 1 in the denominator should match the number of digits after the decimal point.

• 3

  Simplify. Divide both numerator and denominator by a number that goes into them exactly and does not leave a remainder. So 25/100 can be divided by 25 to give 1/4. This is the fraction in its simplest form.

• 4

  Inspect a mixed numeral. The digit to the left of the decimal point is the whole number. The digits after the decimal are the fractional part.

• 5

  Put the whole number aside. Convert the decimal portion of the number. Then put the numbers together. For example, consider the number 2.25. The number 2 is to the left of the decimal point and is the whole number. Leave it aside. Convert .25 to the fraction 1/4. Put the whole number back to get the mixed numeral 2 1/4.

An Alternate Method of Converting Decimals to Fractions

• 6

  Remember place value. The position of a digit on the number line gives its value. For example, 5 in the ones place is 5. In the tens place it represents 50, and in the hundreds place it is 500. After the decimal point, the first number is in the tenths position, the second number is in the hundredths position and so on.

• 7

  Look at the place of the digit. For example, .5 has 5 in the first place after the decimal point, so the 5 is in the tenths place.

• 8

  Write it with a denominator of 10 to get 5/10. The decimal is now written as a fraction. To convert a number with more digits after the decimal point look at the position of the last digit. For example, .05 has 5 in the hundredths place. So the fraction is 5/100.

• 9

  Simplify. Divide both numerator and denominator by a number that goes into them exactly and does not leave a remainder. So 5/100 simplifies to 1/20.