How to Convert Percents into Decimals

Many times people will need to learn how to do percents in some areas of life, such as job interview tests, pre-college tests, basic school classwork and tests, and as an on the job skill. Practicing percents is easy once you keep practicing.

The % sign represents hundredths. And the % sign means 2 decimal places. To express a percent as a number for a decimal fraction, we rewrite the digits of the given percent but drop the percent sign. Then we move the decimal point two places to the left. A decimal point is understood after the ones digit in a number naming a whole number.

Show 23% as a decimal number: 23 % = .23

If the percent is a decimal percent such as 15.2%, the answer contains more than 2 decimal places.

Example: 15.2% = .152

When the percent is 100% or more, the answer is a number naming a whole number or a mixed decimal.

Sample of a whole number: 300% = 3

Sample of a mixed decimal: 136% = 1.36

And when a percent is a common fraction less than one percent such as 1/2%, the answer may be written as a two-place decimal number .001/2 (or as .005 since 1/2% = .005).

Also when a percent is a mixed number percent such as 18 3/4% (eighteen and three quarters), the answer may be written as a two-place decimal number .18 3/4 (or as .1875 since 18 3/4% = 18.75% = .1875).

For practice show each percent below as a decimal number:

• 24%, 60%,12%
• 4%, 9%, 1%
• 35%, 30%, 70%
• 131%, 127%, 100%
• 140%,110%, 232%
• 60 1/2%, 3 1/4%, 30 1/3%, 1/8%
• 21.5%, 4.2%, 0.1%, 0.785%

Now show each of the following percents as a number naming a whole number:

• 200%
• 100%
• 500%
• 700%
• 300%

© Sabrina A. K.