To convert mils to parsecs, multiply by 8.231579395e-22. That factor is the whole relationship: both units measure length, so the conversion is a proportion with no offset and no substance-specific constant.
One thousandth of an inch, the standard thickness unit for plastic film and PCB traces. The distance at which one astronomical unit subtends one arcsecond: about 3.26 light-years.
The mil and the millimetre are not the same thing and are out by a factor of about forty. A mil is one thousandth of an inch — 0.0254 mm — and a spec sheet that quotes film thickness in mils means the small unit. British drawings write the same size as "thou". Below the calculator there is a step table for the values people look up most, and a second table putting real length figures into parsecs so the number you get has something to be compared against.
The formula
mils- The amount you are converting, in mils
8.23157939519e-22- The exact number of parsecs in one mil
parsecs- The converted result
How it works, step by step
- Enter the value in mils.
- It is multiplied by 8.23157939519e-22, the exact factor between the two units.
- The answer is shown in parsecs, with the reverse conversion beneath it.
- Check the reference table if you want a figure of comparable size.
Worked examples
An Olympic pool: 1.97e+06 mil in parsecs
An Olympic pool comes to about 1.97e+06 mil. Multiplying by the factor: 1.97e+06 × 8.23158e-22 = 1.62162e-15 pc. Dividing the answer back by 8.23158e-22 returns the figure you started with, which is the quickest way to check you have the factor the right way up.
A door height: 8e+04 mil in parsecs
Take a door height, roughly 8e+04 mil. The conversion is a single multiplication — 8e+04 × 8.23158e-22 — giving 6.58526e-17 pc. Because the relationship is proportional, doubling the input doubles the answer to 1.31705e-16 pc.
How to read your score
Frequently asked questions
How many parsecs are in one mil?
Exactly 8.23157939519e-22. Every figure on this page is that one number multiplied by your input, so the only rounding is at the display step.
What is the formula to convert mils to parsecs?
parsecs = mils × 8.23157939519e-22. Reversed, mils = parsecs ÷ 8.23157939519e-22, which is the same as multiplying by 1.21483369350e+21.
Which is the bigger unit, the mil or the parsec?
The parsec. One mil is only 8.23158e-22 of a parsec, so it takes 1.21483e+21 mils to make one parsec.
What does this quantity actually measure?
Both units measure length. That is why a single factor is enough: there is no temperature offset and no material property involved, unlike conversions that cross between different quantities.
What is a mil?
One thousandth of an inch, the standard thickness unit for plastic film and PCB traces.
What is a parsec?
The distance at which one astronomical unit subtends one arcsecond: about 3.26 light-years.
Why does my answer differ from another converter?
Almost always because the other tool rounded the factor before multiplying. This page keeps full double precision through the calculation and rounds only for display, and it prints the factor it used so you can see where any difference came from.
Mils to parsecs reference tables
| Mils | Parsecs |
|---|---|
| 0.5 mil | 4.11579e-22 pc |
| 1 mil | 8.23158e-22 pc |
| 2 mil | 1.64632e-21 pc |
| 3 mil | 2.46947e-21 pc |
| 5 mil | 4.11579e-21 pc |
| 10 mil | 8.23158e-21 pc |
| 20 mil | 1.64632e-20 pc |
| 25 mil | 2.05789e-20 pc |
| 50 mil | 4.11579e-20 pc |
| 75 mil | 6.17368e-20 pc |
| 100 mil | 8.23158e-20 pc |
| 250 mil | 2.05789e-19 pc |
| 500 mil | 4.11579e-19 pc |
| 1000 mil | 8.23158e-19 pc |
| 5000 mil | 4.11579e-18 pc |
Exact factor: 1 mil = 8.23157939519e-22 parsecs.
| Quantity | mil | pc |
|---|---|---|
| A credit card’s long edge | 3370 mil | 2.774e-18 pc |
| A door height | 8e+04 mil | 6.585e-17 pc |
| An Olympic pool | 1.969e+06 mil | 1.620e-15 pc |
| The Eiffel Tower | 1.299e+07 mil | 1.069e-14 pc |
| A marathon | 1.661e+09 mil | 1.367e-12 pc |
| Earth’s diameter | 5.017e+11 mil | 4.129e-10 pc |
Published reference values, converted with the same factor this page uses.