Exponent Calculator
Raise any number to any power. Supports decimals, negatives, and large results in scientific notation.
Exponent
^
2^10 =
1,024
Scientific notation: 1.024000e+3
Frequently Asked Questions about the Exponent Calculator
What is an exponent?
An exponent tells you how many times to multiply a base by itself. In b^n, b is the base and n is the exponent. For example, 2^5 = 2 x 2 x 2 x 2 x 2 = 32.
What does a negative exponent mean?
A negative exponent is the reciprocal of the positive power. 2^-3 = 1 / 2^3 = 1/8 = 0.125. Any nonzero base to the power 0 equals 1.
How do fractional exponents work?
A fractional exponent is a root. b^(1/n) is the n-th root of b, so 27^(1/3) = 3 because 3^3 = 27. More generally, b^(m/n) equals the n-th root of b raised to the m-th power.
Why does 0^0 cause trouble?
0^0 is an indeterminate form in calculus, but most calculators and programming languages return 1 by convention because it makes power series and combinatorial formulas work cleanly.
Where are exponents used in real life?
Compound interest, population growth, radioactive decay, computer storage (kilobytes = 2^10 bytes), and scientific notation for very large or very small numbers all rely on exponents.