How to use Scientific Calculator
- Type the expression in the input, or build it with the keypad below.
- Set Angle mode to Degrees or Radians for sin, cos, tan, asin, acos and atan.
- Choose how many decimal places the answer should show.
- The answer updates as you type the expression. Copy it or pick the line from This session.
Example: Scientific Calculator
Work out one trigonometry term together with some arithmetic.
Options
- Angle mode
- Degrees and radians change how the trigonometric functions read an angle and give one back. Ordinary arithmetic, powers and logarithms ignore the setting, and each line in This session keeps the mode it used.
- Decimal places
- The answer displays at 0, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 or 12 places, rounded half up. A whole-number answer keeps every digit, and a value that would round away to nothing keeps enough digits to stay visible.
- Working precision
- Every calculation runs to 40 significant digits before the display rounds it. Results that are very large or very small are written in exponent form with six significant digits.
Supported inputs and limits
Where your input is processed
This tool processes your input in this browser. Your text and files are not uploaded to UseFreeTools. Check this tool's limits for anything it may save on your device.
How this calculator reads an expression
The text is split into numbers, operators, brackets and names, then read with ordinary precedence: brackets first, then powers, then a leading minus sign, then multiplication and division from left to right, then addition and subtraction from left to right. A power takes its right side first, so 2 ^ 3 ^ 2 means 2 ^ (3 ^ 2) and gives 512. A percent sign divides what stands in front of it by one hundred, which is how 200 * 15% becomes 30. The arithmetic runs on a decimal library instead of binary floating point, so 0.1 + 0.2 gives 0.3 rather than 0.30000000000000004.
What the keypad and history add
The keypad writes at the caret, so 2 + 3 can be edited into 20 + 3 without retyping it, and Del removes one character at a time. Each finished calculation joins the list under This session with its expression, angle mode and answer. Selecting a line puts it back into the input, ready to change and run again. The list belongs to the visit: Clear history empties it, and closing the page clears it too.
Questions about Scientific Calculator
When should I switch to radians?
Use radians when the angle comes from calculus, physics or code, and degrees when it comes from school work, drawings or most hand calculators. The mode applies to sin, cos and tan, and to the angles that asin, acos and atan return.
Why does sin(30) show 0.5 instead of a long decimal?
The sine of 30 degrees is one half, and the calculation carries 40 significant digits, so a clean value stays clean. Values within 1e-30 of zero print as 0 rather than as a row of digits that only reflect the approximation of pi.
Why does my answer contain an e?
Very large and very small results are written in exponent form, for example 1.26765e+30 for 2 ^ 100. It is the same number in scientific notation, and it keeps the answer short enough to read.
Is the expression sent anywhere?
No. The parser, the arithmetic and the history list all run in this browser. Nothing typed in the expression box is uploaded, and closing the tab or pressing Clear history removes it.
Can I work without the on-screen keypad?
Yes. Type the expression directly, use Ctrl+Enter or Cmd+Enter to run it, and use Tab and Shift+Tab to move through the controls. The keypad covers arrow keys and Home and End for anyone who prefers keys to a mouse.