10 in Binary
10 in binary is 1010. It takes 4 bits to write, and as a full byte it is 00001010.
How to convert 10 to binary
Divide by 2, write down the remainder, and repeat with the quotient until it reaches 0. The remainders, read from the last row up to the first, spell out 1010.
| Division | Quotient | Remainder |
|---|---|---|
| 10 ÷ 2 | 5 | 0 |
| 5 ÷ 2 | 2 | 1 |
| 2 ÷ 2 | 1 | 0 |
| 1 ÷ 2 | 0 | 1 |
Check it the other way
To verify, read 1010 left to right, giving each digit its place value and adding up the places that hold a 1.
| Bit | Place value | Contributes |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 23 = 8 | 8 |
| 0 | 22 = 4 | 0 |
| 1 | 21 = 2 | 2 |
| 0 | 20 = 1 | 0 |
Adding the contributions: 8 + 0 + 2 + 0 = 10. The conversion checks out.
10 in every base
| Format | Value |
|---|---|
| Binary | 1010 |
| Decimal | 10 |
| Hexadecimal | A |
| Octal | 12 |
| As a byte (8-bit) | 00001010 |
Worth knowing about 10
Ten is the source of the classic joke that there are 10 kinds of people in the world, because the digits 10 mean two in binary while ten itself is written 1010.
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Nearby numbers
Or browse the full table at numbers in binary.
FAQ
What is 10 in binary?
In binary, 10 is written 1010. That is 4 digits, each one a power of two: the pattern says which of 1, 2, 4, 8, and so on to add together to make 10. Computers store it as the byte 00001010, padding the front with zeros.
How many bits does 10 need?
It takes 4 bits to write 10 in binary, since 1010 has 4 digits and dropping any of them would change the value. Real hardware rounds up to whole bytes, so 10 normally sits in eight bits as 00001010, with the unused positions set to zero.
What is 10 in hex?
In hex, 10 is written A. Because 16 is a power of two, hex lines up neatly with binary: one hex digit always covers four bits, so 1010 compresses cleanly. The octal form, common in file permissions, is 12. Same number, three different notations.