Converters
EM to Percent Converter
Convert EM units to percentage values for fluid and adaptable CSS design.
The EM to Percent converter is a tool that helps web developers and designers convert EM units to percentage values for CSS styling. This conversion is particularly useful for responsive design and when working with relative font sizes.
What are EM Units?
EM is a relative unit in CSS that is based on the font-size of the parent element. 1em equals the font-size of the parent element. If the parent element has a font-size of 16px (browser default), then 1em = 16px.
What are Percentage Units?
Percentage (%) in CSS is a relative unit that is calculated based on the parent element's value. For font-size, 100% equals the font-size of the parent element.
Conversion Formula
The conversion between EM and percentage is straightforward:
For example, 1em = 100%, 2em = 200%, 0.5em = 50%, and so on.
Common EM to Percent Conversions
| EM Value | Percent Value | Common Use |
|---|---|---|
| 0.75em | 75% | Small text |
| 1em | 100% | Normal text (base size) |
| 1.25em | 125% | Slightly larger text |
| 1.5em | 150% | Subheadings |
| 2em | 200% | Headings |
| 3em | 300% | Large headings |
When to Use EM vs Percent
Both EM and percent are relative units, but they have slightly different use cases:
- EM: Best for creating scalable designs where elements are sized relative to their parent's font size. Good for maintaining proportions in nested elements.
- Percent: Often used for layout widths and heights, as well as font sizes. Percentage is always relative to the parent element's corresponding property.
Browser Support
Both EM and percentage units are supported in all modern browsers and have been for many years. There are no compatibility concerns when using these units.