What is smaller than a 1/4 inch?

Are you looking to calculate whether 3/16 is less than 1/4? One of the most common calculations you'll make in math is to compare fractions. In this really simple guide, we'll teach you how to compare and determine if 3/16 is smaller than 1/4 and walk you through the step-by-process of how the calculation is made.

Want to quickly learn or show students how to compare 3/16 and 1/4? Play this very quick and fun video now!

A quick reminder on fractions before we start: the number at the top of the fraction is called the numerator and the number at the bottom of the fraction line is called the denominator.

There are two methods to calculate if 3/16 is smaller than 1/4 and which one you use will depend on the problem you're trying to solve:

Let's start with the first method: converting the fractions to the same denominator. First, we'll set up 3/16 and 1/4 side by side so they are easier to see:

Converting Denominator

Our denominators are 16 and 4. What we need to do is find the lowest common denominator of the two numbers. This is the smallest number that can be divided by both 16 and 4. In this case, the lowest common denominator is 16.

If we multiply the first denominator (16) by 1 we will get 16. If we multiply the second denominator (4) by 4 we will also get 16. We also need to multiply the numerators above the line by the same amounts so that the fraction values are correct:

This is what 3/16 and 1/4 look like with the same denominator:

Now that these fractions have been converted to have the same denominator, we can clearly see by looking at the numerators that 3 is less than 4 which also means that 3/16 is less than 1/4.

Converting to Decimal

You can also compare these fractions by first converting them to decimal format. This is a lot faster than working out the lowest common denominator. All we do here is divide the numerator by the denominator for each fraction:

Now that these fractions have been converted to decimal format, we can compare the numbers to get our answer. 0.1875 is less than 0.25 which also means that 3/16 is less than 1/4.

Hopefully this tutorial has helped you to understand how to compare fractions and you can use your new found skills to compare whether one fraction is less than another or not!

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• Is 3/16 less than 1/4?

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  Because millimeters are very small, they are perfect for measuring jewelry parts. For example, the gluing surfaces on most of our flat pad posts are 3mm, 4mm, 6mm, 8mm, and 10mm. If those were converted to inches, they would be (in order) approximately 1/8 inch, 5/32 inch, 1/4 inch, 5/16 inch, and 3/8 inch. Even if you've always hated the metric system, that row of millimeter sizes is clearer than that row of inch fractions:  it's obvious that 4mm is larger then 3mm ... but is 1/8" larger or smaller then 5/32"?

  In case you've never gotten along with millimeters, or in case you need to do some conversions and never got along with algebra, this page contains easy conversions back and forth between inches and millimeters.
   

  Sections on this page:

  If you have inches, and want to know how many millimeters:

  • Step one: Convert any inch fractions to decimals.
    Example: 1/4 inch = 1 divided by 4 = 0.25 inch
    Example: 1/16 inch = 1 divided by 16 = 0.0625 inch
    • For amounts over an inch, you want to first convert the fractional part, then add the whole inches part:
    Example: 2-1/4 inch = 1 divided by 4, then plus 2 = 2.25 inch
    Example: 1-5/8 inch = 5 divided by 8, then plus 1 = 1.625 inch
     
  • Step two: Multiply that decimal by 25.4
    For each of the above examples, the complete steps would be:
    1/4 inch = 1 divided by 4, x 25.4 = 6.35mm (6mm)
    1/16 inch = 1 divided by 16, x 25.4 = 1.5875 (1.6mm)
    2-1/4 inch = 1 divided by 4, plus 2, x 25.4 = 57.15 (57mm)
    1-5/8 inch = 5 divided by 8, plus 1, x 25.4 = 41.275 (41mm)

  If you have millimeters (or centimeters), and you want inches:

  • Step one: Divide your millimeter amount by 25.4
    (or divide your centimeter amount by 2.54)
    Example 1: 2mm divided by 25.4 = .07874 inches
    Example 2: 6mm divided by 25.4 = .2362 inches
    Example 3: 30mm divided by 25.4 = 1.1811 inches
    Example 4: 4cm divided by 2.54 = 1.5748 inches
  If you are trying to figure out how many 6mm beads you need for a 20" necklace, you can use this decimal value directly. From Example 2 above, you know that a 6mm bead = .2362 inches.
  So, 20 inches (per necklace) divided by .2362 inches (per bead) = 84.67 beads per necklace.
  Since you probably need to reserve a bit of space for your bead tips and a clasp, I would round down to 80 beads. Number of beads per strand chart

  If, however, you want fractions of an inch (1/16, 1/4, 1/2), rather than a decimal, try this:

  • Step two: Converting your decimal to a useable fraction:
    I prefer to round to the nearest 1/16 of an inch. To round to the nearest 1/16 of an inch, multiply your decimal by 16. The resulting number is how many 1/16's of an inch you have.

    Using the numbers from Step 1 above:
    .07874 times 16 = 1.26, which rounds to 1, so about 1/16 inch.
    .2362 times 16 = 3.779, which rounds to 4, so about 4/16. 4/16 = 1/4 inch

    • For amounts over an inch, it is easiest to remove the whole inches, and add them back in after you convert the portion after the decimal point:
    1.1811 Removing the 1 gives you .1811 times 16 = 2.9, which rounds to 3, so about 3/16 inch... don't forget to add the 1 back on, so this is really 1-3/16 inch.
    1.5748 Removing the 1 gives you .5748 times 16 = 9.1968, which rounds to 9, so about 9/16 inch... don't forget to add the 1 back on, so this is really 1-9/16 inch.
  For jewelry purposes, I don't recommend rounding to larger fractions, such as 1/4, or even 1/8 inch. If you are not making jewelry, or your needs are not very exact, then you can round to a larger fraction such as 1/4. To round to the nearest 1/4 of an inch, simply replace all the 16's in Step 2's examples with 4's.
  Using the numbers from step 1, that I also used in step 2, you would get...
  .07874 times 4 = .315, which rounds to 0, so you get 0/4 of an inch (not a very useful number!)
  .2362 times 4 = .9448, which rounds to 1, so you get 1/4 of an inch (which happens to be accurate)

  What is smaller than 1/4 of an inch?

  The largest division, 1/2", has the longest line. The lines at each rank get shorter, ie: 1/4 is shorter than 1/2; 1/8 is shorter than 1/4; and 1/16 is shorter than 1/8.

  What is smaller than a quarter?

  Fractions.

  Is 5mm bigger than 1/4 inch?

  5mm = just over 3/16 inch.

  What is 1/4 in a inch?

  Answer: The decimal equivalent of 1/4 inches is 0.25.