Exponent Calculator
Raise a number to any power.
Input sheet
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Exponents are repeated multiplication, the engine behind compound growth, area and volume scaling, computer memory sizes, and scientific notation. This raises any base to any power.
How it works
Multiplies the base by itself the exponent number of times.
The base is the number being multiplied; the exponent is how many times. Two to the tenth means 2 multiplied by itself ten times. A negative exponent means a reciprocal (2⁻³ = 1/8), and a fractional exponent means a root (9^0.5 = 3).
Growth by exponents is deceptively fast. Doubling just ten times multiplies the original by over a thousand, which is why exponential trends overwhelm linear intuition.
Result = base raised to the exponent (base multiplied by itself 'exponent' times)
Worked examples
Computing 2 to the 10th power. → 1,024
2 multiplied by itself ten times equals 1,024 — roughly the reason a kilobyte is 1,024 bytes.
Raising 5 to the 3rd power. → 125
5 × 5 × 5 = 125, the volume of a 5-unit cube.
Tips & gotchas
- Any nonzero number to the power of 0 is 1, and any number to the power of 1 is itself.
- A negative exponent flips to a reciprocal: x⁻ⁿ = 1 ÷ xⁿ.
- A fractional exponent is a root: x^(1/2) is the square root, x^(1/3) is the cube root.
- To multiply powers of the same base, add the exponents; to divide, subtract them.
FAQ
What does a negative exponent mean?
It is a reciprocal. 2⁻³ equals 1 divided by 2³, which is 1/8 or 0.125.
What is 0 to the power of 0?
It is treated as 1 in most algebra and combinatorics contexts, though it is technically an indeterminate form in calculus limits.
How are exponents different from multiplication?
Multiplication adds a number to itself repeatedly; an exponent multiplies it by itself repeatedly. 3 × 4 is 12, but 3⁴ is 81.
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