millisecond (ms)
1 millisecond = 0.001 seconds
What is millisecond?
A millisecond is a unit of time equal to one thousandth of a second. It is used in computing, networking, audio and video processing, and measuring reaction times and signal latencies.
Notes: Metric unit
Real-world uses
Milliseconds are critical in computing for measuring network latency (ping times), database query performance, and real-time system response. Financial trading platforms measure order execution in milliseconds, and human reaction time averages about 250 ms.
History
The millisecond became a practical unit with the invention of precise mechanical chronographs in the 19th century. Its importance exploded with electronic computing, where operations occur in millisecond and sub-millisecond timescales.
Common mistakes
Confusing milliseconds with microseconds in performance profiling—they differ by a factor of 1,000. Also, assuming human perception cannot detect millisecond differences, when in fact audio delays above 10 ms are perceptible.
When is this conversion used?
Converting millisecond to second is useful in the time domain when comparing values across different measurement standards or applying formulas that require a specific unit.
How to convert millisecond to second
To convert millisecond to second, multiply the value by 0.001.
Conversion formula (from base unit)
x * 0.001
Measurement standards
The SI second is defined as the duration of 9,192,631,770 periods of the radiation corresponding to the transition between two hyperfine levels of the ground state of the caesium-133 atom, maintained by the BIPM and national metrology institutes worldwide.
Did you know?
Earth's rotation is gradually slowing due to tidal friction with the Moon. To keep atomic time aligned with solar time, "leap seconds" have been inserted 27 times since 1972 — though they are scheduled to be abolished by 2035.
| milliseconds | seconds |
|---|---|
| 0.1 | 0.0001 |
| 0.5 | 0.0005 |
| 1 | 0.001 |
| 2 | 0.002 |
| 5 | 0.005 |
| 10 | 0.01 |
| 25 | 0.025 |
| 50 | 0.05 |
| 100 | 0.1 |
| 250 | 0.25 |
| 500 | 0.5 |
| 1,000 | 1 |
Common values
| milliseconds | seconds | |
|---|---|---|
| Blink of an eye | 300 milliseconds | 0.3 seconds |
| Average pop song | 210,000 milliseconds | 210 seconds |
| Feature film | 7,200,000 milliseconds | 7,200 seconds |
| One work day (8 hrs) | 28,800,000 milliseconds | 28,800 seconds |
| One calendar year | 3.153600e+10 milliseconds | 31,536,000 seconds |
Full millisecond conversion table
| Unit | Value | Factor |
|---|---|---|
| second | 1 ms = 0.001 s | × 0.001 |
| minute | 1 ms = 0.00001667 min | × 0.00001667 |
| hour | 1 ms = 2.777778e-07 h | × 2.777778e-07 |
| day | 1 ms = 1.157407e-08 d | × 1.157407e-08 |
| week | 1 ms = 1.653439e-09 wk | × 1.653439e-09 |
| year (365 d) | 1 ms = 3.170979e-11 yr | × 3.170979e-11 |
| microsecond | 1 ms = 1,000 µs | × 1,000 |
| nanosecond | 1 ms = 1,000,000 ns | × 1,000,000 |
| century (100 yr) | 1 ms = 3.170979e-13 century | × 3.170979e-13 |