Convert decimal degrees (e.g. 48.8584) to degrees, minutes, seconds (48°51'30"N). Type your decimal latitude and longitude and copy the DMS result, free and in your browser.
Paste one coordinate per line as lat, lon (decimal, DMS or DDM all work), then convert them all at once and download the results as CSV.
Decimal degrees is compact and machine-friendly; DMS is what most printed maps, deeds and surveying instruments use.
To convert: the whole number is the degrees; multiply the remainder by 60 for minutes; multiply that remainder by 60 for seconds. The sign becomes N/S (latitude) or E/W (longitude).
Going from decimal degrees back to degrees, minutes and seconds reverses the arithmetic. The whole-number part is the degrees. Multiply the fractional part by 60 and the whole number of that is the minutes. Take what is left over, multiply by 60 again, and that is the seconds. For 48.85833: degrees = 48; 0.85833 × 60 = 51.5, so minutes = 51; 0.5 × 60 = 30, so seconds = 30. The result is 48°51'30".
The sign becomes a hemisphere letter: a negative latitude is S, a negative longitude is W, otherwise N and E. Work with the absolute value for the arithmetic and add the letter at the end.
For 48.85833: the whole part is 48°. Multiply the remainder 0.85833 by 60 to get 51.5 minutes, so 51'. Multiply that remainder 0.5 by 60 to get 30". Positive latitude is north, giving 48°51'30"N.
For -43.21083 (a longitude): work with the magnitude 43.21083. Degrees 43, minutes 0.21083 × 60 = 12.65 → 12', seconds 0.65 × 60 = 39". The negative sign means west, so the result is 43°12'39"W. Convert the sign to the letter at the very end.
Values near a boundary can carry. 40.999722 gives 40°59'59", not 41°00'00", until the seconds round. Round the seconds first, then let any carry ripple up into minutes and degrees.
Watch the rounding at the seconds. If the seconds round to 60, carry one to the minutes (and 60 minutes carries to a degree). Decide up front how many decimal places of seconds you need: whole seconds are about 31 m, one decimal about 3 m, two decimals about 0.3 m. Presentation formats usually show whole or one-decimal seconds, while survey work keeps more.
A few well-known places, converted, so you can sanity-check your own numbers against them.
| Place | Decimal degrees | DMS |
|---|---|---|
| Paris | 48.85833, 2.29444 | 48°51'30"N, 2°17'40"E |
| Tokyo (Station) | 35.68124, 139.76713 | 35°40'52"N, 139°46'02"E |
| Buenos Aires | -34.60833, -58.37233 | 34°36'30"S, 58°22'20"W |
| Nairobi | -1.28611, 36.81722 | 1°17'10"S, 36°49'02"E |
Paste decimal degrees exactly as tools give them: 48.85833, 2.29444 from Google Maps, a signed pair, or latitude and longitude in separate boxes. A minus sign or an S/W letter both work for the southern and western hemispheres.
You do not have to reformat anything first. The box detects the notation from what you paste, so every one of these is understood:
| You can type | The tool reads it as | Notation |
|---|---|---|
48.8584 | 48.8584 | Decimal degrees |
-33.8688 | -33.8688 (south) | Decimal degrees, signed |
48°51'30"N | 48.85833 | DMS with symbols |
48 51 30 N | 48.85833 | DMS with spaces |
48:51:30N | 48.85833 | DMS with colons |
N48.8584 | 48.8584 | Hemisphere letter first |
48°51.5'N | 48.85833 | Degrees decimal minutes |
The hemisphere is taken from an N, S, E or W letter anywhere in the value, or from a leading minus sign. If both are missing, a positive number is assumed north or east.
DMS is the format people read and print. You convert decimal degrees to DMS to label a map, fill in a form or logbook that expects degrees-minutes-seconds, or match the notation on an existing chart. It is a presentation step, the data usually stays in decimal degrees for anything a computer processes, then is formatted as DMS at the very end.
DMS is a presentation format, so this is usually the last step before printing or filling in a form. If you instead need the marine and aviation notation, use decimal degrees to DDM; to reverse a DMS value you copied off a map, use DMS to decimal degrees. To map the underlying points, the spreadsheet to map tool takes decimal degrees directly.
48 = degrees. 0.8584 × 60 = 51.5 → 51 minutes. 0.5 × 60 = 30 seconds. So 48.8584° = 48°51'30". Positive latitude is N; negative is S.
Four to six is plenty. Five decimal places is about one metre, which is finer than most DMS seconds values, so you lose no useful precision.
Yes. Google Maps shows decimal degrees like 48.8584, 2.2945. Enter the latitude and longitude, then read the DMS result for a map, deed or survey form.
No. Every conversion is computed in your browser with plain math, so nothing is uploaded and the tool keeps working offline once loaded.
