How Exponents Work: Powers, Negative Exponents and Fractional Exponents
An exponent tells you how many times to multiply a number by itself. This guide explains the basic rules with simple examples.
What is the Exponent Calculator?
Enter a base and an exponent and the tool multiplies the base by itself that many times, in the mathematical sense. A negative exponent gives a reciprocal, and a fractional exponent gives a root, so the same tool covers powers, reciprocals and roots in one place.
How to use it
- Enter the base number.
- Enter the exponent.
- Calculate to see the result.
Worked example
2 to the power 10 is 1024.
What is 2 to the power 10?
Multiply 2 by itself ten times: 2, 4, 8, 16, 32, 64, 128, 256, 512 and finally 1024. So 2 to the power 10 is 1024, which is why the number 1024 shows up so often in computing.
Frequently asked questions
What does a negative exponent mean?
It means one divided by the positive power. For example, 2 to the power negative 3 is 1 divided by 8, which is 0.125.
What is any number to the power zero?
Any non-zero number to the power zero is 1.