Your Height in Weird Units

The standard banana used in this calculator is 19 cm (7.5 inches), which is the average length of a Cavendish banana — the most common variety sold worldwide. Bananas vary considerably in size, from finger bananas at about 10 cm to large plantains at 30 cm. The Cavendish replaced the Gros Michel banana in the 1950s after a fungal disease wiped out commercial crops. The Cavendish itself is now under threat from a new strain of the same fungus (Tropical Race 4). The phrase "a bunch of bananas" typically means 3 to 20 individual fruits (called "fingers"), grouped in clusters called "hands."

An adult male giraffe (bull) stands 5.5 to 6 metres (18 to 20 feet) tall, making it the tallest living terrestrial animal on Earth. Female giraffes are shorter, typically 4.3 to 4.8 metres. This calculator uses 5.5 metres as the standard giraffe height. A giraffe's neck alone can be up to 1.8 metres long and weighs about 270 kg. Despite this, giraffes have the same number of vertebrae in their necks as humans — just seven, each one much larger. Giraffes sleep only about 30 minutes per day, often in short naps of a few minutes at a time.

The iconic London double-decker bus (the New Routemaster, introduced in 2012) is 4.39 metres (14.4 feet) tall. The original Routemaster was 4.38 metres. This calculator uses 4.4 metres as the standard height. London buses must be under 4.65 metres to pass under bridges on most routes. The double-decker bus was popularised in London in the 1850s with horse-drawn omnibuses, and the distinctive red colour was standardised in 1907. The New Routemaster can carry up to 87 passengers. There are approximately 8,600 double-decker buses operating in London today.

This calculator uses 15.09 cm (5.94 inches) as the standard iPhone height, which corresponds to the iPhone 15 (released 2023). iPhone heights have varied considerably: the original iPhone (2007) was 11.55 cm. The iPhone SE (3rd gen) is 13.84 cm. The iPhone 15 is 14.76 cm. The iPhone 15 Plus is 16.02 cm. The iPhone 15 Pro Max is 15.99 cm. We use the standard iPhone 15 model as the most current mainstream device. Stack 10 iPhones and you get roughly 1.51 metres — just about the height of an average 12-year-old.

The Eiffel Tower stands 330 metres (1,083 feet) tall including its broadcast antenna, or 300 metres to the top of the iron structure itself. Built for the 1889 World's Fair in Paris by Gustave Eiffel's engineering company, it was the world's tallest man-made structure for 41 years until the Chrysler Building was completed in 1930. This calculator uses 330 metres for the full height. The tower sways up to 12 cm in the wind and grows up to 15 cm taller in summer as the metal expands with heat. It is repainted every 7 years, requiring 60 tonnes of paint. About 7 million people visit per year, making it the most visited paid monument in the world.

The LEVC TX (the current London black cab, introduced in 2018) stands 1.85 metres tall. Its predecessor, the TX4, was 1.845 metres. The traditional tall roof design of London taxis was a legal requirement in London until 2006 — cabs had to be tall enough for a passenger to sit while wearing a top hat. While this rule is no longer enforced, the design tradition continues. This calculator uses 1.85 metres. The LEVC TX is a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle and can travel 80 miles on electric power alone. There are approximately 15,000 licensed black cabs operating in London.

This calculator uses the Emperor Penguin, the tallest of all penguin species, which stands about 115 cm (45 inches) tall. Emperor Penguins can weigh up to 45 kg and are the only penguin species that breeds during the Antarctic winter. The Little (Fairy) Penguin is the smallest species at only 33 cm. Other well-known species: King Penguin: 94 cm. Gentoo Penguin: 75 cm. African Penguin: 68 cm. Penguins are remarkable swimmers, diving up to 550 metres deep and holding their breath for over 20 minutes. Despite their waddling walk, penguins can "toboggan" on their bellies across ice at speeds up to 25 km/h.

A "hand" is a unit of measurement equal to exactly 4 inches (10.16 cm), standardised by Henry VIII in the 16th century. Horses are still measured in hands today, from the ground to the highest point of the withers (the ridge between the shoulder blades). An average horse is 15 to 16 hands (152 to 163 cm). A horse under 14.2 hands is technically a pony. Thoroughbred racehorses average about 16 hands. The tallest horse ever recorded was a Shire horse named Sampson (later called Mammoth), who stood 21.2 hands — 220 cm tall. This is why the expression "straight from the horse's mouth" exists — checking a horse's teeth reveals its true age, as opposed to relying on what someone tells you.

A standard queen-size bed in the US is 60 inches wide by 80 inches long — that's 152 by 203 cm. This calculator uses 203 cm (80 inches) as the length. In the UK, a standard "double" bed is 190 cm long, while a "king" is 200 cm long. The queen-size bed was introduced in the US in the 1950s as a size between the double (full) and king. The world's largest commercially available bed is the Alaskan King at 274 by 274 cm (9 by 9 feet). Most people buy beds based on the width for sleeping comfort, but the length matters more for taller people — anyone over 183 cm may find their feet hanging off a standard queen.

FIFA rules specify that a football (soccer) pitch must be between 100 and 110 metres long and 64 to 75 metres wide for international matches. This calculator uses 105 metres — the standard used for most professional matches and the size recommended for international competition. The length of 105 metres corresponds to approximately 115 yards, which is why some older references mention pitches being "about 100 yards." Club pitches in lower leagues can be as short as 90 metres. American football fields are a fixed 100 yards (91.44 metres) from goal line to goal line, with additional 10-yard end zones at each end. A rugby union pitch is up to 100 metres in playing length plus in-goal areas.