Turn a percentage into per mille.
Per mille means 'per thousand', so a percentage (per hundred) is multiplied by 10.
Per mille: Percentage × 10
A per mille calculator converts a percentage into per mille, written ‰, which means 'per thousand'. Since percent means per hundred, the conversion is simply a multiplication by 10. A rate of 1.9% is 19‰, or 19 per thousand.
Per mille is handy for small rates, where percentages would need awkward decimals. Demographers in India report birth and death rates per thousand population, and infant mortality per thousand live births. Some property, insurance and fee schedules around the world quote charges per thousand. The calculator answers: how many out of every thousand does this percentage represent?
1. Write the percentage p%.
2. Multiply by 10 to get per mille: p‰ = p × 10.
3. To convert back from per mille to percent, divide by 10.
4. To get a count, multiply the per mille value by the population in thousands.
5. Keep the ‰ symbol or write 'per thousand' so the unit is not mistaken for percent.
Percent, per mille and parts per million are all ways of writing a fraction with a fixed denominator. p% means p/100, p‰ means p/1000 and p ppm means p/1,000,000. Converting between them only moves the decimal point. Since 1/100 = 10/1000, one percent equals ten per mille. The choice of base is about readability: a crude birth rate of 0.019 is 1.9% or 19‰, and demographers prefer the whole number that per thousand gives.
Vital statistics are the most common use. The crude birth rate and crude death rate are defined as births or deaths per thousand population per year, and infant mortality is deaths under one year per thousand live births. Sex ratio in India is reported as females per thousand males, which is a per mille idea even when the symbol is not used. Outside demography, per mille is used for small concentrations, such as salinity of seawater in parts per thousand.
The ‰ symbol looks like % with an extra zero, and it is easy to misread in print or on a small screen. Confusing the two causes a tenfold error. When writing reports, spell out 'per thousand' at least once. When reading a figure, check the context: a birth rate of 19 is clearly per thousand, because 19% would be implausible. The calculator converts only in one direction, from percent to per mille; divide by 10 to go the other way.
Anjali, a geography student, finds that a district's births last year were 1.9% of its population and needs the figure per thousand for her project on birth rates.
Answer: Per mille (‰) 19‰
Dividing by 10 instead of multiplying when converting from percent to per mille.
Reading ‰ as % and making a tenfold error.
Mixing crude rates per thousand population with specific rates per thousand live births.
Rounding a small percentage too early, which loses precision once multiplied by 10.
Reporting birth, death and infant mortality rates in geography and economics.
Expressing sex ratio as females per thousand males.
Describing salinity or other small concentrations in science.
Converting small fee or commission rates quoted per thousand.
Where is per mille commonly used?
It is common where you need more precision than a percentage gives — like blood alcohol level, ship weight, or certain financial and population statistics.