SVGLength: convertToSpecifiedUnits() method

Baseline Widely available

This feature is well established and works across many devices and browser versions. It’s been available across browsers since ⁨July 2015⁩.

The convertToSpecifiedUnits() method of the SVGLength interface allows you to convert the length's value to the specified unit type.

This function will:

Set the unitType property to the given unit type
Update the valueInSpecifiedUnits and valueAsString properties so the length value is represented in the given unit type

A constant representing the unit type to which the length's value should be converted. This must be one of the constant values defined for the unitType property, with the exception of SVG_LENGTHTYPE_UNKNOWN.

SVGLength.SVG_LENGTHTYPE_NUMBER: convert to unitless number
SVGLength.SVG_LENGTHTYPE_PERCENTAGE: convert to percentage
SVGLength.SVG_LENGTHTYPE_EMS: convert to em units
SVGLength.SVG_LENGTHTYPE_EXS: convert to ex units
SVGLength.SVG_LENGTHTYPE_PX: convert to pixels
SVGLength.SVG_LENGTHTYPE_CM: convert to centimeters
SVGLength.SVG_LENGTHTYPE_MM: convert to millimeters
SVGLength.SVG_LENGTHTYPE_IN: convert to inches
SVGLength.SVG_LENGTHTYPE_PT: convert to points
SVGLength.SVG_LENGTHTYPE_PC: convert to picas

Return value

None (undefined).

Examples

Converting a length to mm

// Get an SVGLength object
const svg = document.querySelector("svg");
const length = svg.createSVGLength();

// Set a length value in centimeters
length.valueAsString = "0.5cm";

// Convert the length to millimeters
length.convertToSpecifiedUnits(SVGLength.SVG_LENGTHTYPE_MM);

console.log(length.unitType); // Output: 7 (SVG_LENGTHTYPE_MM)
console.log(length.valueInSpecifiedUnits); // Output: 5
console.log(length.valueAsString); // Output: "5mm"