mg
Metric Ladder Lab
Milligrams, grams, kilograms & tonnes — one simple idea
The metric ladder
Every step is the same move
Four units, one ladder. Click an arrow below — moving down multiplies by 1000, moving up divides by 1000. That's the whole trick.
Click an arrow to see a step in action.
Discover
See why it works
Three ways to see the same idea, before you memorize anything.
1. Splitting the box
1 kilogram — one solid block.
2. Powers of ten
103
1,000
1 step — e.g. mg → g
106
1,000,000
2 steps — e.g. mg → kg
109
1,000,000,000
3 steps — mg → t
3. Build the formula yourself
From:
To:
kg = mg
Build the formula: choose ×1000 or ÷1000, 2 times, until it's correct.
Try it yourself
Live calculator
Enter any amount and watch every step of the conversion, one at a time.
→
Spot the error
Common mistakes
These are the exact slip-ups students make most often. Try to catch each one before revealing the fix.
Practice arena
Put it to the test
Mixed conversions across all four units. Instant feedback after every answer.
Difficulty:
Question 1 of 8
Loading…
60 seconds. As many conversions as you can, as accurately as you can.
60s
0 correct · 0 answered
Loading…
Final mastery test
Boss Battle
20 mixed questions — numeric, true/false and real-life unit choices. Score 90% or higher to earn your certificate.
Question 1 of 20
Loading…
Bright EngMath · Metric Ladder Lab
Certificate of Mastery
Student Name
has successfully mastered converting between milligrams, grams, kilograms and tonnes, scoring 0% on the Boss Battle mastery test.
Your progress
Track how far you've come
Saved automatically in this browser — come back any time and pick up where you left off.
Reference
Cheat sheet
Keep this nearby while you practice.
| From | Equals |
|---|
| 1 mg | 0.001 g |
| 1 g | 1,000 mg |
| 1 g | 0.001 kg |
| 1 kg | 1,000 g |
| 1 kg | 0.001 t |
| 1 t | 1,000 kg |
| 1 t | 1,000,000 g |
| 1 t | 1,000,000,000 mg |
- Smaller unit = multiply (number gets bigger). Bigger unit = divide (number gets smaller).
- Every step is exactly ×1000 or ÷1000 — never ×100 or ×10.
- ×1000 or ÷1000 always shifts the decimal point 3 places, once per step.