Numbers

Make large numbers and long numerals easier to read by splitting them up into chunks.

Spacing

We recommend adding a space between a value and its unit of measurement as prescribed by the International System of Units (SI).

Do
Don't

Within an input field the unit of measurement is added as a ‘suffix’ which is right-aligned.

Capitalisation

As a general rule units of measurement are written in lower case (e.g. kg, km, m³). However, there are a few exceptions.

1,000 kg

Do

1,000 Kg

Don't

Punctuation

A period should not be added at the end of a unit of measurement.

2,000 kg

Do

2,000 kg.

Don't

Superscript and subscript

When units of measurement represent squared or cubed values, the exponent (i.e. the number 2 or 3) should be raised from the baseline (superscript).

10,000 m3

Do
Cubic meters represented with superscript

10,000 m3

Don't
Cubic meters represented without superscript

Superscript (raised) and subscript (lowered) characters should also be used when referring to scientific expressions, such as chemical compounds (H2O), math equations (y=x2) and physics formulas (E=mc2).