4.NF.7: Compare Decimals to Hundredths
Also written as 4.NF.C.7 and CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.4.NF.C.7 · Cluster: Understand decimal notation for fractions, and compare decimal fractions.
The Official Wording
Compare two decimals to hundredths by reasoning about their size. Recognize that comparisons are valid only when the two decimals refer to the same whole. Record the results of comparisons with the symbols >, =, or <, and justify the conclusions, e.g., by using a visual model.
Common Core State Standards, Grade 4, Number & Operations: Fractions · Read it at the source · Checked October 14, 2026
What 4.NF.7 Means in Plain English
Fourth graders decide which is greater, 0.5 or 0.38, by thinking about size: 0.5 is 50 hundredths and 0.38 is 38 hundredths, so 0.5 > 0.38 even though 38 looks bigger. They prove it with a hundreds grid or a number line.
As with fractions (4.NF.2), a comparison only counts when both decimals describe the same whole: 0.3 of a big jug can hold more than 0.5 of a small cup. In 5th grade students compare decimals to thousandths (5.NBT.3).
4.NF.7 I Can Statements
- I can compare two decimals to hundredths by their size.
- I can show a decimal comparison on a hundreds grid.
- I can record a decimal comparison with >, = or <.
4.NF.7 Worked Example
Two bottles from the same pack, and the trap every 4th grade class falls into: the decimal with more digits looks bigger.
Two water bottles from the same pack are partly full. Jae’s is 0.6 full and Lin’s is 0.45 full. Lin says hers holds more water because 45 is more than 6. Is she right?
- The bottles come from the same pack, so they are the same size. That makes them the same whole, and the comparison is fair.same whole: one bottle
- Read each decimal as a fraction. The 6 in 0.6 is in the tenths place.0.6 = 6/10, 0.45 = 45/100
- Make the pieces the same size. Six tenths is sixty hundredths.6/10 = 60/100 = 0.60
- Now compare hundredths with hundredths.60/100 > 45/100, so 0.6 > 0.45
Check it: Shade both on hundreds grids: 0.6 fills 6 whole columns, while 0.45 fills 4 columns and half of the next. Jae’s shading is bigger.
Common Mistakes with 4.NF.7
Reading 0.45 as bigger than 0.6
0.45 > 0.6, “because 45 is more than 6”
Try this: Rename the tenths as hundredths, 0.6 = 0.60, and compare 60 with 45. Shading both on hundreds grids settles it for doubters.
Overcorrecting: fewer digits must be bigger
0.4 > 0.45, “because tenths are bigger than hundredths”
Try this: Compare the tenths digits first, then the hundredths. Both have 4 tenths, and 0.45 has 5 hundredths more, so 0.45 > 0.4.
Comparing decimals of different wholes
“0.5 of my water bottle is more than 0.3 of the class jug.”
Try this: Ask what each decimal is a part of. Only decimals of the same whole, like meters with meters, get a >, = or < sign.
Where 4.NF.7 Fits
Practice 4.NF.7
Quick Check
- Compare 0.3 and 0.29.
- Compare 0.8 and 0.80.
- Put in order from least to greatest: 0.5, 0.45, 0.09