All things · Under the Microscope

E. coli bacterium: how big is it?

E. coli bacterium is about 2 µm. In everyday terms, that is ≈ 18,900 hydrogen atoms.

Size

2 µm

In metres

2.00 × 10⁻⁶ m

Everyday comparison

≈ 18,900 hydrogen atoms

Chapter

Under the Microscope

Did you know?

A common gut bacterium. In good conditions it can divide every 20 minutes.

How it compares

• About 2.7× bigger than Mimivirus (750 nm).
• About 1.3× smaller than Platelet (2.5 µm).

Other things of a similar size

• Wavelength of green light 530 nm
• Mimivirus 750 nm
• Platelet 2.5 µm
• Red blood cell 7.5 µm
• White blood cell 12 µm
• Skin cell 30 µm

Sizes are rounded, typical values drawn from standard reference sources, including NIST/CODATA physical constants and NASA's planetary fact sheets. Real objects vary; see About for how sizes are chosen.