Square root of 256

If you are looking to answer the following questions: “what is the square root of 256?” The answer is 16. 

ANSWER: square root of 256=16

The square root of a number (256 in this case) is a number (16 in this case) which multiplied by itself equals the number from which you are calculating the square root (256). Mathematically square root of 256 can expressed in the radical form or an exponent form as shown below:

• Radical form of the square root of 256: √256
• Exponent form of the square root of 256: (256)^½ or (256)^0.5

This symbol √ is called radical sign or radix. The number whose square root is being calculated is called the radicand. The radicand is the number underneath the radical sign (radix), in this case it is 256.

Square root of 256 calculator

If you would like to confirm the answer to the question of “what is the square root of 256?” or calculate a square root of any other number use the square root calculator:

Square root of 256 calculation guide

In the following sections we explain how to calculate the square root of 256. We will answer such common questions as: “is the square root of 256 rational or irrational?” and “is 256 a perfect square?” We will discuss what the principal square root of 256 is.  For your reference we also included the following tables:

• N^th roots of 256
• Perfect square numbers
• Square roots of numbers around 256 

You will find all the information you need on the square root of 256 calculations below. 

What is the square root of 256?

The square root of 256 is a number which multiplied by itself equals 256. Therefore, the square root of 256 is 16 and we write it √256=16 because 162=256. Since 162 is the same as 16 x 16 the following expressions is true:

256 = 162=16×16

Therefore

ANSWER: square root of 256=√256=16

Is 256 a Perfect Square?

A number is considered a perfect square if it is a product of squaring a whole number (called integer). 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, and 9 are all whole numbers (same as integers). Numbers such as -8, 7.025, or 5 ½ are not whole numbers. Remember squaring is when a number is multiplied by itself. For example, 81 is a perfect square because it is a product of 92 which is the same as 9×9. Notice 9 is a whole number (integer).

In our example the square root of 256 is 16. Since 16 is a whole number therefore 256 is a perfect square.

ANSWER: 256 is a whole number 

Is the square root of 256 rational or irrational number?

A number is rational when it can be made by dividing a whole number by a whole number. A whole number which is also called an integer does not have a fractional part itself. Simply said a number is rational if it can be written as a fraction. 

A quick method to determine if 256 is a perfect square. The square roots of perfect squares are all rational numbers. The square roots of numbers that are not a perfect square are all irrational numbers. Since we know that 256 is a perfect square therefore 256 is a rational number.

Principal square root of 256

Every positive number has two square roots. One of the square roots is positive and another one is negative. For example the square roots of 256 are -16 (negative) and +16 (positive) because  (-16)^2=(+16)^2=256. The positive square root is denoted as “the principal square root”. Typically, when we are calculating “the square root of a number” we mean the principal square root. In our case it is positive 16 or +16 which is written as 16. As you may know if there is no minus (-) sign before a number it is a positive number. 

Again the principal square root of 256 is 16.

Calculating the square root of 256 with a calculator

In order to calculate the square root of 256 with a basic or a scientific calculator you need to enter 256 and then press the key with this sign  “√x”

√256 = 16

Calculating the square root of 256 in Excel and Google Sheets

There are two functions you can use to do this calculation. You can use the function SQRT () to calculate the square root of any number in Excel and Google Sheets. Click on a cell and type =SQRT(256). Hit enter. You will get 16.

You can also use the POWER function which works like an exponent is an equation. To find a square root of 256 type =POWER (256, 1/2). Remember square roots can be expressed as exponents as we discussed earlier in this article.

Table: N^th roots of 256

In the section above we explained how the square root (which is the 2^nd root) of 256 is calculated. However there are more roots of 256. Find the N^th roots of 256 in the table below:

Table: Square root of numbers around 256

This table lists numbers around 256 and their respective square roots.

Table: Perfect square numbers

This table lists perfect square numbers from 1 through 10,000.

Visit squarerootof.net for any square root related calculations including square roots, negative square roots, square roots from fractions, exponentiation and other related calculations.