C# 5.0 Pocket Reference

Numeric Types

C# has the following predefined numeric types:

C# type	System type	Suffix	Size	Range
Integral—signed
sbyte	SByte		8 bits	–27 to 27–1
short	Int16		16 bits	–215 to 215–1
int	Int32		32 bits	–231 to 231–1
long	Int64	L	64 bits	–263 to 263–1
Integral—unsigned
byte	Byte		8 bits	0 to 28–1
ushort	UInt16		16 bits	0 to 216–1
uint	UInt32	U	32 bits	0 to 232–1
ulong	UInt64	UL	64 bits	0 to 264–1
Real
float	Single	F	32 bits	± (~10–45 to 1038)
double	Double	D	64 bits	± (~10–324 to 10308)
decimal	Decimal	M	128 bits	± (~10–28 to 1028)

Of the integral types, int and long are first-class citizens and are favored by both C# and the runtime. The other integral types are typically used for interoperability or when space efficiency is paramount.

Of the real number types, float and double are called floating-point types and are typically used for scientific calculations. The decimal type is typically used for financial calculations, where base-10-accurate arithmetic and high precision are required. (Technically, decimal is a floating-point type too, although it’s not generally referred to as such.)

Numeric Literals

Integral literals can use decimal or hexadecimal notation; hexadecimal is denoted with the 0x prefix (e.g., 0x7f is equivalent to 127). Real literals may use decimal or exponential notation such as 1E06.

Numeric literal type inference

By default, the compiler infers a numeric literal to be either double or an integral type:

• If the literal contains a decimal point or the exponential symbol (E), it is a double.

• Otherwise, the literal’s type is ...