decimal vs double! - Which one should I use and when?

c# double decimal precision currency
Soni Ali picture Soni Ali · Jul 22, 2009 · Viewed 452.2k times · Source

I keep seeing people using doubles in C#. I know I read somewhere that doubles sometimes lose precision. My question is when should a use a double and when should I use a decimal type? Which type is suitable for money computations? (ie. greater than $100 million)

Answer

David picture David · Jul 22, 2009

For money, always decimal. It's why it was created.

If numbers must add up correctly or balance, use decimal. This includes any financial storage or calculations, scores, or other numbers that people might do by hand.

If the exact value of numbers is not important, use double for speed. This includes graphics, physics or other physical sciences computations where there is already a "number of significant digits".

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