How to calculate the log10() of a value in R

The log10() function in R uses base 10 to calculate the logarithm of a number.

Figure 1 below shows the mathematical representation of the log10() function and the corresponding representation in R.

R is a programming language based on statistical computing and graphics.

Figure 1: Mathematical representation of the log10() function and the corresponding representation in R

Syntax


log10(number)

Parameter

This function requires a number whose logarithm base 10 must be calculated, and it must be greater than zero.

  • If the number is zero, then this function outputs -Inf.

  • If the number is negative, this function outputs NaN along with a warning message.

Return value

log10() uses base 10 to return the logarithm of a number.

Code

The following example shows how to use the log10() function in R:

a <- log10(10);
print(paste0("log10(10): ", a))
b <- log10(2);
print(paste0("log10(2): ", b))
c <- log10(15.2);
print(paste0("log10(15.2): ", c))
#error outputs
d <- log10(0);
print(paste0("log10(0): ", d))
e <- log10(-1);
print(paste0("log10(-1): ", e))