# double, BigDecimal, or Fixed-Point?

DevFeed: [double, BigDecimal, or Fixed-Point?](<https://devfeed.tech/articles/double-bigdecimal-or-fixed-point-18917.md>)

Original publisher: [Read original article](<https://blog.frankel.ch/bigdecimal-vs-double/>)

Author: Stefano Fago

Published: 2026-06-14T00:00:00Z

Content type: article

Language: en

Sources: [Nicolas Fränkel](<https://devfeed.tech/sources/nicolas-frankel.md>)

Topics: [Java](<https://devfeed.tech/topics/java.md>)

Tags: [bigdecimal](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/bigdecimal.md>), [engineering](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/engineering.md>), [floating-point](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/floating-point.md>), [java](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/java.md>), [numbers](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/numbers.md>), [performance](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/performance.md>), [pitfalls](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/pitfalls.md>), [precision](<https://devfeed.tech/tags/precision.md>)

## AI overview

A Java-focused article explains how to choose among double, BigDecimal, and fixed-point arithmetic based on required precision, rounding rules, and performance constraints. It covers IEEE 754 binary representation, floating-point equality pitfalls, tolerance-based comparisons, and production concerns such as serialization, testing, and concurrency.

## Source excerpt

There is an evergreen debate in the Java world: should you always use BigDecimal for money? The short answer is no. The real answer is: it depends on your computational context: the precision you need, the rounding rules you must follow, and the performance budget you have. The problem is that this conversation is often driven by dogma rather than engineering.