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Convert Kilowatt-hours to British thermal units

1 kilowatt-hour is 3,412.141633 BTU. One kilowatt-hour is exactly 3412.14163313 British thermal units.

One kilowatt-hour is 3412.1416 British thermal units. To convert kilowatt-hours to British thermal units, multiply by 3412.1416; to go the other way, divide by 3412.1416 or multiply by 2.9307 × 10^-4. The factor is exact rather than rounded: it follows from NIST Special Publication 811. A thousand watt-hours, and the unit every electricity bill is added up in.

Factor checked against the defining standard · How we check

British thermal units
3,412.141633 BTU
Kilowatt-hours × 3412.1416
value * 3412.141633133,412.142 BTU

1 kilowatt-hour in every energy unit

UnitValueExact factor
joules3,600,000 J× 3,600,000
kilojoules3,600 kJ× 3,600
calories860,420.6501 cal× 860,420.650096
kilocalories860.4206501 kcal× 860.420650096
watt-hours1,000 Wh× 1,000
kilowatt-hours (as entered)1 kWh
British thermal units3,412.141633 BTU× 3,412.14163313
foot-pounds2,655,223.737 ft·lbf× 2,655,223.7374

Factors are entered by hand from NIST Special Publication 811 rather than derived from a units library, so the ones that terminate are exact rather than rounded.

How do you convert kilowatt-hours to British thermal units?

  1. 1.Take the measurement in kilowatt-hours.
  2. 2.Multiply by 3412.1416 — that is how many British thermal units fit in one kilowatt-hour.
  3. 3.To go back the other way, divide by 3412.1416, or multiply by 2.9307 × 10^-4.

Worked example: 25 kilowatt-hours to British thermal units

Formula
kWh × 3412.1416 = BTU
Arithmetic
25 × 3412.1416 = 85,303.540828 BTU
Answer
25 kWh = 85,303.540828 BTU

The factor is rounded for display; the figure above is computed from the full value.

Kilowatt-hours to British thermal units conversion table

Kilowatt-hoursBritish thermal units
1 kWh3,412.141633 BTU
2 kWh6,824.283266 BTU
3 kWh10,236.424899 BTU
4 kWh13,648.566533 BTU
5 kWh17,060.708166 BTU
6 kWh20,472.849799 BTU
7 kWh23,884.991432 BTU
8 kWh27,297.133065 BTU
9 kWh30,709.274698 BTU
10 kWh34,121.416331 BTU
12 kWh40,945.699598 BTU
15 kWh51,182.124497 BTU
20 kWh68,242.832663 BTU
25 kWh85,303.540828 BTU
50 kWh170,607.081657 BTU
100 kWh341,214.163313 BTU
200 kWh682,428.326626 BTU
300 kWh1,023,642.489939 BTU
500 kWh1,706,070.816565 BTU
1000 kWh3,412,141.63313 BTU
2000 kWh6,824,283.26626 BTU
5000 kWh17,060,708.16565 BTU
10000 kWh34,121,416.3313 BTU

What is a kilowatt-hour?

A thousand watt-hours, and the unit every electricity bill is added up in. Exactly 3.6 megajoules, and the reason a 100 W bulb left on for ten hours costs one unit.

What is a British thermal unit?

The international-table BTU, fixed at exactly 1055.05585262 joules. Roughly the heat needed to raise a pound of water by one degree Fahrenheit, which is where it came from.

How many British thermal units are in a kilowatt-hour?

One kilowatt-hour is 3412.1416 British thermal units. Going the other way, one British thermal unit is 2.9307 × 10^-4 kilowatt-hours. Both figures come from the same defined relation rather than from a measurement, which is why they are the same today as they were in 1959.

Every energy unit here

UnitSymbolOne of these is
JoulesJthe base unit
KilojouleskJ1000 joule
Caloriescal4.184 joule
Kilocalorieskcal4184 joule
Watt-hoursWh3600 joule
Kilowatt-hourskWh3600000 joule
British thermal unitsBTU1055.0559 joule
Foot-poundsft·lbf1.3558179 joule

Source: NIST Special Publication 811 — the thermochemical calorie is exactly 4.184 J

Questions people actually ask

How many British thermal units are in a kilowatt-hour?
3412.1416. The international-table BTU, fixed at exactly 1055.05585262 joules. Roughly the heat needed to raise a pound of water by one degree Fahrenheit, which is where it came from.
How do I convert British thermal units back to kilowatt-hours?
Divide by 3412.1416, or multiply by 2.9307 × 10^-4 — they are the same operation.

Other energy conversions

British thermal units to kilowatt-hours — the same conversion the other way.

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