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Convert Watt-hours to Kilocalories

1 watt-hour is 0.860421 kcal. One watt-hour is exactly 0.860420650096 kilocalories.

One watt-hour is 0.86042065 kilocalories. To convert watt-hours to kilocalories, multiply by 0.86042065; to go the other way, divide by 0.86042065 or multiply by 1.1622222. The factor is exact rather than rounded: it follows from NIST Special Publication 811. One watt sustained for an hour, so exactly 3,600 joules.

Factor checked against the defining standard · How we check

Kilocalories
0.860421 kcal
Watt-hours × 0.86042065
value * 0.8604206500960.86 kcal

1 watt-hour in every energy unit

UnitValueExact factor
joules3,600 J× 3,600
kilojoules3.6 kJ× 3.6
calories860.4206501 cal× 860.420650096
kilocalories0.8604206501 kcal× 0.860420650096
watt-hours (as entered)1 Wh
kilowatt-hours0.001 kWh× 0.001
British thermal units3.412141633 BTU× 3.41214163313
foot-pounds2,655.223737 ft·lbf× 2,655.2237374

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 watt-hours to kilocalories?

  1. 1.Take the measurement in watt-hours.
  2. 2.Multiply by 0.86042065 — that is how many kilocalories fit in one watt-hour.
  3. 3.To go back the other way, divide by 0.86042065, or multiply by 1.1622222.

Worked example: 25 watt-hours to kilocalories

Formula
Wh × 0.86042065 = kcal
Arithmetic
25 × 0.86042065 = 21.510516 kcal
Answer
25 Wh = 21.510516 kcal

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

Watt-hours to kilocalories conversion table

Watt-hoursKilocalories
1 Wh0.860421 kcal
2 Wh1.720841 kcal
3 Wh2.581262 kcal
4 Wh3.441683 kcal
5 Wh4.302103 kcal
6 Wh5.162524 kcal
7 Wh6.022945 kcal
8 Wh6.883365 kcal
9 Wh7.743786 kcal
10 Wh8.604207 kcal
12 Wh10.325048 kcal
15 Wh12.90631 kcal
20 Wh17.208413 kcal
25 Wh21.510516 kcal
50 Wh43.021033 kcal
100 Wh86.042065 kcal
200 Wh172.08413 kcal
300 Wh258.126195 kcal
500 Wh430.210325 kcal
1000 Wh860.42065 kcal
2000 Wh1,720.8413 kcal
5000 Wh4,302.10325 kcal
10000 Wh8,604.206501 kcal

What is a watt-hour?

One watt sustained for an hour, so exactly 3,600 joules. Battery capacity is quoted here because it is an amount of energy rather than a rate.

What is a kilocalorie?

A thousand small calories, and what a food label means by "Calories" with a capital C. A 2,000 calorie diet is 2,000 kcal, or 8.4 megajoules.

How many kilocalories are in a watt-hour?

One watt-hour is 0.86042065 kilocalories. Going the other way, one kilocalorie is 1.1622222 watt-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 kilocalories are in a watt-hour?
0.86042065. A thousand small calories, and what a food label means by "Calories" with a capital C. A 2,000 calorie diet is 2,000 kcal, or 8.4 megajoules.
How do I convert kilocalories back to watt-hours?
Divide by 0.86042065, or multiply by 1.1622222 — they are the same operation.

Other energy conversions

Kilocalories to watt-hours — the same conversion the other way.

Calculators that work in energy