Power Unit Converter

Convert between units of power.

Supported Units

• Watt (W): The watt is the SI unit of power, named after Scottish inventor James Watt. One watt equals one joule of energy per second. Household LED bulbs use about 7 to 12 watts, a microwave oven uses 500 to 1,000 watts, and a hair dryer uses about 1,200 watts. Electricity bills are based on watt-hours, the product of power consumption in watts and time of use.
• Kilowatt (kW): The kilowatt equals 1,000 watts and is widely used for home and industrial electrical equipment. Air conditioners are rated at 2.2 to 7.1 kW, induction cooktops at 2 to 3 kW, and EV chargers at 3 to 6 kW for Level 2 or 50 to 150 kW for DC fast charging. Residential solar panel systems are also described in kilowatts, such as a 4 kW system.
• Megawatt (MW): The megawatt equals one million watts and is used to describe the output of power plants and large-scale energy systems. A single wind turbine typically generates 2 to 5 MW, large solar farms produce tens to hundreds of MW, and a nuclear reactor generates about 1,000 MW (1 GW). Large commercial buildings may have peak electrical demands in the single-digit megawatt range.
• Horsepower (mechanical) (hp): Horsepower is a unit of power devised by James Watt to compare steam engine performance to the work of draft horses. One mechanical horsepower equals approximately 745.7 watts. Car engine output is commonly described in horsepower, with typical passenger cars producing 100 to 200 hp and sports cars 300 to 600 hp. In the United States, horsepower remains the standard measure for engine power, vehicle performance, and industrial motor ratings.
• Metric horsepower (PS): Metric horsepower (PS) is defined as the power to lift 75 kilograms by one meter in one second, equal to approximately 735.5 watts. The abbreviation comes from the German "Pferdestärke" (horse strength). It is the standard unit for automotive power in Japan, Germany, and much of continental Europe. Japanese car specifications typically list maximum output in PS. One PS is slightly less than one mechanical horsepower (hp).
• Foot-pound per second (ft·lbf/s): The foot-pound per second is the fundamental unit of power in the imperial system, representing one foot-pound of work performed per second. It equals approximately 1.356 watts. Historically, James Watt defined one horsepower as 550 foot-pounds per second, making this unit the foundation of the horsepower concept. While rarely used directly in modern practice, it appears in engineering unit conversions and historical technical literature.
• BTU per hour (BTU/h): BTU per hour is a unit of power used primarily in the American HVAC industry for rating heating and cooling capacity. Residential air conditioners range from about 5,000 to 25,000 BTU/h, with 12,000 BTU/h equaling one ton of refrigeration. Gas furnaces and boilers are also rated in BTU/h. One BTU/h equals approximately 0.293 watts.

How to Use

1. Select the unit you want to convert from in the "From" dropdown.

2. Select the unit you want to convert to in the "To" dropdown.

3. Enter a value and the result will be displayed in real time.

4. Use the swap button to reverse the conversion direction.