Kilowatts to Horsepower Converter

1 kW = 1.34102 hp. Switch below for metric horsepower (PS).

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Decimals

A kilowatt is about one and a third horsepower

Multiply kilowatts by 1.341 for mechanical horsepower, or by 1.360 for metric horsepower. A 150 kW engine is 201 hp, or 204 PS.

1 kW = 1.3410221 hp 1 kW = 1.3596216 PS

The two horsepowers are why the same car appears with two different figures in different markets. A manufacturer quoting 204 PS in Germany will advertise 201 hp in Britain, and nothing about the engine has changed.

The kilowatt

A thousand watts, and the practical size for appliances, motors and vehicle engines outside the United States. A family car makes 75–150 kW.

Do not confuse it with the kilowatt-hour on an electricity bill. A kilowatt is a rate; a kilowatt-hour is an amount of energy — one kilowatt sustained for an hour, which is 3.6 megajoules.

Horsepower

James Watt devised it in the 1780s to sell steam engines to mine owners who thought in horses. He settled on 33,000 foot-pounds per minute, which works out at 745.7 watts.

There is more than one horsepower. The mechanical or imperial horsepower is 745.7 W. The metric horsepower, written PS or CV and common in European car specifications, is 735.5 W — about 1.4 % smaller. A car quoted at 200 PS is 197 hp.

The working, step by step

Every line updates with whatever you type above. The point is the method, which is the same for any pair of units in this family.

The same quantity, two different numbers

One physical amount, read off two scales. The tick marks do not line up, and the gap between them is the conversion factor made visible.

How much is that?

A number is easier to judge next to something familiar.

Your turn

Reading a method and being able to use it are different things. Answer within half a per cent and it counts as correct.

Score: 0 of 0

How to use this converter

Type into either box. The other side updates as you go; there is no button to press.
Swap the direction with the button between the boxes, carrying your value across.
Set the decimals if the default is more or less precision than you need.
Copy the answer with its unit, ready to paste.
Use the shortcut buttons for the values that come up most often.
Share the result. The address bar tracks what you type, so the link you copy opens on the same number.

Common uses and tips

Where this comes up

Car specifications. European figures come in kW or PS, American ones in hp. The same engine gets three different numbers.
Appliances and tools, rated in watts almost everywhere.
Generators, motors and pumps, where catalogues mix kW and hp freely.
Energy generation, where megawatts describe capacity.

The trap: which horsepower?

There are two in common use, and they differ by about 1.4 %.

Mechanical (imperial) horsepower — 745.7 W. Watt's original figure, used in Britain and America.
Metric horsepower, written PS or CV — 735.5 W. Standard in European car literature.

A car advertised at 200 PS is 197 hp. On these pages the switch under the boxes picks between the two.

Tips worth knowing

Power is a rate. A 2 kW heater uses 2 kilowatt-hours of energy in an hour.
Roughly, 1 kW is 1.34 hp and 1 hp is about three quarters of a kilowatt.
Peak and continuous ratings differ. A motor's advertised figure is often peak, not what it will sustain.

Values people look up most

Each one opens the converter with the number already in it.

Quick reference

Using mechanical horsepower of 745.7 W.

Kilowatts	Horsepower
1 kW	1.341022 hp
10 kW	13.410221 hp
50 kW	67.051104 hp
75 kW	100.576657 hp
100 kW	134.102209 hp
150 kW	201.153313 hp
200 kW	268.204418 hp
300 kW	402.306627 hp
500 kW	670.511045 hp

Questions people ask

How many hp in 1 kW?

1.341 mechanical horsepower, or 1.36 metric horsepower (PS).

What is 150 kW in hp?

201.2 hp, or 203.9 PS.

Which figure do car makers use?

European manufacturers quote PS; British and American ones quote mechanical hp.

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