Liters to Kilograms Conversion Calculator

Enter the volume in liters below to calculate the weight in kilograms.

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How to Convert Liters to Kilograms

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Since liters are a unit of volume and kilograms are a unit of mass, which are different physical quantities, we need to know one more physical quantity of the ingredient or substance to convert between them. In this case, we need to account for the density of the substance whenever we do a conversion.

Therefore, to convert between liters and kilograms of an ingredient or substance, we must either multiply or divide by its density, depending on which direction we are performing the conversion.

Liters to Kilograms Formula

To convert a measurement in liters to kilograms, multiply the volume by the density of the ingredient or material. Note that in order for this to work, the density must be in kilograms per liter (kg/L).

You can use this simple formula to convert:

kilograms = liters × density

Thus, the weight in kilograms is equal to the volume in liters multiplied by the density (in kg/L) of the ingredient, substance, or material.

For example, here's how to convert 5 liters to kilograms for an ingredient with a density of 0.7 kg/L.
kilograms = 5 L × 0.7 kg/L = 3.5 kg

When to Convert Liters to Kilograms

Liters and kilograms are both commonly used to measure cooking ingredients.

For cooking applications, most chefs suggest measuring dry ingredients by weight rather than volume to improve accuracy in the measurements.[1] The density of dry ingredients can vary for a variety of reasons, such as compaction and clumping.

The best way to ensure an accurate conversion is to use a scale. When a scale is not available, a calculator like the one above is a good way to estimate the volume to weight conversion.

Another useful application of weight and volume conversions is chemistry. When performing chemical reactions by combining separate chemicals to produce a new chemical, one must know the exact amount of each chemical to add in order to maximize the yield of the reaction.

It is common to mix powdered chemicals with liquid, or aqueous, chemicals, and this is where it becomes very useful to convert between weights and volumes.[2]

A third application of weight and volume conversions is when shipping freight when calculating the volumetric weight for cargo and packages. Trucks, ships, and airplanes are limited in the amount of weight or volume they can transport, so if one of those quantities is known, but the limitation is on the other, then it becomes necessary to convert between the two so as not to overload the shipping vehicle.

Keep reading to learn more about each unit of measure.

What is a Liter?

A liter is a unit of volume equal to 1,000 cubic centimeters or 0.264172 US gallons.[3] The liter is a special name defined for the cubic decimeter and is exactly equal to the volume of one cubic decimeter (1 decimeter is 1/10 of a meter, or 10 centimeters).

The liter is an SI accepted unit for volume for use with the metric system. A liter is sometimes also referred to as a litre. Liters can be abbreviated as L, and are also sometimes abbreviated as l or ℓ. For example, 1 liter can be written as 1 L, 1 l, or 1 ℓ.

Learn more about liters.

What is a Kilogram?

One kilogram is equal to 1,000 grams, 2.204623 pounds, or 1/1,000 of a metric ton.

The formal definition of the kilogram changed in 2019. One kilogram was previously equal to the mass of the platinum-iridium bar, known as the International Prototype of the Kilogram, which was stored in Sèvres, France.

The 2019 SI brochure now defines the kilogram using the Planck constant, and it is defined using the meter and second.[4] It is equal to the mass of 1,000 cubic centimeters of water.

The kilogram, or kilogramme, is the SI base unit for mass and is also a multiple of the gram. In the metric system, "kilo" is the prefix for thousands, or 103. Kilograms can be abbreviated as kg; for example, 1 kilogram can be written as 1 kg.

A kilogram is also frequently referred to as a unit of weight. While technically, a kilogram is a measure of mass, and weight is actually a measure of force, the two are equivalent as long as we are performing our calculations on Earth.

For example, an object with a mass of 1 kilogram weighs 1 kilogram on Earth, but only weighs one-sixth of that on the moon, yet still has the same mass.

Learn more about kilograms.

Liter to Kilogram Conversion Table

Liter measurements converted to kilograms for commonly used cooking and baking ingredients.
Volume in Liters: Weight in Kilograms of:
Water Milk Cooking Oil All Purpose Flour Granulated Sugar
1 L 1 kg 1.03 kg 0.88 kg 0.529 kg 0.845351 kg
2 L 2 kg 2.06 kg 1.76 kg 1.058 kg 1.6907 kg
3 L 3 kg 3.09 kg 2.64 kg 1.587 kg 2.5361 kg
4 L 4 kg 4.12 kg 3.52 kg 2.116 kg 3.3814 kg
5 L 5 kg 5.15 kg 4.4 kg 2.645 kg 4.2268 kg
6 L 6 kg 6.18 kg 5.28 kg 3.174 kg 5.0721 kg
7 L 7 kg 7.21 kg 6.16 kg 3.703 kg 5.9175 kg
8 L 8 kg 8.24 kg 7.04 kg 4.232 kg 6.7628 kg
9 L 9 kg 9.27 kg 7.92 kg 4.761 kg 7.6082 kg
10 L 10 kg 10.3 kg 8.8 kg 5.29 kg 8.4535 kg
11 L 11 kg 11.33 kg 9.68 kg 5.819 kg 9.2989 kg
12 L 12 kg 12.36 kg 10.56 kg 6.348 kg 10.14 kg
13 L 13 kg 13.39 kg 11.44 kg 6.877 kg 10.99 kg
14 L 14 kg 14.42 kg 12.32 kg 7.406 kg 11.83 kg
15 L 15 kg 15.45 kg 13.2 kg 7.935 kg 12.68 kg
16 L 16 kg 16.48 kg 14.08 kg 8.464 kg 13.53 kg
17 L 17 kg 17.51 kg 14.96 kg 8.993 kg 14.37 kg
18 L 18 kg 18.54 kg 15.84 kg 9.522 kg 15.22 kg
19 L 19 kg 19.57 kg 16.72 kg 10.05 kg 16.06 kg
20 L 20 kg 20.6 kg 17.6 kg 10.58 kg 16.91 kg
21 L 21 kg 21.63 kg 18.48 kg 11.11 kg 17.75 kg
22 L 22 kg 22.66 kg 19.36 kg 11.64 kg 18.6 kg
23 L 23 kg 23.69 kg 20.24 kg 12.17 kg 19.44 kg
24 L 24 kg 24.72 kg 21.12 kg 12.7 kg 20.29 kg
25 L 25 kg 25.75 kg 22 kg 13.23 kg 21.13 kg
26 L 26 kg 26.78 kg 22.88 kg 13.75 kg 21.98 kg
27 L 27 kg 27.81 kg 23.76 kg 14.28 kg 22.82 kg
28 L 28 kg 28.84 kg 24.64 kg 14.81 kg 23.67 kg
29 L 29 kg 29.87 kg 25.52 kg 15.34 kg 24.52 kg
30 L 30 kg 30.9 kg 26.4 kg 15.87 kg 25.36 kg
31 L 31 kg 31.93 kg 27.28 kg 16.4 kg 26.21 kg
32 L 32 kg 32.96 kg 28.16 kg 16.93 kg 27.05 kg
33 L 33 kg 33.99 kg 29.04 kg 17.46 kg 27.9 kg
34 L 34 kg 35.02 kg 29.92 kg 17.99 kg 28.74 kg
35 L 35 kg 36.05 kg 30.8 kg 18.52 kg 29.59 kg
36 L 36 kg 37.08 kg 31.68 kg 19.04 kg 30.43 kg
37 L 37 kg 38.11 kg 32.56 kg 19.57 kg 31.28 kg
38 L 38 kg 39.14 kg 33.44 kg 20.1 kg 32.12 kg
39 L 39 kg 40.17 kg 34.32 kg 20.63 kg 32.97 kg
40 L 40 kg 41.2 kg 35.2 kg 21.16 kg 33.81 kg

References

  1. National Institute of Standards & Technology, Metric Cooking Resources, https://www.nist.gov/pml/owm/metric-cooking-resources
  2. CK-12 Foundation, Introductory Chemistry (CK-12) - 12.6: Mass-Volume Stoichiometry, https://chem.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Introductory_Chemistry/Introductory_Chemistry_(CK-12)/12%3A_Stoichiometry/12.06%3A_Mass-Volume_Stoichiometry
  3. National Institute of Standards and Technology, Units outside the SI, https://physics.nist.gov/cuu/Units/outside.html
  4. International Bureau of Weights and Measures, The International System of Units, 9th Edition, 2019, https://www.bipm.org/documents/20126/41483022/SI-Brochure-9-EN.pdf

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