UrbiTools

BTU to kW Converter

Convert BTU per hour to kilowatts and back — the HVAC sizing conversion, with the rate-vs-energy distinction made plain.

Convert BTU/h ⇄ kW

3.5169 kW
12000 BTU/h = 3.5169 kW

Formula: 12000 BTU/h (BTU/h ÷ 3,412.14) = 3.5169 kW

How the btu to kw conversion works

The conversion is exact: kilowatts = BTU per hour ÷ 3,412.14. One watt equals 3.41214 BTU per hour, so one kilowatt (1,000 watts) equals 3,412.14 BTU/h. Going the other way, BTU/h = kW × 3,412.14.

Rate, not total energy: this page converts a rate — BTU per hour, the figure on air-conditioner and heater nameplates — into kilowatts, also a rate. A bare BTU figure with no time attached is an amount of energy, not a power rating; that conversion is BTU to kWh. If your unit says just “BTU” on a cooling spec, it almost always means BTU/h.

Worked example: a 12,000 BTU/h air conditioner — the classic “1-ton” unit — is 12,000 ÷ 3,412.14 = 3.52 kW of cooling. And a 5 kW heater outputs 5 × 3,412.14 = 17,061 BTU/h. For the reverse energy question, see watts to BTU per hour and BTU to kWh.

Handy benchmarks: 5,000 BTU/h = 1.47 kW, 9,000 BTU/h = 2.64 kW, 12,000 BTU/h = 3.52 kW, 18,000 BTU/h = 5.27 kW and 24,000 BTU/h = 7.03 kW.

btu to kw converter questions

How many BTU per hour are in 1 kW?
Exactly 3,412.14 BTU/h. One watt is 3.41214 BTU/h, and a kilowatt is 1,000 watts, so 1,000 × 3.41214 = 3,412.14 BTU/h.
How do I convert BTU to kW?
Divide BTU per hour by 3,412.14: kW = BTU/h ÷ 3,412.14. So a 12,000 BTU/h air conditioner is 12,000 ÷ 3,412.14 = 3.52 kW. If your figure is total BTU with no time unit, use our BTU to kWh converter instead.
What is 12,000 BTU in kW?
3.52 kW — assuming 12,000 BTU/h, the standard rating for a 1-ton air conditioner. 12,000 ÷ 3,412.14 = 3.5169, rounded to 3.52 kW.
Is BTU the same as BTU/h?
Not quite. A BTU is an amount of energy; BTU/h is a rate — energy per hour — which is what cooling and heating capacity are rated in. Air-conditioner specs that say “12,000 BTU” mean 12,000 BTU/h. This converter works on the BTU/h rate.
How do I convert kW back to BTU?
Multiply by 3,412.14: BTU/h = kW × 3,412.14. Switch the direction above to do it — a 3.5 kW unit is about 11,942 BTU/h.

More converters

mg to ml ConverterMilligrams to millilitres with density presets.ml to oz ConverterMillilitres to US fluid ounces and back.Liters to Gallons ConverterLitres to US or UK (imperial) gallons.Steps to km ConverterSteps to kilometres with adjustable stride length.cups to ml ConverterUS cups to millilitres and back.kg to lbs ConverterKilograms to pounds and back.grams to cups ConverterGrams to US cups with ingredient presets — flour, sugar, butter, milk, oil, rice and water.Fahrenheit to Celsius ConverterFahrenheit to Celsius and back.ounces to grams ConverterOunces to grams and back — exact 28.3495 g per ounce.tablespoons to ml ConverterUS tablespoons to millilitres and back.teaspoons to ml ConverterUS teaspoons to millilitres and back.grams to tablespoons ConverterGrams to US tablespoons with ingredient presets.liters to quarts ConverterLitres to US quarts and back.cups to tablespoons ConverterUS cups to tablespoons and back — 16 tbsp per cup.tablespoons to teaspoons ConverterTablespoons to teaspoons and back — 1 tbsp = 3 tsp.pints to cups ConverterUS pints to cups and back — 1 pint = 2 cups.quarts to cups ConverterUS quarts to cups and back — 1 quart = 4 cups.grams to ml ConverterGrams to millilitres with ingredient presets.gallons to cups ConverterGallons to cups and back — 16 cups per gallon.liters to pints ConverterLitres to US or UK pints — the pint of beer and milk.fluid ounces to cups ConverterFluid ounces to US cups and back — 8 fl oz per cup.teaspoons to cups ConverterTeaspoons to US cups and back — 48 tsp per cup.ml to liters ConverterMillilitres to litres and back — divide by 1,000.stone to kg ConverterStones to kilograms and back — exact 6.35029 kg per stone.stone to pounds ConverterStones to pounds and back — exactly 14 lb per stone.pounds to grams ConverterPounds to grams and back — exactly 453.59237 g per pound.ounces to pounds ConverterOunces to pounds and back — exactly 16 oz per pound.grams to kg ConverterGrams to kilograms and back — divide by 1,000.tons to kg ConverterUS tons and metric tonnes to kilograms — 907.18474 kg per US ton.ounces to kg ConverterOunces to kilograms and back — 0.0283495 kg per ounce.kg to ounces ConverterKilograms to ounces and back — 35.274 oz per kilogram.inches to cm ConverterInches to centimetres and back — exactly 2.54 cm per inch.feet to meters ConverterFeet to metres and back — exactly 0.3048 m per foot.miles to km ConverterMiles to kilometres and back — exactly 1.609344 km per mile.mm to inches ConverterMillimetres to inches and back — 25.4 mm per inch.yards to meters ConverterYards to metres and back — exactly 0.9144 m per yard.feet to cm ConverterFeet to centimetres and back — exactly 30.48 cm per foot.Height ConverterFeet and inches to centimetres and back — enter 5 ft 8 in and get 172.72 cm.meters to inches ConverterMetres to inches and back — 39.3701 in per metre.nautical miles to km ConverterNautical miles to kilometres and back — exactly 1.852 km per nautical mile.inches to feet ConverterInches to feet and back — exactly 12 in per foot.yards to feet ConverterYards to feet and back — exactly 3 ft per yard.Shoe Size ConverterUS, UK and EU shoe sizes for men and women — standard size charts.celsius to kelvin ConverterCelsius to kelvin and back — add 273.15; absolute zero is −273.15 °C.fahrenheit to kelvin ConverterFahrenheit to kelvin and back — K = (F − 32) × 5/9 + 273.15; absolute zero is −459.67 °F.square feet to square meters ConverterSquare feet to square metres and back — exactly 0.09290304 m² per sq ft.acres to hectares ConverterAcres to hectares and back — exactly 0.40468564224 ha per acre.acres to square feet ConverterAcres to square feet and back — exactly 43,560 sq ft per acre.acres to square meters ConverterAcres to square metres and back — exactly 4,046.8564224 m² per acre.square miles to square km ConverterSquare miles to square kilometres and back — exactly 2.589988110336 km² per sq mi.square cm to square inches ConverterSquare centimetres to square inches and back — 1 cm² = 0.15500031 in².kmh to mph ConverterKilometres per hour to miles per hour and back — 1 km/h = 0.621371192 mph.knots to mph ConverterKnots to miles per hour and back — 1 knot = 1.15077945 mph.meters per second to kmh ConverterMetres per second to kilometres per hour and back — multiply by 3.6.Age CalculatorAge calculator — your exact age in years, months and days from your date of birth.Hours CalculatorHours calculator — duration between two times, with decimal hours and an optional break.minutes to hours ConverterMinutes to hours and back — divide by 60.days to months ConverterDays to months and back — average months of 30.4375 days.seconds to minutes ConverterSeconds to minutes and back — divide by 60.mb to gb ConverterMegabytes to gigabytes and back — 1,024 MB per GB.kb to mb ConverterKilobytes to megabytes and back — 1,024 KB per MB.gb to tb ConverterGigabytes to terabytes and back — 1,024 GB per TB.mbps to mb/s ConverterMbps to MB/s and back — divide megabits by 8 to get megabytes.kcal to kj ConverterKilocalories to kilojoules and back — 1 kcal = 4.184 kJ.kW to hp ConverterKilowatts to horsepower and back — 1 kW = 1.35962 metric hp.psi to bar ConverterPounds per square inch to bar and back — 1 psi = 0.0689476 bar.mpg to L/100km ConverterMiles per gallon (US) to litres per 100 km and back — 235.214 ÷ mpg.watts to amps ConverterWatts to amps and back — divide by the voltage (230 V, 120 V or 12 V).Maternity Pay CalculatorStatutory maternity pay for 2026/27 — 90% for 6 weeks, then £194.32/week or 90%.Sick Pay CalculatorStatutory sick pay from day one for 2026/27 — £123.25/week or 80% of earnings.Holiday Pay CalculatorUK holiday entitlement — 5.6 weeks' paid leave, capped at 28 days, plus 12.07% accrual.Take-Home Pay CalculatorSalary after income tax, National Insurance and pension for 2026/27.Pension Contribution CalculatorAuto-enrolment pension contributions for 2026/27 — 8% of qualifying earnings.sugar grams to cups ConverterSugar grams to US cups and back — granulated, caster, brown and powdered presets.butter grams to cups ConverterButter grams to US cups and back — with sticks and tablespoons equivalents.cocoa powder grams to cups ConverterCocoa powder grams to US cups and back — sifted and spooned presets.honey grams to ml ConverterHoney grams to millilitres and back — at 1.42 g/ml.oats grams to cups ConverterOats grams to US cups and back — rolled, quick and steel-cut presets.rice grams to cups ConverterRice grams to US cups and back — white, brown, basmati and jasmine presets.milk grams to ml ConverterMilk grams to millilitres and back — at 1.03 g/ml.oil grams to ml ConverterOil grams to millilitres and back — at 0.92 g/ml.salt grams to teaspoons ConverterSalt grams to US teaspoons and back — fine, kosher and coarse sea salt presets.brown sugar grams to cups ConverterBrown sugar grams to US cups and back — packed, spooned and firmly packed presets.powdered sugar grams to cups ConverterPowdered sugar grams to US cups and back — sifted and unsifted presets.chocolate chips grams to cups ConverterChocolate chips grams to US cups and back — standard, mini and chunk presets.maple syrup grams to ml ConverterMaple syrup grams to millilitres and back — at 1.32 g/ml.yogurt grams to ml ConverterYogurt grams to millilitres and back — plain and Greek presets.peanut butter grams to cups ConverterPeanut butter grams to US cups and back — smooth and crunchy presets.cream grams to ml ConverterCream grams to millilitres and back — single and heavy (double) cream presets.water grams to ml ConverterWater grams to millilitres and back — the 1:1 reference, at 1.00 g/ml.baking powder grams to teaspoons ConverterBaking powder grams to US teaspoons and back — level-teaspoon weights.coffee grams to cups ConverterCoffee grams to cups brewed and back — 1:15, 1:16 and 1:17 brewing ratios.centiliters to milliliters ConverterCentiliters to millilitres and back — 1 cl = 10 ml.deciliters to milliliters ConverterDeciliters to millilitres and back — 1 dl = 100 ml.deciliters to cups ConverterDeciliters to US cups and back — 1 dl = 0.4227 cups.centiliters to cups ConverterCentiliters to US cups and back — 1 cl = 0.04227 cups.liters to cups ConverterLitres to US cups and back — 1 litre = 4.22675 cups.Ingredient Density TableMaster grams-per-cup and grams-per-ml reference for every common ingredient.shots to ounces ConverterShots to US fluid ounces and back — the 1.5 fl oz pour, plus UK measures.dessert spoon to ml ConverterUK dessert spoons to millilitres and back — 1 dessert spoon = 10 ml.fluid ounces to milliliters ConverterUS or UK fluid ounces to millilitres and back — 29.5735 ml per US fl oz.pints to milliliters ConverterUK or US pints to millilitres and back — 568.261 ml per UK pint.BTU to kW ConverterBTU per hour to kilowatts and back — 1 kW = 3,412.14 BTU/h.BTU to kWh ConverterBTU to kilowatt-hours and back — 1 kWh = 3,412.14 BTU.Nm to lb-ft ConverterNewton-metres to pound-feet and back — 1 N·m = 0.73756 lb-ft.kgm to Nm ConverterKilogram-metres to newton-metres and back — 1 kgm = 9.80665 N·m.cc to horsepower ConverterEstimate horsepower from engine displacement — a labelled rule-of-thumb, not an exact conversion.Joules to calories ConverterJoules to calories and back — 1 cal = 4.184 J.kWh to joules ConverterKilowatt-hours to joules and back — 1 kWh = 3,600,000 J.Watts to BTU/h ConverterWatts to BTU per hour and back — 1 W = 3.41214 BTU/h.kVA to kW ConverterKilovolt-amps to kilowatts and back — kW = kVA × power factor (default 0.8).Therms to kWh ConverterTherms to kilowatt-hours and back — 1 therm = 29.307 kWh.

Sources & official guidance

Exact power conversion — 1 kW = 3,412.14 BTU/h. BTU figures on appliance specs mean BTU/h unless stated otherwise. See our disclaimer.