What is kilowatt-hour (kWh)?

Kilowatt-hour definition

Kilowatt-hour is an energy unit (symbol kWh or kW⋅h).

One kilowatt-hour is defined as the energy consumed by power consumption of 1kW during 1 hour:

1 kWh = 1kW ⋅ 1h

One kilowatt-hour is equal to 3.6⋅10⁶ joules:

1 kWh = 3.6⋅10⁶ J

The energy E in kilowatt-hour (kWh) is equal to the power P in kilowatts (kW), times the time t in hours (h).

E_(kWh) = P_(kW) ⋅ t_(h)

Kilowatt-hour example

For example what is the energy consumed when consuming 2kW for 3 hours?

Solution:

E_(kWh) = 2kW ⋅ 3h = 6kWh

kWh to Wh, MWh, BTU, kBTU, J, kJ, MJ, GJ conversion

1kWh = 1000Wh = 0.001MWh

1kWh = 3412.14163312794 BTU_{IT =} 3.41214163312794 kBTU_IT

1kWh = 3.6⋅10⁶J = 3600kJ = 3.6MJ = 0.0036GJ

kWh to Wh, MWh, BTU, kBTU, J, kJ, MJ, GJ conversion calculator

Convert kilowatt-hour to watt-hour, megawatt-hour, BTU, kiloBTU, joules, kilojoules, megajoules, gigajoules,

Enter the energy in one of the text boxes and press the Convert button:

	Enter watt-hour:		Wh
	Enter kilowatt-hour:		kWh
	Enter megawatt-hour:		MWh
	Enter BTU:		BTUIT
	Enter kiloBTU:		kBTUIT
	Enter joules:		J
	Enter kilojoules:		kJ
	Enter megajoules:		MJ
	Enter gigajoules:		GJ

kWh to BTU, Joule conversion table

Kilowatt-hour(kWh)	BTUIT	Joule (J)
0.1 kWh	341.2142 BTU	3.6⋅105 J
1 kWh	3412.1416 BTU	3.6⋅106 J
10 kWh	34121.4163 BTU	3.6⋅107 J
100 kWh	341214.1633 BTU	3.6⋅108 J
1000 kWh	3412141.6331 BTU	3.6⋅109 J
10000 kWh	34121416.3313 BTU	3.6⋅1010 J

kWh meter

kWh meter is the electric meter that measures the amount of electrical energy in kWh that was consumed in the house. The kWh meter has a counter display that counts units of kilowatt-hour (kWh). The energy consumption is calculated by calculating the difference of the counter’s reading in the specified period.

Cost of electricity bill

The cost of electricity bill is calculated by multiplying the number of kWh that were consumed by the cost of 1kWh.

For example, the electricity bill’s cost for consumption of 900kWh per month with cost of 10 cents for 1kWh is

900kWh x 10¢ = 9000¢ = 90$.

How many kilowatt-hour does a house use?

Energy consumption of a house is about the range of 150kWh..1500kWh per month or 5kWh..50kWh per day.

It depends on the weather that affects the heating or air conditioning requirements and the number of people that live in the house.