Knot Conversion Calculator
Enter a value in knots below to convert to another unit of speed.
Results:
What Is a Knot?
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A knot is a unit used to measure speed.
Knots can be abbreviated as kn, and are also sometimes abbreviated as kt. For example, 1 knot can be written as 1 kn or 1 kt.
Uses
Because it's is based on the nautical mile, the knot is a convenient unit to use for navigation and meteorology. The unit is widely used to measure air-speed and the speed of maritime vessels.
How Fast Is a Knot?
One knot is equal to a speed of one nautical mile per hour,[1] or one minute of latitude per hour.
How to Convert Knots
To convert knots to another unit of speed, you need to multiply the value by a conversion factor. A conversion factor is a numerical value used to change the units of a measurement without changing the value.[2]
You can find the conversion factors for knots in the conversion table below.
Then, multiply the speed measurement by the conversion factor to find the equivalent value in the desired unit of measurement.
knots × conversion factor = result
You can also use a calculator, such as one of the converters below, for the conversion.
Knot Conversion Table
| knots | Mach number | speed of sound | speed of light | miles per hour | feet per second | kilometers per second | kilometers per hour | meters per second | centimeters per second |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 kn | Mach 0.0015 | 0.0015 sound | 0.000000001716 c | 1.150779 mph | 1.68781 ft/s | 0.000514 km/s | 1.852 km/h | 0.514444 m/s | 51.444444 cm/s |
| 2 kn | Mach 0.003 | 0.003 sound | 0.000000003432 c | 2.301559 mph | 3.37562 ft/s | 0.001029 km/s | 3.704 km/h | 1.028889 m/s | 102.888889 cm/s |
| 3 kn | Mach 0.0045 | 0.0045 sound | 0.000000005148 c | 3.452338 mph | 5.06343 ft/s | 0.001543 km/s | 5.556 km/h | 1.543333 m/s | 154.333333 cm/s |
| 4 kn | Mach 0.005999 | 0.005999 sound | 0.000000006864 c | 4.603118 mph | 6.751239 ft/s | 0.002058 km/s | 7.408 km/h | 2.057778 m/s | 205.777778 cm/s |
| 5 kn | Mach 0.007499 | 0.007499 sound | 0.00000000858 c | 5.753897 mph | 8.439049 ft/s | 0.002572 km/s | 9.26 km/h | 2.572222 m/s | 257.222222 cm/s |
| 6 kn | Mach 0.008999 | 0.008999 sound | 0.000000010296 c | 6.904677 mph | 10.126859 ft/s | 0.003087 km/s | 11.112 km/h | 3.086667 m/s | 308.666667 cm/s |
| 7 kn | Mach 0.010499 | 0.010499 sound | 0.000000012012 c | 8.055456 mph | 11.814669 ft/s | 0.003601 km/s | 12.964 km/h | 3.601111 m/s | 360.111111 cm/s |
| 8 kn | Mach 0.011999 | 0.011999 sound | 0.000000013728 c | 9.206236 mph | 13.502479 ft/s | 0.004116 km/s | 14.816 km/h | 4.115556 m/s | 411.555556 cm/s |
| 9 kn | Mach 0.013499 | 0.013499 sound | 0.000000015444 c | 10.357015 mph | 15.190289 ft/s | 0.00463 km/s | 16.668 km/h | 4.63 m/s | 463 cm/s |
| 10 kn | Mach 0.014998 | 0.014998 sound | 0.00000001716 c | 11.507794 mph | 16.878099 ft/s | 0.005144 km/s | 18.52 km/h | 5.144444 m/s | 514.444444 cm/s |
| 11 kn | Mach 0.016498 | 0.016498 sound | 0.000000018876 c | 12.658574 mph | 18.565908 ft/s | 0.005659 km/s | 20.372 km/h | 5.658889 m/s | 565.888889 cm/s |
| 12 kn | Mach 0.017998 | 0.017998 sound | 0.000000020592 c | 13.809353 mph | 20.253718 ft/s | 0.006173 km/s | 22.224 km/h | 6.173333 m/s | 617.333333 cm/s |
| 13 kn | Mach 0.019498 | 0.019498 sound | 0.000000022308 c | 14.960133 mph | 21.941528 ft/s | 0.006688 km/s | 24.076 km/h | 6.687778 m/s | 668.777778 cm/s |
| 14 kn | Mach 0.020998 | 0.020998 sound | 0.000000024024 c | 16.110912 mph | 23.629338 ft/s | 0.007202 km/s | 25.928 km/h | 7.202222 m/s | 720.222222 cm/s |
| 15 kn | Mach 0.022498 | 0.022498 sound | 0.00000002574 c | 17.261692 mph | 25.317148 ft/s | 0.007717 km/s | 27.78 km/h | 7.716667 m/s | 771.666667 cm/s |
| 16 kn | Mach 0.023997 | 0.023997 sound | 0.000000027456 c | 18.412471 mph | 27.004958 ft/s | 0.008231 km/s | 29.632 km/h | 8.231111 m/s | 823.111111 cm/s |
| 17 kn | Mach 0.025497 | 0.025497 sound | 0.000000029172 c | 19.563251 mph | 28.692768 ft/s | 0.008746 km/s | 31.484 km/h | 8.745556 m/s | 874.555556 cm/s |
| 18 kn | Mach 0.026997 | 0.026997 sound | 0.000000030888 c | 20.71403 mph | 30.380577 ft/s | 0.00926 km/s | 33.336 km/h | 9.26 m/s | 926 cm/s |
| 19 kn | Mach 0.028497 | 0.028497 sound | 0.000000032604 c | 21.86481 mph | 32.068387 ft/s | 0.009774 km/s | 35.188 km/h | 9.774444 m/s | 977.444444 cm/s |
| 20 kn | Mach 0.029997 | 0.029997 sound | 0.00000003432 c | 23.015589 mph | 33.756197 ft/s | 0.010289 km/s | 37.04 km/h | 10.288889 m/s | 1,029 cm/s |
Knot Conversion Calculators
You can also convert speed using one of our knot converters below.
- knots to Mach number converter
- knots to speed of sound converter
- knots to speed of light converter
- knots to miles per hour converter
- knots to feet per second converter
- knots to kilometers per second converter
- knots to kilometers per hour converter
- knots to meters per second converter
- knots to centimeters per second converter
References
- NASA, Knots Versus Miles per Hour, https://www.grc.nasa.gov/WWW/K-12/WindTunnel/Activities/knots_vs_mph.html
- National Institute of Standards & Technology, Unit Conversion, https://www.nist.gov/pml/owm/metric-si/unit-conversion