Meters per Second to Km/h
Type a speed in m/s to get km/h. An hour has 3,600 seconds and a kilometer 1,000 meters, so 1 m/s is exactly 3.6 km/h.
Formula: km/h = m/s × 3.6
Multiply meters per second by 3.6 to get kilometers per hour: an hour holds 3,600 seconds and a kilometer 1,000 meters, and 3,600 ÷ 1,000 = 3.6.
Meters per second to km/h table
| Meters per second (m/s) | Kilometers per hour (km/h) |
|---|---|
| 1 | 3.6 |
| 2 | 7.2 |
| 3 | 10.8 |
| 4 | 14.4 |
| 5 | 18 |
| 6 | 21.6 |
| 7 | 25.2 |
| 8 | 28.8 |
| 9 | 32.4 |
| 10 | 36 |
| Meters per second (m/s) | Kilometers per hour (km/h) |
|---|---|
| 12 | 43.2 |
| 15 | 54 |
| 20 | 72 |
| 25 | 90 |
| 30 | 108 |
| 40 | 144 |
| 50 | 180 |
| 60 | 216 |
| 75 | 270 |
| 100 | 360 |
Where m/s shows up
Physics, weather and sports science use meters per second because it is the SI unit of speed. Many weather services give wind in m/s: 10 m/s is 36 km/h, a fresh breeze on the Beaufort scale. A sprinter who covers 100 m in 10 seconds averages 10 m/s, which is also 36 km/h.
Sprint records make a good check: 100 m in 9.58 s, the men's world record, averages 10.44 m/s, or about 37.6 km/h.
- 1.4 m/s ≈ 5 km/h, a typical walking pace
- 5 m/s = 18 km/h, an easy bike ride
- 27.78 m/s ≈ 100 km/h
- 343 m/s ≈ 1,235 km/h, the speed of sound in air at 20 °C
Going the other way
Divide km/h by 3.6 to get m/s: 90 km/h is 25 m/s. Braking distance and kinetic energy formulas expect SI units, so road speeds usually need this step first. The meter per second is derived from the SI base units meter and second, as set out in the BIPM SI Brochure.
For road speeds in US units, continue with km/h to mph.
Wind speed is a good reason to know both units. A forecast of 15 m/s is 54 km/h, enough to make cycling hard, while 25 m/s, or 90 km/h, is storm strength.
Physics homework is the other big user of this page. Problems often give speeds in km/h for realism and then expect answers in m/s, so the 3.6 factor appears in nearly every motion exercise.
One meter per second in other speed units
One meter per second in every other speed unit on this site
- Kilometers per hour3.6 km/h
- Miles per hour2.2369363 mph
- Knots1.9438445 kn
M/s to km/h questions
What is one meter per second in km/h?
Exactly 3.6 km/h.
What is 20 m/s in km/h?
20 × 3.6 = 72 km/h.
Why multiply by 3.6?
One m/s covers 3,600 m in an hour, and 3,600 m is 3.6 km.
How many mph is 1 m/s?
1 m/s is about 2.237 mph.