Convert L/100km to km/L litres per 100 kilometres ↔ kilometres per litre Free Online Secure
Type a figure in litres per 100 kilometres and read it in kilometres per litre at once. These two run opposite ways — one counts fuel per distance, the other distance per fuel — so the page divides rather than multiplies.
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Convert from litres per 100 kilometres
Convert to kilometres per litre
Common values — Convert L/100km to km/L (litres per 100 kilometres ↔ kilometres per litre)
| L/100km | km/L |
|---|---|
| 3 | 33.3333333333 |
| 4 | 25 |
| 5 | 20 |
| 6 | 16.6666666667 |
| 7 | 14.2857142857 |
| 8 | 12.5 |
| 10 | 10 |
| 12 | 8.33333333333 |
| 15 | 6.66666666667 |
Where these units come from
Fuel economy is said in two opposite ways. Litres per 100 km asks how much fuel a fixed distance costs; miles per gallon and kilometres per litre ask how far a fixed amount of fuel goes. One is the reciprocal of the other, which is why this page multiplies and divides rather than scaling. Europe settled on litres per 100 km in the 1970s precisely because it is linear in the thing you actually pay for: halve the number and you halve the fuel. The United States kept miles per gallon, and Britain kept it too but with the imperial gallon — a fifth larger — so the same car scores about 20% better in British figures than in American ones without a single part having changed.
Where you meet them
These numbers decide which car gets bought, what a fleet costs to run, how company-car tax is assessed in several countries, and whether a long trip is worth driving rather than flying. They also appear on every new-car window sticker, measured on a standard test cycle rather than on a real road — which is why the figure is best used to compare one car with another, not to predict what your own week will cost.
Questions people ask
Why does the same car get a better mpg figure in Britain than in America?
Because the gallons are different. The imperial gallon is 4.54609 litres and the US gallon 3.785411784 litres, about a fifth smaller. A car that travels 30 miles on a US gallon travels the same distance on less than a British gallon, so its British figure comes out around 36 mpg. Nothing about the car changed; only the size of the container did. Always check which gallon a figure means before comparing two cars across the Atlantic.
Why is litres per 100 km considered the better measure?
Because miles per gallon flatters improvements at the top and hides them at the bottom. Going from 10 to 15 mpg saves twice as much fuel over the same distance as going from 30 to 50 — which is the opposite of what the numbers look like. Litres per 100 km has no such trap: the saving is simply the difference between the two figures. This is why fuel-saving decisions are easier to judge in litres per 100 km, even where mpg is what everyone quotes.
Is the answer exact?
Where both units are defined in terms of one another by whole numbers, yes — the page says so above the figure, and the only rounding is in how many digits are shown. Where the ratio has no finite decimal, the page shows twelve significant digits and says the relation is approximate rather than pretending otherwise.
Does anything I type leave my device?
No. The arithmetic runs in your browser; nothing is uploaded and there is no server to upload it to. Load the page once and it keeps working with the network switched off.
L/100 km to km/L: from European labels to Brazilian, Indian and Korean ones
Europe, Canada and Australia state fuel consumption in litres per 100 km, while Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Brazil, India and much of South-East Asia use kilometres per litre. A buyer or an engineer who moves between the two systems meets a simple reciprocal: the first says how much fuel is needed for a fixed distance, the second how far one litre goes. To convert L/100km to km/L, divide 100 by the figure in litres: 4 L/100 km is 25 km/L, 5 L/100 km is 20 km/L, 8 L/100 km is 12.5 km/L and 10 L/100 km is 10 km/L. Unlike the mpg conversions there is no gallon and no mile, only the number 100. The calculator above divides as you type, and the sections below show how the figures are used on labels, in showrooms and on the road in the countries that count in km/L.
The page gives the rule with worked examples, a profile of each unit, a comparison and a long run of market and ownership cases, followed by the usual slips. The calculation runs in your browser and nothing you type is sent anywhere. Certified figures come from test cycles that differ by country and are lower than real consumption.
How to convert L/100km to km/L: divide 100 by the consumption
The rule
If a vehicle uses x litres to cover 100 km, one litre takes it 100 / x km. To convert L/100km to km/L, divide 100 by the L/100 km: 100 / 4.5 = 22.2 km/L, 100 / 6.5 = 15.4 km/L and 100 / 12 = 8.33 km/L. The same formula converts km/L back into L/100 km, because the two are reciprocals and their product is always 100.
No special constant
The mpg conversions need 235.2 or 282.5 because of the gallon and the mile. This one needs nothing but the 100 in the name of the unit. Doubling the consumption halves the distance per litre, from 20 km/L at 5 L/100 km to 10 km/L at 10 L/100 km.
Worked examples
A kei car at 4.2 L/100 km makes 23.8 km/L. A hybrid at 3.8 L/100 km makes 26.3 km/L. A family saloon at 7.5 L/100 km makes 13.3 km/L. A big SUV at 11.5 L/100 km makes 8.70 km/L.
A quick sanity test
Multiply the two figures and the product should be 100: 4.2 times 23.8 gives 99.96. If a “convert L/100km to km/L” calculation gave a product far from 100, the division went the wrong way round.
Litres per 100 kilometres
The European and North American label
Fuel per distance is the unit on European type approvals and on Canadian and Australian labels. A smaller number is better, and multiplying by the price per litre gives the cost of every 100 km.
Where it appears
European data sheets, Canadian EnerGuide labels and Australian fuel guides.
Kilometres per litre
The label of Japan, Korea, India and Brazil
Distance per litre is the habit of Asia and Latin America. A larger number is better. Showrooms in Tokyo, Seoul, Mumbai and São Paulo quote it alongside engine size and price.
Where it appears
Fuel-economy labels in Japan, Korea, Taiwan, India, Brazil and South-East Asia.
L/100 km set beside km/L
The two scales are reciprocals: 5 L/100 km is 20 km/L, 10 is 10 and 20 is 5. Their product stays at 100. A low consumption in litres means a high figure in kilometres per litre.
The conversion is exact. The commonest trap is dividing the wrong way, which turns 12.5 km/L into 800 L/100 km.
Where the conversion shows up
Brazil
The Brazilian label shows km/L in town and on the road, separately for petrol and ethanol. A flex-fuel car at 12 km/L on petrol, 8.33 L/100 km, may do 8.5 km/L on ethanol, 11.8 L/100 km. Brazilian drivers use the 70 per cent rule: ethanol pays when its price is below 70 per cent of petrol's. A “convert L/100km to km/L” calculation puts the label in the same units as a European brochure.
India
Indian cars carry a certified mileage in km/L: a small hatchback 20 to 24 km/L, 4.2 to 5.0 L/100 km, a diesel compact SUV 17 to 20, 5.0 to 5.9, and a large SUV 12 to 14, 7.1 to 8.3. Owners usually report 20 to 30 per cent less in daily driving, so a certified 22 km/L, 4.5 L/100 km, becomes about 16.5 km/L, 6.1 L/100 km.
Korea and Japan
Korean and Japanese labels use km/L and a letter or number grade. A Korean compact at 14.5 km/L is 6.9 L/100 km and a hybrid at 20 km/L is 5.0. Japanese labels, based on the WLTC cycle, run lower than the old JC08 figures by 15 to 25 per cent.
Flex-fuel and the 70 per cent rule
Ethanol has about 30 per cent less energy per litre than petrol, so a car that does 12 km/L on petrol does about 8.4 on ethanol. In L/100 km that is 8.33 against 11.9, a rise of 43 per cent. At equal prices ethanol is much dearer per kilometre, and it breaks even at 70 per cent of the petrol price.
Electric vehicles
Electric consumption in Japan and Korea is stated in km per kWh or Wh per km. 9 km/kWh is 11.1 kWh per 100 km, and 130 Wh/km is 13 kWh per 100 km, which is 7.7 km/kWh. A petrol equivalent of 13 kWh per 100 km is 1.46 L/100 km, so the car goes 68 km on the energy in a litre of petrol.
A worked example
You are comparing a Korean hatchback at 14 km/L with a European one at 6.5 L/100 km. The first is 7.14 L/100 km, the second 15.4 km/L. At 18,000 km a year the Korean one uses 1,286 litres and the European 1,170, a difference of 116 litres. A “convert L/100km to km/L” calculation on whichever figure you have gives the same comparison.
The mental shortcut
To convert L/100km to km/L in your head, divide 100 by the consumption. Powers of two are easy: 4 gives 25, 5 gives 20, 8 gives 12.5, 10 gives 10 and 12.5 gives 8. For other values, 100 / 7 is 14.3 and 100 / 9 is 11.1. The method is exact.
Spreadsheet formulas
With the L/100 km in column A, put =100/A2 in column B for km/L. The same formula works back from km/L to L/100 km. As cross-checks, =235.215/A2 gives US mpg and =282.481/A2 gives imperial mpg.
Rounding on labels
Labels in km/L carry one decimal place and some only whole numbers. 24.2 km/L is 4.13 L/100 km, not 4.1322. Test cycles are accurate to 3 to 5 per cent, so a third figure is meaningless.
Landmarks to memorise
3 L/100 km is 33.3 km/L. 4 is 25. 5 is 20. 6 is 16.7. 8 is 12.5. 10 is 10. 12 is 8.33. 15 is 6.67. 20 is 5. With these landmarks nearly every mental convert L/100km to km/L is possible.
Reference ladder
3.2 L/100 km: 31.3 km/L. 4.4: 22.7. 5.8: 17.2. 7.2: 13.9. 9.5: 10.5. 13: 7.69. 18: 5.56. A table like this lets you test a calculator output at a glance.
Checking by reversing
To check a “convert L/100km to km/L” calculation result, divide 100 by the answer. If 5.8 L/100 km gave 17.2 km/L, then 100 / 17.2 = 5.81. A second test is the product of the two figures, which must be 100.
Link to mpg
20 km/L is 5 L/100 km, 47.0 US mpg and 56.5 imperial mpg. Multiply km/L by 2.352 for US mpg and by 2.825 for imperial mpg. These express the same consumption, and a “convert L/100km to km/L” calculation just swaps the label.
Two routes to one answer
You can divide 100 by the L/100 km directly, or go through US mpg: 235.215 divided by the consumption, then divided by 2.352. If the routes disagree, a digit was copied wrongly.
Two-wheelers in Asia
Motorcycles and scooters dominate Asian roads. A 110 cc scooter does 50 to 55 km/L, 1.8 to 2.0 L/100 km, a 125 cc commuter bike 55 to 70 km/L, 1.4 to 1.8, and a 350 cc cruiser 30 to 38 km/L, 2.6 to 3.3. A factory worker doing 30 km a day at 60 km/L uses 0.5 litres a day.
Thailand's eco-cars
Thailand's eco-car programme set consumption targets of around 20 to 23 km/L, which is 4.3 to 5.0 L/100 km, for small cars with tax incentives. Makers designed three- and four-cylinder engines of 1.0 to 1.3 litres to meet them. A “convert L/100km to km/L” calculation puts those targets next to European small-car labels, which sit at roughly the same level.
Used Japanese imports abroad
New Zealand, Kenya, Pakistan and several other countries take large numbers of used cars from Japan. Their papers and auction sheets give consumption in km/L, so a buyer sees "14.5 km/L" and wonders what that means on a local label in L/100 km. The answer is 6.9, found by dividing 100 by 14.5. A “convert L/100km to km/L” calculation before you bid avoids a costly surprise.
Delivery riders
Food and parcel riders in South-East Asian cities ride 100 to 150 km a day on small scooters. At 40 km/L, 2.5 L/100 km, they use 2.5 to 3.75 litres a day. At 100 rupees or pesos a litre that is a daily fuel bill of 250 to 375 units, so a scooter that does 50 km/L saves 20 per cent of it.
Jeepneys and shared transport
A diesel jeepney or minibus in the Philippines does about 6 to 8 km/L, 12.5 to 16.7 L/100 km. A route of 200 km a day then uses 25 to 33 litres. Operators track the figure in km/L because drivers can read it from the odometer and the litres bought at each refill.
Fuel quality and altitude
Poor fuel and thin mountain air both raise consumption. In the Andes or the Himalayas, a naturally aspirated car loses about 3 per cent of its power per 300 metres of altitude and uses more fuel for the same speed. A car that returns 14 km/L, 7.1 L/100 km, near the sea may return 12.5 km/L, 8.0 L/100 km, above 3,000 metres.
Heat, traffic and air conditioning
In hot, congested cities the air conditioner runs all the time and the car idles in queues. A hatchback that is certified at 20 km/L, 5.0 L/100 km, may do 13 km/L, 7.7 L/100 km, in the daily crawl of Jakarta or Mumbai. That is why drivers there regard the certified number as the best possible, not the usual one.
Auto-rickshaws and CNG
An Indian three-wheeler on compressed natural gas does about 30 km per kilogram of gas, which is 3.3 kg per 100 km. A petrol rickshaw does 25 to 30 km/L, 3.3 to 4.0 L/100 km. The gas figure is per kilogram, not per litre, so the conversion above does not apply to it directly.
Taxis and ride-hailing
A driver in Mumbai or Manila running a 17 km/L hatchback uses 5.9 L/100 km, or 0.06 litres per kilometre. At 100 rupees a litre fuel costs 5.9 rupees a kilometre. With a 15 km/L car it costs 6.7, a difference of 0.8 rupees a kilometre, or 80 rupees every 100 km of paid driving.
Real-world gap in India
The certified figure comes from a laboratory cycle on a flat track. Road tests of the same car often give 20 to 30 per cent less. A car certified at 25 km/L, 4.0 L/100 km, might return 18 km/L, 5.6 L/100 km, in a mix of town and highway use. Buyers who read the km/L as a promise are disappointed.
Trucks and buses
An Indian heavy truck does 3.5 to 4.5 km/L, 22 to 29 L/100 km, a light commercial pickup 12 to 15 km/L, 6.7 to 8.3, and a city bus 2.5 to 3.5 km/L, 29 to 40 L/100 km. Fleet owners compute rupees per kilometre from km/L and the diesel price, since the figures are simple to multiply.
Tank range
A tank of 35 litres in a small car doing 20 km/L gives 700 km. A 55 litre tank at 12 km/L gives 660 km. Range is tank size times km/L, so the formula needs no conversion. In L/100 km it would be 100 times the tank size divided by consumption.
Which Asian markets use which unit
Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, India, the Philippines, Brazil and much of Latin America use km/L. China uses L/100 km, as do Europe, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. Singapore uses both. A car sold in several of these markets can carry two figures that describe the same consumption.
Hybrids in km/L
A hybrid at 27 km/L is 3.7 L/100 km and one at 32 km/L is 3.1. Hybrids with large batteries claim 38 to 42 km/L, 2.4 to 2.6 L/100 km, under Japanese cycles. In town they beat their motorway figure, so a delivery driver gains more than a long-distance one. The conversion shows that a hybrid saves roughly 1 to 2 L/100 km over a good petrol car.
More values for convert L/100km to km/L
A longer list of conversions
If the value you need is not in the first list, these further conversions may be close enough to read off directly:
- 3 L/100km = 33.3333 km/L
- 7 L/100km = 14.2857 km/L
- 9 L/100km = 11.1111 km/L
- 12 L/100km = 8.33333 km/L
- 15 L/100km = 6.66667 km/L
- 20 L/100km = 5 km/L
- 35 L/100km = 2.85714 km/L
- 40 L/100km = 2.5 km/L
Common slips with a “convert L/100km to km/L” calculation
Multiplying instead of dividing
The conversion is a division of 100. Multiplying 8 by 100 gives 800, which is absurd as a distance per litre. Always check that the result is plausible.
Mixing test cycles
A figure from a Japanese cycle and one from a European cycle for the same car differ by 15 to 25 per cent. Convert units first, then ask which cycle each number comes from.
Averaging km/L
The mean of two km/L figures is not the mean consumption. Average the litres per 100 km, then convert.
Short answers
How do I convert L/100km to km/L?
Divide 100 by the L/100 km figure.
How many km/L is 5 L/100 km?
20 km/L.
How many km/L is 8 L/100 km?
12.5 km/L.
How many L/100 km is 16 km/L?
6.25 L/100 km.
Does my number leave my device?
No, the calculation runs in your browser.
More pages and a wrap-up
For other fuel-economy conversions see Convert L/100km to MPG (UK), Convert L/100km to MPG (US), Convert MPG (US) to km/L, Convert MPG (UK) to km/L, Convert km/L to MPG (US), Convert km to mi, Convert mi to km, Convert °C to °F, Convert °F to °C. For the opposite direction see Convert km/L to L/100km.
In short, a “convert L/100km to km/L” calculation means one division of 100 by the consumption and a unit written next to the result. Your figure is calculated locally, with no account and no upload.