20 kcal to kJ — 20 kilocalories in kilojoules
Exact 20 × 4.184 = 83.68
20 kilocalories in other units
| Joules | 83,680 | J |
|---|---|---|
| Kilojoules | 83.68 | kJ |
| Megajoules | 0.08368 | MJ |
| Watt-hours | 23.244444 | Wh |
| Kilowatt-hours | 0.02324444 | kWh |
| Calories | 20,000 | cal |
| British thermal units | 79.313337 | BTU |
| Therms | 0.000793133366 | thm |
| Foot-pounds | 61,719.2 | ft·lbf |
| Electronvolts | 522,289,479,350,876,656,107,520 | eV |
kcal to kJ at a glance
| Kilocalories | Kilojoules |
|---|---|
| 1 kcal | 4.184 kJ |
| 2 kcal | 8.368 kJ |
| 3 kcal | 12.552 kJ |
| 5 kcal | 20.92 kJ |
| 10 kcal | 41.84 kJ |
| 20 kcal | 83.68 kJ |
| 25 kcal | 104.6 kJ |
| 50 kcal | 209.2 kJ |
| 100 kcal | 418.4 kJ |
| 250 kcal | 1,046 kJ |
| 500 kcal | 2,092 kJ |
| 1,000 kcal | 4,184 kJ |
How to convert kilocalories to kilojoules
Multiply by 4.184 — one kilocalorie is 4.184 kilojoules. That factor is exact: it comes from the definition of the units rather than from a measurement, so it will not change and does not need rounding.
Working 20 × 4.184 = 83.68
In words: about eighty-four kilojoules.
What these units are
The kilocalorie and the kilojoule are covered in the energy unit guide, along with every other unit on this page.
Questions
How many kilojoules are in a kilocalorie?
One kilocalorie is 4.184 kilojoules. This figure is exact — it comes from the definition of the unit, not a measurement.
What is 20 kilocalories in kilojoules?
20 kilocalories is 83.68 kilojoules. The working is 20 × 4.184 = 83.68.
Is a food Calorie the same as a calorie?
No — it is a thousand of them. The Calorie on a nutrition label is a kilocalorie, written with a capital C in principle and almost never in practice. A 250 Calorie chocolate bar holds 250,000 physics calories, or about 1,046 kilojoules, which is why European labels quote kJ alongside.
What does a kilowatt-hour actually represent?
One kilowatt drawn for one hour — a 1,000 W heater running for sixty minutes, or a 100 W bulb for ten hours. It is the unit your electricity bill is priced in, and it equals exactly 3.6 million joules.
How much energy is one BTU?
Roughly the heat needed to raise one pound of water by one degree Fahrenheit — about 1,055 joules, or the energy in a single kitchen match. Air conditioners are rated in BTU per hour, where a 12,000 BTU/h unit is one "ton" of cooling and draws around 3.5 kW of heat.
Why is the electronvolt so small?
Because it is sized for single particles: it is the energy one electron picks up crossing a one-volt potential difference. At about 1.6 × 10⁻¹⁹ joules it would be absurd for anything larger, which is precisely why particle physics uses it instead of dragging around twenty leading zeros.