15 kW to PS — 15 kilowatts in metric horsepower
Exact 15 × 1.359622 = 20.394324
15 kilowatts in other units
| Watts | 15,000 | W |
|---|---|---|
| Megawatts | 0.015 | MW |
| Mechanical horsepower | 20.115331 | hp |
| Metric horsepower | 20.394324 | PS |
| BTU per hour | 51,182.12 | BTU/h |
| Foot-pounds per second | 11,063.43 | ft·lbf/s |
kW to PS at a glance
| Kilowatts | Metric horsepower |
|---|---|
| 1 kW | 1.359622 PS |
| 2 kW | 2.719243 PS |
| 3 kW | 4.078865 PS |
| 5 kW | 6.798108 PS |
| 10 kW | 13.596216 PS |
| 20 kW | 27.192432 PS |
| 25 kW | 33.99054 PS |
| 50 kW | 67.981081 PS |
| 100 kW | 135.962162 PS |
| 250 kW | 339.905404 PS |
| 500 kW | 679.810809 PS |
| 1,000 kW | 1,359.62 PS |
How to convert kilowatts to metric horsepower
Multiply by 1.359622 — one kilowatt is 1.359622 metric horsepower. 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 15 × 1.359622 = 20.394324
In words: about twenty metric horsepower.
What these units are
The kilowatt and the metric horsepower are covered in the power unit guide, along with every other unit on this page.
Questions
How many metric horsepower are in a kilowatt?
One kilowatt is 1.359622 metric horsepower. This figure is exact — it comes from the definition of the unit, not a measurement.
What is 15 kilowatts in metric horsepower?
15 kilowatts is 20.394324 metric horsepower. The working is 15 × 1.359622 = 20.394324.
Why does the same car have two different horsepower figures?
Because there are two horsepowers. Metric horsepower, written PS or CV, is 735.49875 W; mechanical horsepower, written hp or bhp, is about 745.7 W. A car sold as 150 PS in Germany is 148 hp in Britain, and nothing about the engine has changed.
Where does 746 watts come from?
From James Watt, who needed to sell steam engines to people who owned horses. He measured a mill horse turning a wheel and settled on 550 foot-pounds per second — a figure most real horses cannot sustain, which made the comparison flattering to his engines.
How do I read an air conditioner's BTU rating?
BTU ratings are BTU per hour, a rate of heat movement, even when the "per hour" is dropped. A 12,000 BTU/h unit shifts about 3.5 kW of heat. That is not what it draws from the wall — a decent unit moves several times more heat than the electricity it consumes.
What is the difference between power and energy?
Power is a rate, energy is an amount. A kilowatt is how fast something uses energy; a kilowatt-hour is how much it used. A 2 kW heater running for three hours has a power of 2 kW throughout and has consumed 6 kWh. Bills are in energy; ratings are in power.