Comparing cars across markets
A car rated 30 US MPG is 7.84 L/100km. The same car sold in the UK might be advertised at 36 MPG because the Imperial gallon is larger — the vehicle is identical.
Fuel Economy
Convert l/100km to mpg
1 liter per 100 km equals 235.21458 miles per gallon (us). Enter a value below to convert instantly.
Litres per 100 km to miles per gallon inverts a consumption figure into an economy figure. The formula is 235.215 ÷ (L/100km) for US MPG, where the constant packs the gallon and mile conversions into one number.
1 L/100km
235.21458 mpg (US)
Liter per 100 km and Mile per Gallon (US) are related through the category's base unit. Distance-per-fuel and fuel-per-distance measures are reciprocals, so the calculation inverts the value where needed. How this is calculated
Need the other direction? Convert mile per gallon (us) to liter per 100 km →
Formula
Liter per 100 km and Mile per Gallon (US) are related through the category's base unit. Distance-per-fuel and fuel-per-distance measures are reciprocals, so the calculation inverts the value where needed.
Not a simple multiplication. One of these units is a reciprocal of the other's quantity, so the conversion inverts the value instead of scaling it.
Step by step
- Start with 1 L/100km.
- Apply the Liter per 100 km-to-Mile per Gallon (US) formula.
- The result is 235.21458 mpg (US).
Liters per 100 km to Miles per Gallon (US) conversion table
| Liters per 100 km (L/100km) | Miles per Gallon (US) (mpg (US)) |
|---|---|
| 5 | 47.042917 |
| 10 | 23.521458 |
| 15 | 15.680972 |
| 20 | 11.760729 |
| 25 | 9.4085833 |
| 30 | 7.8404861 |
| 40 | 5.8803646 |
| 50 | 4.7042917 |
| 60 | 3.9202431 |
Where liters per 100 km and miles per gallon (us) are used together
Judging the value of an upgrade
Going from 15 to 20 MPG saves 1.67 gallons per 100 miles. Going from 40 to 50 MPG saves only 0.5 gallons per 100 miles, despite being a larger MPG jump. This is the 'MPG illusion', and it is why US labels now also show gallons per 100 miles.
Budgeting fuel for a trip
L/100km makes the arithmetic direct: 8 L/100km over a 600 km trip is 48 litres. Doing the same from MPG requires dividing rather than multiplying, which is why consumption units are preferred for planning.
Fleet and emissions reporting
CO₂ output is proportional to fuel burned per distance, so it tracks L/100km linearly and MPG inversely. Regulatory targets are therefore set in consumption or emissions terms, not in MPG.
Everyday liters per 100 km worth knowing
Values people actually look up, with the reason each one comes up. Every figure is calculated with the same engine as the converter above.
| Liter per 100 km (L/100km) | Mile per Gallon (US) (mpg (US)) | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| 4 | 58.803646 | A high-efficiency hybrid |
| 5 | 47.042917 | A hybrid |
| 6 | 39.202431 | An efficient small car |
| 7 | 33.602083 | A compact car |
| 8 | 29.401823 | A mid-size car |
| 10 | 23.521458 | A large car |
| 12 | 19.601215 | A large SUV |
| 15 | 15.680972 | A truck or performance car |
How these two units are defined
Fuel economy (MPG, km/L) is distance divided by fuel; fuel consumption (L/100km) is fuel divided by distance. They describe the same thing inverted, which is why converting between them means dividing rather than multiplying. The constant for US gallons is 235.215; for Imperial gallons it is 282.481, because an Imperial gallon is 20% larger. Test procedures differ too — EPA, WLTP and JC08 cycles produce different figures for the same vehicle, and no unit conversion reconciles them.
Rounding and precision
Because the relationship is reciprocal, precision behaves unevenly: at low consumption a small change in L/100km moves the MPG figure a lot, while at high consumption it barely moves it. Quote two significant figures for MPG and one decimal place for L/100km. Remember too that any published figure is a test-cycle result — real-world economy varies with driving style, load, temperature and terrain by considerably more than any rounding here.
Mistakes people make with this conversion
-
Converting as if it were linear
Doubling MPG halves L/100km; it does not double it. Any conversion that multiplies rather than divides is wrong.
-
Mixing US and UK MPG
35 US MPG is 42 UK MPG for the same car. UK figures look better purely because the Imperial gallon is 20% larger.
-
Averaging MPG figures directly
The average of 20 MPG and 40 MPG over equal distances is not 30 MPG — it is 26.7, because you must average the consumption, not the economy. Averaging L/100km works correctly.
Read more about these units
Sources for this page
- Learn More About the Fuel Economy Label for Gasoline Vehicles
- Special Publication 811 — Guide for the Use of the International System of Units (SI)
Content on this page last reviewed 12 August 2026. Spotted an error? Report it — see also how these values are calculated.
Convert Liter per 100 km to other fuel economy units
1 L/100km expressed in every other fuel economy unit on this site.
- Kilometer per Liter km/L 100
- Meter per Liter m/L 100,000
- Kilometer per Gallon (US) km/gal (US) 378.54118
- Mile per Liter mi/L 62.137119
- Mile per Gallon (US) mpg (US) 235.21458
- Mile per Gallon (UK) mpg (UK) 282.48094
- Nautical Mile per Liter nmi/L 53.99568
- Nautical Mile per Gallon (US) nmi/gal (US) 204.39588
- Centimeter per Liter cm/L 10,000,000
- Dekameter per Liter dam/L 10,000
- Hectometer per Liter hm/L 1,000
- Megameter per Liter Mm/L 0.1
- Gigameter per Liter Gm/L 0.0001
- Terameter per Liter Tm/L 1e-7
- Petameter per Liter Pm/L 1e-10
- Exameter per Liter Em/L 1e-13
- Meter per Gallon (US) m/gal (US) 378,541.18
- Meter per Gallon (UK) m/gal (UK) 454,609
- Meter per Quart (US) m/qt (US) 94,635.295
- Meter per Quart (UK) m/qt (UK) 113,652.25
- Meter per Pint (US) m/pt (US) 47,317.647
- Meter per Pint (UK) m/pt (UK) 56,826.125
- Meter per Cup (US) m/cup (US) 23,658.824
- Meter per Cup (UK) m/cup (UK) 28,413.063
- Meter per Fluid Ounce (US) m/fl oz (US) 2,957.353
- Meter per Fluid Ounce (UK) m/fl oz (UK) 2,841.3063
- Meter per Cubic Meter m/m³ 100,000,000
- Meter per Cubic Yard m/yd³ 76,455,486
- Meter per Cubic Foot m/ft³ 2,831,684.7
- Meter per Cubic Inch m/in³ 1,638.7064
- Liter per 100 km L/100km 1
- Liter per Kilometer L/km 0.01
- Liter per 10 km L/10km 0.1
- Gallon (US) per 100 mi gal/100mi (US) 0.42514371
- Gallon (US) per Mile gal/mi (US) 0.0042514371
- Gallon (UK) per 100 mi gal/100mi (UK) 0.35400619
- Gallon (UK) per Mile gal/mi (UK) 0.0035400619
About the liter per 100 km
The liter per 100 km (L/100km) is a Metric unit of fuel economy. The standard European consumption figure — lower is better.
About the mile per gallon (us)
The mile per gallon (us) (mpg (US)) is a US unit of fuel economy. The US window-sticker figure, based on the 3.785 L US gallon.
Related conversions
Frequently asked questions
What is 8 L/100km in MPG?
8 L/100km is 29.4 US MPG, or 35.3 UK MPG. The two MPG figures differ only because the gallons differ.
Why does Europe use consumption instead of economy?
Because fuel cost and CO₂ emissions are both proportional to fuel burned per distance, L/100km scales linearly with what you actually pay and emit. MPG inverts that relationship and makes differences at the efficient end look smaller than they are.
How do I work out the fuel for a trip from L/100km?
Multiply the consumption by the distance in hundreds of kilometres: 7.5 L/100km over 450 km is 7.5 × 4.5 = 33.75 litres. The same calculation from MPG requires a division, which is one reason consumption units are preferred for planning.
How many miles per gallon (us) are in a liter per 100 km?
One liter per 100 km equals 235.21458 miles per gallon (us).
How do you convert liters per 100 km to miles per gallon (us)?
Liter per 100 km and Mile per Gallon (US) are related through the category's base unit. Distance-per-fuel and fuel-per-distance measures are reciprocals, so the calculation inverts the value where needed.
What is 1 mile per gallon (us) in liters per 100 km?
One mile per gallon (us) equals 235.21458 liters per 100 km.
When would I convert liters per 100 km to miles per gallon (us)?
This conversion is common when comparing vehicle efficiency across countries.