Tyre placards
Modern door-jamb placards often list all three units. 220 kPa, 2.2 bar and 32 psi describe the same inflation; kPa is the primary figure in many markets because it is SI.
Pressure
Convert kpa to psi
1 kilopascal equals 0.14503774 pounds per square inch. Enter a value below to convert instantly.
Kilopascals to psi is the conversion for reading a metric specification on a US gauge. Because a kilopascal is a small unit, tyre pressures land in the hundreds — 220 kPa rather than 2.2 bar or 32 psi for the same inflation.
1 kPa
0.14503774 psi
Multiply the number of kilopascals by 0.14503773773 to get pounds per square inch. How this is calculated
Need the other direction? Convert pound per square inch to kilopascal →
Formula
Multiply the number of kilopascals by 0.14503773773 to get pounds per square inch.
Step by step
- Start with 1 kPa.
- Multiply by the conversion factor 0.14503773773.
- 1 × 0.14503773773 = 0.14503774 psi.
Kilopascals to Pounds per Square Inch conversion table
| Kilopascals (kPa) | Pounds per Square Inch (psi) |
|---|---|
| 1 | 0.14503774 |
| 2 | 0.29007548 |
| 5 | 0.72518869 |
| 10 | 1.4503774 |
| 20 | 2.9007548 |
| 50 | 7.2518869 |
| 100 | 14.503774 |
| 500 | 72.518869 |
| 1,000 | 145.03774 |
Where kilopascals and pounds per square inch are used together
Structural and materials engineering
Material strengths are quoted in MPa (1 MPa = 1,000 kPa = 145 psi), and load calculations stay in SI throughout. Converting a psi rating into kPa is the first step in using a US-sourced component in a metric calculation.
Medical and laboratory equipment
Gas supply pressures and vacuum levels in clinical and lab settings are specified in kPa under most standards, while imported equipment may be labelled in psi.
Meteorology
Atmospheric pressure is reported in hectopascals — 1,013.25 hPa is standard sea level, which is 101.325 kPa or 14.696 psi. The hectopascal and the millibar are numerically identical.
Everyday kilopascals 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.
| Kilopascal (kPa) | Pound per Square Inch (psi) | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| 100 | 14.503774 | Close to one atmosphere |
| 101.325 | 14.695949 | One standard atmosphere exactly |
| 200 | 29.007548 | A common tyre pressure |
| 220 | 31.908302 | A common tyre placard figure |
| 250 | 36.259434 | A common tyre pressure |
| 700 | 101.52642 | Shop air line pressure |
| 1,000 | 145.03774 | One megapascal |
| 20,000 | 2,900.7548 | A diving cylinder |
How these two units are defined
The pascal is the SI derived unit of pressure: one newton per square metre. It is a very small unit — atmospheric pressure is about 101,325 Pa — so practical work uses kilopascals or megapascals. The kilopascal is the unit most vehicle manufacturers now print on tyre placards alongside psi, and the one engineering standards prefer because it composes cleanly with other SI units. The psi is exactly 6,894.757293168 Pa.
Rounding and precision
Tyre gauges resolve to about 1 psi, which is roughly 7 kPa, so quoting a converted tyre pressure to the nearest kilopascal is already at the limit of what the gauge supports and decimals are meaningless. In structural work the governing precision comes from the material standard, not from the conversion — follow the tolerance the standard states rather than carrying converted digits forward.
Mistakes people make with this conversion
-
Mixing kPa and MPa
A factor of 1,000 sits between them. A 350 MPa steel yield strength is 350,000 kPa or about 50,800 psi; reading it as 350 kPa understates it by three orders of magnitude.
-
Comparing gauge and absolute figures
Tyre and system pressures are usually gauge; atmospheric and process pressures are often absolute. The two differ by about 101 kPa.
-
Assuming hPa and kPa are the same
A hectopascal is 100 Pa and a kilopascal is 1,000 Pa. Weather reports use hPa (identical to the millibar), so 1,013 hPa is 101.3 kPa.
Read more about these units
Sources for this page
- SI Brochure — The International System of Units (SI), 9th edition
- 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 Kilopascal to other pressure units
1 kPa expressed in every other pressure unit on this site.
- Pascal Pa 1,000
- Kilopascal kPa 1
- Megapascal MPa 0.001
- Gigapascal GPa 0.000001
- Hectopascal hPa 10
- Decipascal dPa 10,000
- Millipascal mPa 1,000,000
- Micropascal µPa 1,000,000,000
- Nanopascal nPa 1,000,000,000,000
- Picopascal pPa 1e+15
- Femtopascal fPa 1e+18
- Attopascal aPa 1e+21
- Centipascal cPa 100,000
- Dekapascal daPa 100
- Terapascal TPa 1e-9
- Petapascal PPa 1e-12
- Exapascal EPa 1e-15
- Newton per Square Centimeter N/cm² 0.1
- Newton per Square Millimeter N/mm² 0.001
- Bar bar 0.01
- Millibar mbar 10
- Microbar µbar 10,000
- Dyne per Square Centimeter dyn/cm² 10,000
- Standard Atmosphere atm 0.0098692327
- Technical Atmosphere at 0.010197162
- Torr Torr 7.5006168
- Millitorr mTorr 7,500.6168
- Pound per Square Inch psi 0.14503774
- Kip per Square Inch ksi 0.00014503774
- Pound per Square Foot psf 20.885434
- Poundal per Square Foot pdl/ft² 671.96898
- Short Ton-force per Square Foot tonf/ft² (US) 0.010442717
- Long Ton-force per Square Foot tonf/ft² (UK) 0.0093238546
- Short Ton-force per Square Inch tonf/in² (US) 0.000072518869
- Long Ton-force per Square Inch tonf/in² (UK) 0.00006474899
- Kilogram-force per Square Meter kgf/m² 101.97162
- Kilogram-force per Square Centimeter kgf/cm² 0.010197162
- Kilogram-force per Square Millimeter kgf/mm² 0.00010197162
- Gram-force per Square Centimeter gf/cm² 10.197162
- Millimeter of Mercury mmHg 7.5006158
- Centimeter of Mercury cmHg 0.75006158
- Inch of Mercury inHg 0.29529983
- Millimeter of Water mmH₂O 101.97162
- Centimeter of Water cmH₂O 10.197162
- Meter of Water mH₂O 0.10197162
- Inch of Water inH₂O 4.0146308
- Foot of Water ftH₂O 0.33457047
- Inch of Mercury (60 °F) inHg (60 °F) 0.29613397
- Inch of Water (60 °F) inH₂O (60 °F) 4.0185981
- Foot of Water (60 °F) ftH₂O (60 °F) 0.33488317
About the kilopascal
The kilopascal (kPa) is a SI unit of pressure.
About the pound per square inch
The pound per square inch (psi) is a Imperial unit of pressure.
Related conversions
Frequently asked questions
What is 220 kPa in psi?
220 kPa is 31.91 psi, which is why a 220 kPa placard and a 32 psi one specify the same inflation.
What is atmospheric pressure in kPa?
One standard atmosphere is exactly 101.325 kPa, or 1,013.25 hPa as weather reports state it. In psi that is 14.696.
Why do some countries use kPa instead of bar for tyres?
The kilopascal is SI-derived and the bar is not, so standards bodies and many manufacturers prefer kPa. The bar survives in industry because its size is convenient — one bar is close to one atmosphere.
How many pounds per square inch are in a kilopascal?
One kilopascal equals 0.14503774 pounds per square inch.
How do you convert kilopascals to pounds per square inch?
Multiply the number of kilopascals by 0.14503773773 to get pounds per square inch.
What is 1 pound per square inch in kilopascals?
One pound per square inch equals 6.8947573 kilopascals.
When would I convert kilopascals to pounds per square inch?
This conversion is common when tire inflation, weather forecasting, diving, and industrial systems.