Convert liters to gallons
One litre is 0.26 US gallons or 0.22 imperial gallons. Type a value in litres and the result appears straight away. The Gallon type switch under both fields picks one of three measures: US, UK and US dry.
How many gallons are in a liter?
One litre is 0.26 US gallons or 0.22 imperial gallons. Turned around: a US gallon holds 3.785 litres and an imperial gallon 4.546 litres.[1] The US formula is gallons = litres ÷ 3.7854, the imperial one gallons = litres ÷ 4.5461. The third measure, the US dry gallon, gives 0.227 gallons per litre and applies only to goods sold by volume.[2]
This is the direction you need when the world hands you a metric figure and you think in gallons. A European or Japanese car lists its tank in litres. A water tank, a pressure washer or an aquarium bought outside North America is labelled the same way. A forecourt anywhere outside the United States prices fuel by the litre.
Two of those cases go beyond plain volume, because a price ties litres to money and fuel economy ties them to distance. Both sums are laid out in the sections below with ready-made tables. Why several gallons exist and what the third one is are explained on the gallons to liters converter page.
Liters to gallons conversion table
The table sets the US and imperial gallon side by side. The US column matches the converter's default, and the dry gallon is a button away in the converter itself. The highlighted rows are the capacities that come up most often on metric labels: a jerry can, a car tank, a drum and a cubic metre.
| Liters | US gallons | Imperial gallons |
|---|---|---|
| 1 l | 0.26 US gal | 0.22 UK gal |
| 2 l | 0.53 US gal | 0.44 UK gal |
| 5 l | 1.32 US gal | 1.10 UK gal |
| 10 l | 2.64 US gal | 2.20 UK gal |
| 20 l | 5.28 US gal | 4.40 UK gal |
| 40 l | 10.57 US gal | 8.80 UK gal |
| 50 l | 13.21 US gal | 11.00 UK gal |
| 60 l | 15.85 US gal | 13.20 UK gal |
| 70 l | 18.49 US gal | 15.40 UK gal |
| 100 l | 26.42 US gal | 22.00 UK gal |
| 200 l | 52.83 US gal | 43.99 UK gal |
| 500 l | 132.09 US gal | 109.98 UK gal |
| 1,000 l | 264.17 US gal | 219.97 UK gal |
A thousand litres is also a cubic metre, so 1 m³ comes to 264.17 US gallons. Working from a figure in gallons instead? Use the gallons to liters converter.
Price per liter as a price per gallon
Every forecourt outside the United States prices fuel by the litre, which makes the number on the sign look small until you scale it up. The table works in whichever currency you are holding, because the multiplier is the same in all of them: multiply the price per litre by 3.7854 for a US gallon, or by 4.5461 for an imperial one.
| Per liter | Per US gallon | Per imperial gallon |
|---|---|---|
| 1.40 | 5.30 | 6.36 |
| 1.50 | 5.68 | 6.82 |
| 1.60 | 6.06 | 7.27 |
| 1.70 | 6.44 | 7.73 |
| 1.75 | 6.62 | 7.96 |
| 1.80 | 6.81 | 8.18 |
| 1.90 | 7.19 | 8.64 |
| 2.00 | 7.57 | 9.09 |
If the price is in a foreign currency, convert the units first and the money second. The unit step never changes, while the exchange rate moves daily.
Metric fuel economy as miles per gallon
Outside the United States and the UK, fuel economy is quoted as litres per 100 kilometres, where a lower number is better. Miles per gallon runs the other way, and it comes in two scales, because a British review divides by a larger gallon than an American one. All three columns describe the same car.
| Consumption | US mpg | Imperial mpg |
|---|---|---|
| 4 l/100 km | 58.8 mpg | 70.6 mpg |
| 5 l/100 km | 47.0 mpg | 56.5 mpg |
| 6 l/100 km | 39.2 mpg | 47.1 mpg |
| 7 l/100 km | 33.6 mpg | 40.4 mpg |
| 8 l/100 km | 29.4 mpg | 35.3 mpg |
| 9 l/100 km | 26.1 mpg | 31.4 mpg |
| 10 l/100 km | 23.5 mpg | 28.2 mpg |
| 12 l/100 km | 19.6 mpg | 23.5 mpg |
| 15 l/100 km | 15.7 mpg | 18.8 mpg |
The US formula is mpg = 235.21 ÷ litres per 100 km, the imperial one mpg = 282.48 ÷ litres per 100 km. A British review quoting 50 mpg describes a car that an American review would rate at 41.6 mpg, so always check where the figure came from.
When do you need to convert liters to gallons?
Four situations where a metric figure has to be read in gallons.
Buying or importing equipment from outside North America
European and Japanese listings give capacity in litres. A 1,000-litre tank is 264.17 gallons, a 200-litre drum is 52.83 gallons and a 20-litre jerry can is 5.28 gallons. Converting first tells you which metric size answers to the American one you already know.Reading the tank size on an imported car
A European or Japanese spec sheet lists the fuel tank in litres. A 50-litre tank is 13.21 gallons and a 60-litre tank is 15.85 gallons, both smaller than the 15 to 20 gallons an American sedan usually carries. Converting shows you the real range between fill-ups.Filling up abroad
Pumps in Europe, Canada and most of the world charge by the litre, and the figure on the sign looks low next to an American one until you multiply it by 3.7854. The table above does that step for any currency.Comparing fuel economy across reviews
A continental review gives litres per 100 km, a British one gives imperial miles per gallon and an American one gives US miles per gallon. Three scales, one car. The fuel-economy table above lines all three up.
Explore other unit converters
Sources
- NIST Special Publication 811, Appendix B.8 — unit conversion factors — NIST
- Gallon — Wikipedia
Every figure in the tables was computed from the unit definitions and checked arithmetically before publication. Historical values and the names of local units come from the sources listed above.
Content last reviewed: · written and checked by the Arteon team
Frequently asked questions about converting liters to gallons
How many gallons are in 1 liter?
One litre is 0.26 US gallons or 0.22 imperial gallons. The US sum: 1 ÷ 3.7854 = 0.264 gallons.
How many gallons are in 100 liters?
A hundred litres is 26.42 US gallons or 22.00 imperial gallons.
How many gallons are in 1000 liters?
A thousand litres is 264.17 US gallons or 219.97 imperial gallons. A thousand litres is also a cubic metre and the nominal size of an IBC tote, which the American market sells as a 275-gallon unit because that is what it holds brim full.
Are 4 liters a gallon?
Close, but not exact. Four litres are 1.06 US gallons, so 6% over a gallon. In the imperial measure the same four litres come to only 0.88 gallons.
How many gallons does a European car tank hold?
A 50-litre tank is 13.21 US gallons and a 60-litre tank is 15.85 US gallons. American sedans usually carry 15 to 20 gallons, so an imported car often has a slightly smaller tank than the one you are used to.
What is 7 liters per 100 km in miles per gallon?
Seven litres per 100 km is 33.6 US mpg or 40.4 imperial mpg. The US formula is 235.21 ÷ 7.
Why does a British review quote higher mpg than an American one?
Because it divides by a larger gallon. An imperial gallon is 20% bigger than a US one, so the same car covers more miles on it on paper. A car rated at 50 mpg in the UK is 41.6 mpg by American reckoning, and both figures describe identical fuel use.
How do you turn a price per liter into a price per gallon?
Multiply the price per litre by 3.7854 for a US gallon, or by 4.5461 for an imperial one. Fuel at 1.70 per litre works out at 6.44 per US gallon. The multiplier is the same whatever the currency.
What is the formula for converting liters to gallons?
For the US gallon: gallons = litres ÷ 3.785411784. For the imperial gallon: gallons = litres ÷ 4.54609.
How do you estimate liters to gallons in your head?
Divide the litres by 4. Two hundred litres gives 50 gallons against an exact 52.83, so the shortcut runs about 5% low. Fine for a rough read, not for an order.
Which gallon should I pick in the converter?
US if the figure is heading for an American listing, product description or fuel comparison. UK / Imperial if you are lining it up against a British fuel-economy figure or an older source from the UK, Ireland, Canada or Australia. US dry only for grain, produce and other goods sold by volume rather than weight. All three are covered on the gallons to liters converter page.
How many gallons per minute is 1 liter per second?
One litre per second is 60 litres per minute, which is 15.85 US gallons per minute. American pump datasheets quote flow in exactly that unit, abbreviated GPM for gallons per minute.
Have a question or a suggestion?
If you have spotted an error in the tables or have an idea for improving the converter, drop us a line. We reply to every message.