Megajoules to Kilojoules (MJ to kJ)

1 megajoule equals 1,000 kilojoules exactly.

1 megajoule = 1,000 kilojoules

How to convert megajoules to kilojoules

To convert megajoules to kilojoules, multiply the number of megajoules by 1,000. This factor is exact. To go the other way, multiply kilojoules by 0.001.

kilojoules = megajoules × 1,000

Example: 10 megajoules = 10,000 kilojoules.

The 'calorie' on food labels is really a kilocalorie. The thermochemical calorie (4.184 J) is used here unless marked IT.

About these units

Megajoule (MJ)

Metric (SI)Current unit

One million joules. Used for fuel energy content and natural gas billing in many countries.

Picture a one-tonne car moving at 44.7 m/s, about 100 miles per hour: its kinetic energy is roughly one megajoule. Because the joule was originally conceived in 1882 as 10 million ergs, a megajoule is 10 to the 13th ergs, a figure that shows how little the old CGS unit suited everyday work and why the joule won out.

Food provides a more familiar benchmark. A Snickers bar of 280 food calories holds about 1.2 MJ, and a day's 2,000 food calories for a moderately active woman come to about 8.4 MJ. A kilowatt-hour of electricity is exactly 3.6 MJ, and exploding a kilogram of TNT releases about 4.2 MJ.

In other words the megajoule sits at the scale of a single serving of fuel, food or electricity, which is why it turns up in energy-content tables where joules would give unwieldy numbers.

1 megajoule = 1,000,000 joules (exactly).

Sources: Wikipedia: Joule; Wikipedia: Orders of magnitude (energy); Wikipedia: Kilowatt-hour

Kilojoule (kJ)

Metric (SI)Current unit

1,000 joules. Food labels in many countries give energy in kilojoules.

Most food labels around the world express energy in kilojoules, which is the calorie's long retirement in action. The calorie came out of heat measurement, and the 1948 CGPM resolution stated that the joule should be preferred as the unit of heat. Labels that still show kilocalories alongside kilojoules rely on the thermochemical calorie of exactly 4.184 joules, so one kilocalorie is about 4.184 kJ.

The kilojoule is a convenient size for a body's daily bookkeeping. A person at rest uses about 5,000 kJ, or roughly 1,200 kcal, per day, and the recommended intake for a moderately active woman is given as 2,000 food calories, which is about 8,400 kJ.

Smaller physical comparisons land in the same range. One watt-hour is 3.6 kJ, a British thermal unit is about 1.1 kJ, exploding a gram of TNT releases about 4.2 kJ, and an alkaline AA battery holds about 9 kJ.

1 kilojoule = 1,000 joules (exactly).

Sources: Wikipedia: Kilojoule; Wikipedia: Joule; Wikipedia: Orders of magnitude (energy)

Related conversions

See all energy units.