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ToolBoxGenie

Voltage Converter

Converters · Added 15 August 2026

Convert voltage across the full SI prefix range, from the nanovolts of biological signals to the megavolts of transmission lines. Note that this converts the size of a voltage between units — it does not convert between AC conventions such as RMS, peak and peak-to-peak, which are three descriptions of the same waveform.

Result

1 kV in volt

1,000 V

1 kV = 1,000 V

The same value in every unit

Volt (V)
1,000
Nanovolt (nV)
1,000,000,000,000
Microvolt (µV)
1,000,000,000
Millivolt (mV)
1,000,000
Kilovolt (kV)
1
Megavolt (MV)
0.001
Abvolt (abV)
100,000,000,000
Statvolt (statV)
3.33564095

This converts the size of a voltage between units. It does not convert between AC measurement conventions — RMS, peak and peak-to-peak are three different descriptions of the same waveform, and for a sine wave the peak is RMS × √2.

How to use the voltage converter

  1. 1Enter the voltage value you have.
  2. 2Pick the unit it is in and the unit you want.
  3. 3The table shows the same voltage in every unit at once.
  4. 4For AC, check whether your figure is RMS or peak before comparing it with another.
  5. 5Swap the units to reverse the direction.

Examples

Instrumentation signal

Input
50 mV
Result
0.05 V · 50,000 µV

Thermocouples and strain gauges produce outputs in this range.

Transmission line

Input
400 kV
Result
400,000 V · 0.4 MV

High-voltage transmission reduces current for the same power, cutting resistive losses.

Sensor noise floor

Input
0.5 µV
Result
500 nV · 5 × 10⁻⁷ V

Low-noise amplifier design lives in this range.

About the voltage converter

Why high voltage exists

Electrical power is voltage times current, so the same power can be delivered at high voltage and low current or the reverse. Losses in a transmission line, however, go as current squared times resistance — they depend on current alone, not on power. Raising the voltage tenfold cuts the current tenfold and the losses a hundredfold.

That relationship is the entire reason for the high-voltage grid, and it is what settled the nineteenth-century argument between direct and alternating current. Transformers make changing AC voltage straightforward and efficient, which allowed generation at one voltage, transmission at hundreds of kilovolts and delivery at a safe domestic level. DC could not be transformed as easily at the time, which is why Edison's low-voltage DC systems needed a generating station every mile or so.

Modern high-voltage DC transmission has since become practical thanks to power electronics, and it now beats AC over very long distances and undersea links. The underlying physics never changed — it was always about keeping current low — only the technology available for changing voltage.

RMS, peak, and why the distinction matters

An alternating voltage is constantly changing, so quoting a single number requires a convention. Peak voltage is the maximum the waveform reaches. Peak-to-peak is the full swing, twice the peak for a symmetrical wave. RMS — root mean square — is the value that delivers the same heating power as an equivalent DC voltage, and it is what mains figures and most multimeters report.

For a sine wave the relationships are fixed: peak is RMS times the square root of two, about 1.414. So a 230 V RMS supply peaks around 325 V and swings 650 V peak-to-peak. Insulation and component voltage ratings must survive the peak, which is why a capacitor rated at 250 V is not adequate for 230 V mains.

The fixed ratio only holds for sine waves. Square waves, the chopped output of a cheap inverter, and the distorted current drawn by switch-mode power supplies all have different relationships between peak and RMS. Cheaper multimeters assume a sine wave and read such signals incorrectly; a meter marked 'true RMS' measures the actual value regardless of shape.

Frequently asked questions

What actually is voltage?
Potential difference — the energy per unit charge available to push current between two points. One volt means one joule of energy per coulomb of charge. The common water analogy makes it pressure: voltage is the pressure pushing the flow, current is the flow itself, and resistance is how much the pipe restricts it. Crucially, voltage is always measured between two points; a single point does not have a voltage without a stated reference.
Is 230 V AC the same as 230 V DC?
As a number they convert identically, but they describe different things. A 230 V AC mains figure is the RMS value — the equivalent DC voltage that would deliver the same heating power. The actual waveform peaks at about 325 V. So AC mains equipment must be insulated for the peak, not the RMS, and comparing a 230 V AC supply with a 230 V DC one on peak stress is misleading.
How do voltage, current and resistance relate?
By Ohm's law: voltage equals current times resistance, V = IR. Knowing any two gives the third. A 12 V supply across a 4 Ω resistor drives 3 A. Power follows from voltage times current, so that same circuit dissipates 36 W. The current and resistance converters on this site cover the other two quantities.
What are abvolts and statvolts?
Units from the two CGS electromagnetic systems that preceded SI. An abvolt is 10⁻⁸ volts, from the electromagnetic system; a statvolt is about 299.79 volts, from the electrostatic system, and its odd size comes from the speed of light appearing in the definition. Neither is in current use, but both turn up in older physics literature, which is why they are included here.

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