10 L/min in US gal/min
- Value
- 10 L/min
- From
- litre per minute (L/min)
- To
- US gallon per minute (gal/min)
- Converted value
- 2.6417205236 gal/min
Checked against: 10 L ÷ 3.785411784 L = 1250000000/473176473
Flow rate converter
Convert L/min to gpm, gpm to L/min, cfm to m³/h and m³/h to L/s for pumps, plumbing and ventilation, with the exact US gallon and cubic foot.
By AdminDrafted with AI writing toolsUpdated Checked examples: 4
Converted value
gal/min
Converted value: 2.64172052358 gal/min
- Conversion
- 10 L/min ≈ 2.641721 gal/min
- Conversion factor
- 0.264172052358
- Exactness
- Exact definitions, repeating decimal
10 L/min is about 2.641721 gal/min. One litre per minute is about 0.2641721 gal/min.
The same amount counted in each unit
10 L/min in every Flow rate unit
| Unit | Value | Definition |
|---|---|---|
| cubic metre per second (m³/s) | 0.0001666667 | Base unit |
| cubic metre per hour (m³/h) | 0.6 | 1 m³/h = 1/3,600 m³/s, exact |
| litre per second (L/s) | 0.1666667 | 1 L/s = 0.001 m³/s, exact |
| litre per minute (L/min) | 10 | 1 L/min = 0.001/60 m³/s, exact |
| litre per hour (L/h) | 600 | 1 L/h = 0.001/3,600 m³/s, exact |
| US gallon per minute (gal/min) | 2.641721 | 1 gal/min = 0.003785411784/60 m³/s, exact |
| cubic foot per minute (ft³/min) | 0.3531467 | 1 ft³/min = 0.028316846592/60 m³/s, exact |
How it's calculated S
Convert litre per minute to cubic metre per second
1 L/min = 0.001/60 m³/s, exact
Convert cubic metre per second to US gallon per minute
1 gal/min = 0.003785411784/60 m³/s, exact
Combined factor
Both units are defined exactly, but the converted value is a repeating decimal; it is shown to 12 significant figures.
About the flow rate converter
Flow rate is volume per time, and each unit here is a fixed number of cubic metres per second. The US gallon (3.785411784 L) and the cubic foot (28.316846592 L) are exact, so litres per minute, gallons per minute and cubic feet per minute convert with no rounding in the factors.
The default converts 10 L/min to 2.64 US gpm, close to the 2.5 gpm (9.46 L/min) of a standard US showerhead. Plumbers and pump buyers use L/min and gpm, fan and compressor ratings use cfm or m³/h, and river flows are reported in m³/s (cumecs).
The gallon here is the US gallon. An imperial gallon per minute is 4.54609 L/min, 20% more, so check which gallon a specification uses before converting it.
What is CFM?
CFM stands for cubic feet per minute, the airflow unit used for US fans, range hoods, ducts and air compressors. 1 CFM = 1.69901079552 m³/h = 0.4719474432 L/s, exact because the foot is exactly 0.3048 m, so a 100 CFM fan moves 169.9 m³/h.
How to convert CFM to m³/h and L/s
A cubic foot is 0.028316846592 m³, or 28.316846592 L. Multiply by 60 minutes to get the hourly figure, 1.69901079552 m³/h, or divide by 60 seconds for 0.4719474432 L/s.
To go back, multiply m³/h by approximately 0.588578 or L/s by approximately 2.11888 to get CFM. NIST's volume-per-time table lists these rate factors.
| CFM | m³/h | L/s |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1.69901079552 | 0.4719474432 |
| 10 | 16.9901079552 | 4.719474432 |
| 100 | 169.901079552 | 47.19474432 |
| 250 | 424.75269888 | 117.9868608 |
| 1000 | 1699.01079552 | 471.9474432 |
CFM from room size and air changes
Ventilation targets are often given as air changes per hour (ACH), the number of times the room's air is replaced each hour. The airflow follows from the room's volume:
- CFM = room volume in ft³ × ACH ÷ 60. A 12 × 15 ft room with an 8 ft ceiling holds 1,440 ft³, so 6 ACH needs 1,440 × 6 ÷ 60 = 144 CFM.
- m³/h = room volume in m³ × ACH. A 30 m³ room at 6 ACH needs 180 m³/h, which is 105.9 CFM.
The formula turns an air-change rate into a flow; the rate itself comes from the ventilation guidance for that kind of room. The solid volume calculator gives the volume of rooms that are not simple boxes.
Water flow in L/min and gpm
Pumps, taps and showers are rated in liters per minute or US gallons per minute. One US gpm is exactly 3.785411784 L/min, so 10 L/min is 2.64 gpm.
To measure a tap or shower, time how long it takes to fill a container. A 5 L bucket that fills in 30 seconds means 10 L/min.
| Flow unit | L/min per unit |
|---|---|
| m³/s | 60000 |
| m³/h | ≈ 16.6666666667 |
| L/s | 60 |
| L/min | 1 |
| L/h | ≈ 0.0166666666667 |
| US gpm | 3.785411784 |
| CFM | 28.316846592 |
The gpm row is the US gallon. An imperial gallon per minute is 4.54609 L/min, or about 1.20095 US gpm, so check which gallon a British or older pump specification uses.
Mistakes with flow units
- Dropping the time unit. m³/h and m³/s differ by a factor of 3,600: a river flow of 1 m³/s is 3,600 m³/h.
- Treating CFM as a volume. A room's cubic feet are an amount of air; CFM is how fast it moves. A 1,440 CFM fan would replace the air in the 1,440 ft³ room above once a minute, or 60 times an hour.
- Comparing standard and actual CFM. Compressor ratings in SCFM refer to air at a stated reference temperature and pressure. Converting units keeps that reference; changing conditions needs the ideal gas law.
- Mixing up volume flow and mass flow. A flow in kg/s is volume flow times density, so convert the density with the density converter first.
For volumes without a time unit, such as a tank's capacity, use the volume converter.
Worked examples
1 m³/s in L/s
- Value
- 1 m³/s
- From
- cubic metre per second (m³/s)
- To
- litre per second (L/s)
- Converted value
- 1,000 L/s
Checked against: 1 m³ = 1000 L
1 cfm in L/min
- Value
- 1 ft³/min
- From
- cubic foot per minute (ft³/min)
- To
- litre per minute (L/min)
- Converted value
- 28.316846592 L/min
Checked against: 1 ft³ = 0.3048³ m³ = 28.316846592 L (NIST HB 44 App. C)
1 m³/h in L/s
- Value
- 1 m³/h
- From
- cubic metre per hour (m³/h)
- To
- litre per second (L/s)
- Converted value
- 0.2777777778 L/s
- Exactness
- Exact definitions, repeating decimal
Checked against: 1000 L / 3600 s = 5/18
Questions
How do I convert L/min to gpm?
Divide by 3.785411784, or multiply by 0.264172. 10 L/min is 2.64 US gpm and 20 L/min is 5.28 gpm. To go from US gpm to L/min, multiply by 3.785, so a 2.5 gpm showerhead runs at 9.46 L/min.
How do I convert cfm to m³/h?
Multiply by 1.69901. A cubic foot is 0.028316846592 m³ and an hour is 60 minutes, so 1 cfm = 1.69901079552 m³/h exactly. A 100 cfm bathroom fan moves 169.9 m³/h, or 47.2 L/s. To go from m³/h to cfm, multiply by 0.588578.
What is a normal shower flow rate?
The US EPA comparison uses a standard showerhead flow of 2.5 US gallons per minute, about 9.46 L/min, and WaterSense-labelled products must use no more than 2.0 gpm, about 7.57 L/min. A 10-minute shower at a constant 2.5 gpm uses 25 gallons, about 94.6 litres. Timing how long a 1-litre jug takes to fill gives a flow estimate: 6 seconds means 10 L/min.
How do I convert m³/h to L/s?
Divide by 3.6. A cubic metre is 1,000 litres and an hour 3,600 seconds, so 1 m³/h = 1,000/3,600 ≈ 0.2778 L/s, a repeating decimal. A pump rated at 36 m³/h delivers exactly 10 L/s, or 600 L/min.
Is gpm in US or imperial gallons?
In this converter, US gallons: 1 gpm = 3.785411784 L/min. Imperial gallons per minute are 4.54609 L/min, 20% larger, and appear on equipment specified in imperial units. To convert an imperial figure, multiply it by 1.20095 to get US gpm before entering it.
About this calculator
Sources
Checked against references
This calculator includes 4 worked examples with independently sourced answers. They run in the test suite, and you can run them here too.