Volume Unit Converter
Cubic metres, litres, gallons and cubic feet — all units at once.
Quick answer
With the default inputs: Value 1 · From unit Cubic metre · To unit LitreConverted value 1000.00 L
Edit the inputs below to recalculate.Inputs
Result
Converted value
1000.00L
| Cubic metre | 1m³ |
| Litre | 1000.00L |
| Millilitre (cm³) | 1000000.00mL |
| Cubic foot | 35.3147ft³ |
| Cubic inch | 61023.61in³ |
| Cubic yard | 1.308yd³ |
| US gallon | 264.1722US gal |
| UK gallon | 219.9692UK gal |
| Oil barrel | 6.2898bbl |
Metric and imperial liquid measures are not interchangeable. Engineering quantities use cubic metres and litres; gallons and barrels appear only in equipment data and shipping documents.
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Formula
| Metric | 1 m³ = 1000 L, 1 L = 1000 mL = 1000 cm³ |
| Imperial | 1 ft³ = 1728 in³ = 0.0283168 m³, 1 yd³ = 27 ft³ |
| Gallons | 1 US gal = 3.78541 L, 1 UK gal = 4.54609 L |
| Barrel | 1 bbl = 42 US gal = 158.987 L |
| Site numbers | 1 m³ of concrete ≈ 2.4 t, 1 m³ of water = 1 t = 1000 L |
One cubic metre is 1000 litres or 35.3147 cubic feet; a full 8 m³ mixer truck holds about 211.9 US gallons.
Volume unit reference
| Unit | Symbol | In m³ | In litres | Typical use |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cubic metre | m³ | 1 | 1000 | Concrete, earthwork |
| Litre | L | 0.001 | 1 | Paint, oil |
| Cubic foot | ft³ | 0.02832 | 28.32 | Imported plant |
| Cubic yard | yd³ | 0.7646 | 764.6 | Overseas earthwork |
| US gallon | US gal | 0.003785 | 3.785 | Imported pumps |
| UK gallon | UK gal | 0.004546 | 4.546 | British equipment |
| Oil barrel | bbl | 0.15899 | 158.99 | Oil measurement |
How to work it out
- Within metric: 1 m³ = 1000 L, 1 L = 1000 mL = 1000 cm³. Volume steps by 1000, unlike the 10 of length.
- Imperial volume: 1 ft³ = 1728 in³ = 0.0283168 m³ (1728 being 12³), and 1 yd³ = 27 ft³ = 0.764555 m³ (27 being 3³).
- Gallons come in two kinds, which is where errors concentrate: 1 US gallon = 3.78541 L and 1 UK gallon = 4.54609 L — a 20% difference.
- Oil barrel: 1 bbl = 42 US gallons = 158.987 L, about 0.159 m³. In the oil trade the barrel is a volume, not a weight.
- Practical construction equivalents: 1 m³ of water = 1 t = 1000 L; concrete about 2.4 t; sand about 1.5 t; crushed stone 1.5-1.6 t.
- Check the magnitude: 1 m³ is about 264 US gallons or 35.3 ft³. A wrong order means the wrong gallon system.
Where it goes wrong
- Mixing US and UK gallons. Imported equipment, marine work and British sources use UK gallons while American data uses US — 20% apart, so 1000 gallons is out by 200 gallons, or 750 L.
- Treating the oil barrel as a generic barrel. Crude oil is 158.987 L, but other liquids use different barrel sizes, so 159 L cannot be applied universally.
- Confusing loose and compacted volume. One cubic metre of loose sand compacts to 0.7-0.8 m³, so buying 100 m³ loose to fill a 100 m³ void falls short.
- Converting volume to weight without allowing for moisture. At 5% moisture a cubic metre of sand rises from 1.5 t to over 1.6 t, so dry-sand figures under-order by about a tenth.
- Confusing concrete volume with truck counts. Trucks rated at 8 m³ commonly carry 6-7 m³, so planning by nominal capacity under-delivers.
Material and cost
Volume errors translate directly into money. One hundred cubic metres of C30 at 490 CNY/m³ is 49,000 CNY, and a 10% shortfall is 4,900 CNY plus the risk of an interrupted pour and a cold joint. Aggregate priced by tonne versus by cubic metre differs by about 50% if the basis is confused.
On site
- Establish whether concrete, mortar and aggregate volumes are loose or in place before ordering. A contract on compacted volume with delivery on loose volume is the classic dispute.
- Water is the easy one: 1 L = 1 kg and 1 m³ = 1 t. Fire tank volumes, cistern capacities and demand figures all use it.
- Cylinder capacities may be quoted as water capacity (L) or as gas volume at standard conditions (m³), differing by hundreds of times. Do not interchange them.
- Marine and chemical trades use other barrel definitions, including a 31.5 US gallon liquid barrel, so confirm which bbl is meant.
Basis
- GB/T 3100-3102 Quantities and units series
- GB/T 14902-2012 Ready-mixed concrete
- GB 50015-2019 Standard for design of building water supply and drainage
FAQ
Why are US and UK gallons different?
The US gallon derives from the wine gallon (231 in³ ≈ 3.785 L) and the UK gallon from the ale gallon (4.546 L), a 20% gap. On imported equipment labelled in gallons, confirm which one — treating US as UK overstates capacity by a fifth.
Why is a cubic metre of water exactly one tonne?
Water is 1000 kg/m³ at 4°C, so engineers simply take 1 t/m³. That only holds for water: concrete is 2.4 t/m³, sand 1.5, gravel 1.5, steel 7.85. Mixing volume and weight when planning haulage is the commonest cause of overloaded trucks.
Are capacity and volume the same thing?
Numerically yes, in use no. Volume is the space an object occupies; capacity is what a container holds, measured inside. A 1 × 1 × 1 m tank with 100 mm walls has 1 m³ of volume but only 0.8 × 0.8 × 0.8 = 0.512 m³ of capacity — half of it.
Cite this page
Use this format in reports, method statements or coursework. The link is permanent.
Building Calculator. Volume Unit Converter. 2026-10-25. https://jianzhujisuan.com/en/unit-volume
Results are estimating aids only and are not a design basis. Construction and final accounts must follow the drawings, the applicable standards and an approved method statement. Anything affecting structural safety, shoring or falsework must be checked by a suitably qualified engineer.