Kilograms to Pounds

About this conversion

This conversion matters whenever an American reads metric numbers. A scale in a European hotel displays kilograms, a Canadian recipe asks for 500 g of flour, a French supermarket sells produce by the kilo, and a medical report from abroad lists a patient's weight in kilograms. Without a quick conversion the numbers stay abstract: is 68 kg a light, normal or heavy body weight? Turning it into about 150 lb makes it instantly familiar. The same applies to luggage measured at 23 kg abroad, gym plates molded in kilograms and newborn babies announced at 3.4 kg. Since 1959 the pound has been defined in terms of the kilogram, exactly 0.45359237 kg, so converting kilograms to pounds is the mathematically exact reverse of the familiar pounds-to-kilograms chart. The table below lists the weights people check most often.

Quick reference

Common values at a glance

Real-world example

Questions & answers

Frequently asked questions