A kilowatt-hour (unit symbol: kW⋅h or kW h; commonly written as kWh) is a non-SI unit of energy equal to 3.6 megajoules (MJ) in SI units, which is the energy delivered by one kilowatt of power for one hour.
What is a Kilowatt-Hour? A kilowatt-hour is a unit of measure for energy usage. It’s one kilowatt of power (1000 watts) used for one hour. It’s abbreviated as kWh. It’s not the number of kilowatts you’re using in an hour, even though that seems to make sense.
What is a kilowatt hour (kWh)? Learn how electricity is measured, how appliances use kWh, and how to calculate your energy costs.
kW stands for kilowatt and it’s the same as 1,000 watts. It’s a measure of how much power an appliance needs to run. For example, a 1,000 watt vacuum cleaner is also a 1 kW vacuum cleaner. A kWh stands for kilowatt hour. It’s how you measure energy use. 1 kWh is the amount of energy it takes to run a 1,000 watt appliance for an hour.
What is a kWh and how much does electricity cost per kWh?
Kilowatt-hour is an energy unit (symbol kWh or kW⋅h). One kilowatt-hour is defined as the energy consumed by power consumption of 1kW during 1 hour: One kilowatt-hour is equal to 3.6⋅10 6 joules: The energy E in kilowatt-hour (kWh) is equal to the power P in kilowatts (kW), times the time t in hours (h).
Learn what a kWh means, how to calculate electricity usage, and reduce your energy bills. Complete guide with examples, calculators, and expert tips.