Tonnes to Pounds Converter

A metric tonne is 1,000 kilograms, or 2,204.62 pounds:

pounds = tonnes × 2204.62262

The word "ton" is doing three different jobs, and mixing them up is a several-percent error:

Unit	Pounds	Kilograms
Metric tonne	2,204.62	1,000
US short ton	2,000	907.18
UK long ton	2,240	1,016.05

This converter uses the metric tonne. A US short ton is 9.8% lighter, and a British long ton is 1.6% heavier. Freight quotes, emissions figures and scrap prices are all quoted per "ton" without always saying which — on a 40-tonne load that ambiguity is over 8,000 lb.

The spellings are a partial guide: tonne almost always means metric, while ton usually means short in American usage and long in older British usage.

Worked examples:

• 1 tonne → 2,204.62 lb
• 2 tonnes (a large SUV) → 4,409.25 lb
• 40 tonnes (a fully laden articulated lorry, the EU limit) → 88,184.9 lb, against the 80,000 lb US federal limit — which is 36.3 tonnes, so European trucks run about 10% heavier
• CO₂ emissions are reported in metric tonnes worldwide; an average petrol car emits about 4.6 tonnes a year, or 10,141 lb

To convert back, divide pounds by 2,204.62 — or divide by 2,000 if the figure was a US short ton.