Volumetric Flow Rate Converter

By Suraj GiriUpdated 24 September 2026

This page converts a volumetric flow rate from one unit into another. Every value passes through the cubic metre per second, the SI unit volumetric flow rate is held in, and volumetric flow rate stays volumetric flow rate: a unit only converts inside its own dimension.

How do you convert a flow rate between litres per minute and cubic metres per second?

Pick the unit you have, pick the unit you want, and type the value. The page multiplies by the factor between the two and prints the arithmetic under the result, so the answer and the working are the same object.

1. Choose the unit your value is in. This page opens on the litre per minute.
2. Choose the unit you want it in. This page opens on the cubic metre per hour.
3. Type the value, or the value with its units, such as 100 L/min to m3/h. The result and the factor behind it appear together.
4. Read the working. It converts into the cubic metre per second first and out again, which is the same two lines you would write by hand.

Litres per minute and gallons per minute measure a flow rate, so for a volume on its own or another quantity, use the unit converter for every quantity.

Volumetric Flow Rate Conversion Table

One row per unit this page offers, each measured against the cubic metre per second. The last column says whether the factor is a definition or a reading of one.

Worked Examples

The questions the bank ranked highest for this page, answered with the working.

Common Volumetric Flow Rate Conversions

Each US customary or imperial unit on this page against the metric unit nearest it in size, both ways. Exact values print in full; the rest are rounded to 10 significant figures. Select one to load it into the converter.

• 1 US gal/min = 3.785411784 L/min
• 1 L/min = 0.2641720524 US gal/min
• 1 imp gal/min = 0.2727654 m3/h
• 1 m3/h = 3.666154138 imp gal/min
• 1 ft3/min = 1.699010796 m3/h
• 1 m3/h = 0.5885777787 ft3/min

Where These Factors Come From

Every factor above is read from the knowledge base rather than typed for the page, and every result is worked from those factors. These are the statements it holds for volumetric flow rate.

• Volumetric flow rate is volume divided by time, so its SI unit is the cubic metre per second. One cubic metre per second is 60 000 L/min, and one US gallon per minute is 3.785411784 L/min.
• Volumetric flow rate measures volume per unit of time; mass flow rate measures mass per unit of time. Converting between the two needs the density of the fluid, which this page does not assume.
• One litre is exactly one cubic decimetre, which is 0.001 m3, and one millilitre is one cubic centimetre.
• The US liquid gallon is exactly 231 cubic inches, which is 3.785411784 L. The imperial gallon is exactly 4.54609 L. They are different units and a recipe or fuel figure has to say which one it means.
• How this page reports a result result in the target flow unit; US and imperial gallons are listed separately

Volumetric or Mass Flow Rate?

Volumetric flow rate is volume per unit of time; mass flow rate is mass per unit of time. Going between them needs the density of the fluid, which this page does not have, so it converts volumetric units into volumetric units and nothing else.

• A rate per hour and a rate per second differ by the seconds in an hour, a far bigger step than a prefix, so check the time unit as closely as the volume unit.
• US and imperial gallons per minute are different units, so a pump figure in gpm needs to say which gallon it counts.

The rule behind this factor is the same for every unit - why a squared unit needs a squared factor.

Frequently Asked Questions

Related Conversions

• If you are measuring volume rather than volumetric flow rate, convert a volume between US and imperial gallons instead.
• If you are measuring mass rather than volumetric flow rate, mass in kilograms, pounds, ounces and stone instead.
• If you are measuring pressure rather than volumetric flow rate, pressure in pascals, bar and atmospheres instead.
• If you are measuring speed rather than volumetric flow rate, convert a flow velocity between m/s and ft/s instead.
• If you are measuring area rather than volumetric flow rate, convert square millimetres into square inches instead.
• If you are measuring parts-per ratio rather than volumetric flow rate, convert a dosing ratio between ppm and ppb instead.

The rest of the family sits on the converter index for every quantity.