In 1 poundals there are 0.0000310810 kip. Meanwhile in 1 kip there are 32,174.037829 poundals. Keep reading to learn more about each unit of measure and how they are calculated. Or just use the Kip to Poundals calculator above to convert any number.
* Values rounded to 6 decimal places for readability
To convert poundals (pdl) to kips (kip), use a simple force-unit conversion.
Conversion formula (poundals to kip):
Example:
Use this method any time you need an accurate poundal to kip conversion.
A poundal is a unit of force in the foot-pound-second (FPS) system. It is the force needed to speed up a 1-pound mass by 1 foot per second squared (1 ft/s²). Poundals show up most often in older physics and engineering work.
A kip is a unit of force equal to 1,000 pounds-force (lbf). It’s used a lot in structural engineering in the US. You’ll see kips for loads on beams, columns, and connections.
Poundals and kips both measure force, but they come from different force definitions. The poundal is tied to pound-mass and acceleration. The kip is tied to pounds-force and is scaled up by 1,000.
Use this relationship:
Multiply poundals by the kip-per-poundal factor:
Example:
Multiply kips by poundals per kip:
Example:
32.174049 is the standard gravity value in feet per second squared (ft/s²). It links pound-mass and pounds-force in the FPS system. That link is why poundals (based on acceleration) convert to pounds-force, and then to kips.
A poundal is a unit of force. It can look confusing because it uses the word “pound.” In FPS units, pound-mass (lbm) is mass, pounds-force (lbf) is force, and the poundal (pdl) is also force.
Poundals are rare in modern practice. Most US engineering work uses lbf and kips. Poundals may still appear in older textbooks, notes, or legacy calculations.
Both are force units. The kip is just a larger unit:
This makes big loads easier to read and write.
There are 32,174.049 poundals in 1 kip. If you only need a quick estimate, you can use 32,174 pdl per kip.
Use more digits during the math and round at the end. For many engineering uses, rounding to 4 to 6 decimal places in kips is enough, but it depends on your tolerance and load size.
Confirm you are working with force, not mass. Poundals convert to kips through pounds-force. If your value is in pound-mass (lbm) or comes from mass times acceleration in mixed units, fix the units first.
Yes. Force can be negative if it points in the opposite direction of your chosen sign. The conversion factor stays the same; only the sign carries through.
The Calculate Box tool to convert poundals to kip uses the open source script Convert.js to convert units of measurement. To use this tool, simply type a poundals value in the box and have it instantly converted to kip.