In 1 terawatts there are 1,000,000,000 kilowatts. Meanwhile in 1 kilowatts there are 1.00000e-9 terawatts. Keep reading to learn more about each unit of measure and how they are calculated. Or just use the Kilowatts to Terawatts calculator above to convert any number.
* Values rounded to 6 decimal places for readability
To convert terawatts (TW) to kilowatts (kW), use the metric prefixes.
Since both use watts as the base unit, divide the powers of ten:
Examples
A terawatt (TW) is a unit of power equal to one trillion watts. It measures how fast energy is used or produced. Terawatts are common for large-scale power, like national electric use.
A kilowatt (kW) is a unit of power equal to 1,000 watts. It’s used for everyday power needs, like home appliances, heaters, and small solar systems.
1 terawatt equals 1,000,000,000 kilowatts.
1 TW = 10⁹ kW
Multiply terawatts by 1,000,000,000.
kW = TW × 1,000,000,000
Divide kilowatts by 1,000,000,000.
TW = kW ÷ 1,000,000,000
Terawatts measure very large power levels. Kilowatts measure smaller, everyday loads. The jump from trillion-watt scale to thousand-watt scale creates a factor of one billion.
Write the factor first: 1 TW = 1,000,000,000 kW.
Then multiply and count zeros, or use powers of ten (10⁹). Keeping the units in the equation helps avoid errors.
TW is a measure of power, not energy. Power is the rate of energy use. Energy is measured in units like kilowatt-hours (kWh) or terawatt-hours (TWh).
A terawatt (TW) is power at a moment in time. A terawatt-hour (TWh) is energy over time.
If a system runs at 1 TW for 1 hour, it uses 1 TWh of energy.
Use terawatts for very large totals, like a country’s power demand or global power use. Use kilowatts for smaller systems, like building loads, generators, and solar arrays.
Yes. Even small decimals in terawatts turn into large values in kilowatts.
For example, 0.001 TW = 1,000,000 kW.
Common errors include:
1 TW = 1 × 10⁹ kW
Scientific notation makes large values easier to read and reduces zero-count mistakes.
No. Terawatts and kilowatts are standard metric units. The conversion is always the same, no matter the location or the power source.
The Calculate Box tool to convert terawatts to kilowatts uses the open source script Convert.js to convert units of measurement. To use this tool, simply type a terawatts value in the box and have it instantly converted to kilowatts.