Knots to mph and km/h: converter and wind table
Type a speed or a wind strength in one unit and read it in the others. One knot is 1.852 km/h, or about 1.15 mph. Below: a table from 1 to 60 knots with the Beaufort force, and the wind that riders really go out in.
How to convert knots
- Knots to km/h: multiply by 1.85220 kn × 1.852 = 37.04 km/h
- Knots to mph: multiply by 1.150820 kn × 1.1508 = 23.02 mph
- Knots to m/s: multiply by 0.514420 kn × 0.5144 = 10.29 m/s
- km/h to knots: divide by 1.85250 km/h ÷ 1.852 = 27 kn
- mph to knots: divide by 1.150830 mph ÷ 1.1508 = 26.07 kn
- In your head: double the knots, then take off a tenth20 kn → 40 − 4 = 36 km/h
Knots conversion table: 1 to 60 kn
Speeds and wind strengths in knots, with the same value in mph, km/h and metres per second. The last column is the Beaufort force of a wind of that strength.
| Knots | mph | km/h | m/s | Beaufort |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 kn | 1.15 | 1.85 | 0.51 | 1 · light air |
| 2 kn | 2.30 | 3.70 | 1.03 | 1 · light air |
| 3 kn | 3.45 | 5.56 | 1.54 | 1 · light air |
| 4 kn | 4.60 | 7.41 | 2.06 | 2 · light breeze |
| 5 kn | 5.75 | 9.26 | 2.57 | 2 · light breeze |
| 6 kn | 6.90 | 11.11 | 3.09 | 2 · light breeze |
| 7 kn | 8.06 | 12.96 | 3.60 | 3 · gentle breeze |
| 8 kn | 9.21 | 14.82 | 4.12 | 3 · gentle breeze |
| 9 kn | 10.36 | 16.67 | 4.63 | 3 · gentle breeze |
| 10 kn | 11.51 | 18.52 | 5.14 | 3 · gentle breeze |
| 12 kn | 13.81 | 22.22 | 6.17 | 4 · moderate breeze |
| 14 kn | 16.11 | 25.93 | 7.20 | 4 · moderate breeze |
| 15 kn | 17.26 | 27.78 | 7.72 | 4 · moderate breeze |
| 16 kn | 18.41 | 29.63 | 8.23 | 4 · moderate breeze |
| 18 kn | 20.71 | 33.34 | 9.26 | 5 · fresh breeze |
| 20 kn | 23.02 | 37.04 | 10.29 | 5 · fresh breeze |
| 22 kn | 25.32 | 40.74 | 11.32 | 6 · strong breeze |
| 25 kn | 28.77 | 46.30 | 12.86 | 6 · strong breeze |
| 28 kn | 32.22 | 51.86 | 14.40 | 7 · near gale |
| 30 kn | 34.52 | 55.56 | 15.43 | 7 · near gale |
| 35 kn | 40.28 | 64.82 | 18.01 | 8 · gale |
| 40 kn | 46.03 | 74.08 | 20.58 | 8 · gale |
| 45 kn | 51.79 | 83.34 | 23.15 | 9 · strong gale |
| 50 kn | 57.54 | 92.60 | 25.72 | 10 · storm |
| 55 kn | 63.29 | 101.86 | 28.29 | 10 · storm |
| 60 kn | 69.05 | 111.12 | 30.87 | 11 · violent storm |
How much wind do riders go out in?
The average wind of 329,988 sessions recorded with Waterspeed and shared to its leaderboard, January – November 2026. The wind is the forecast for the place and time of each session, not a measurement on the water.
| Sport | Sessions | Average wind | mph | km/h | Beaufort |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kitesurf | 16,560 | 12.6 kn | 14.5 | 23.3 | 4 · moderate breeze |
| Windsurf | 86,260 | 12.2 kn | 14.0 | 22.6 | 4 · moderate breeze |
| Wing foil | 103,874 | 10.9 kn | 12.5 | 20.2 | 4 · moderate breeze |
| Windfoil | 19,823 | 9.9 kn | 11.4 | 18.3 | 3 · gentle breeze |
| Sailing | 63,025 | 7.3 kn | 8.4 | 13.5 | 3 · gentle breeze |
| SUP | 28,246 | 6.3 kn | 7.2 | 11.7 | 2 · light breeze |
| Rowing | 3,633 | 6.0 kn | 6.9 | 11.1 | 2 · light breeze |
| Kayak | 8,567 | 5.6 kn | 6.4 | 10.4 | 2 · light breeze |
Your own speed, in the unit you want
Waterspeed records your session with GPS and shows your speed in knots, km/h or mph, and the wind in knots, km/h, mph or m/s. Do you have a track already? Open the GPX or FIT file in the free viewer and read your top speed and best runs in knots or km/h.
Questions
How many mph is 1 knot?
One knot is 1.1508 miles per hour. Multiply the knots by 1.1508 to get mph: 10 knots is 11.5 mph, 20 knots is 23 mph and 30 knots is 34.5 mph.
How many km/h is 1 knot?
One knot is exactly 1.852 km/h, because one nautical mile is exactly 1,852 metres. 10 knots is 18.52 km/h, 20 knots is 37.04 km/h and 30 knots is 55.56 km/h.
What is a knot?
A knot is a unit of speed: one nautical mile per hour. A nautical mile is 1,852 metres, which is one minute of latitude on a chart. The symbol is kn.
Are knots faster than mph?
Yes. One knot is about 15% more than one mile per hour, because a nautical mile of 1,852 metres is longer than a statute mile of 1,609 metres.
Why do sailors use knots and not km/h or mph?
Because sea charts are measured in nautical miles: one nautical mile is one minute of latitude. A distance on the chart and a speed in knots fit together with no conversion. The name comes from the log line of the 17th century, a rope with knots at regular intervals that ran out behind the ship.
Is 20 knots a lot of wind?
20 knots is 37 km/h or 23 mph: Beaufort force 5, a fresh breeze. It is well above the average of recorded sessions. In the Waterspeed sessions of January – November 2026, the average forecast wind was 12.6 knots for kitesurf, 12.2 knots for windsurf and 10.9 knots for wing foil.
How do I see the speed of a GPS track in knots?
Open the GPX or FIT file in the free Waterspeed viewer. It shows top speed, best 10 seconds and best 500 m in knots or km/h, in your browser, with no account.
Which units does the Waterspeed app use?
You choose. Speed is shown in knots, km/h or mph, and wind in knots, km/h, mph or m/s. On iPhone and Apple Watch you set the units in the settings of the app.
Units: NOAA · Beaufort scale: US National Weather Service · Wind by sport: sessions of the Waterspeed leaderboard