Gallons to Liters (gal to l) Conversion, 1 gal is 3.7854 L

Gallons and litres are two ways to measure the volume of liquids. In countries like the United States and a few others, gallons are the standard unit, whereas litres are commonly used in most parts of the world. There are two types of gallons: the imperial gallon, which is about 4.546 litres and used in the UK and some other countries, and the US gallon, which is a bit smaller and equals about 3.785 litres. 

On the other hand, a litre is a standard measurement worldwide and fits well into the International System of Units that scientists like to use. If you want to compare, one litre is the same as 0.22 of an imperial gallon or about 0.26 of a US gallon. People prefer using litres for international items and science experiments because they’re straightforward and the same everywhere.

This blog will teach you how to convert gallons into litres with examples.

What is a Gallon?

A gallon is a common unit of volume in imperial units and the United States customary units. There are 3 different kinds of gallon which are used today namely, imperial gallon, US gallon, and the US dry gallon. A gallon has four quarts and a total of eight pints that have different volumes in the different systems. 

History of Gallon

The gallon’s story is quite interesting. It goes way back to ancient times when people used different-sized gallons based on the size of containers they had, like jugs. Then, in 1824, the British made a standard gallon based on how much ten pounds of water filled it at a certain temperature. They used this standard all across their empire. In the United States, they had a different gallon based on the wine jugs used in the late 1700s. They stuck with it because of their trade history with Britain. So, even today, the British and the United States use different gallons.

Current use of Gallon

The imperial gallon as of 2021 is still used as the standard unit of petrol in four of the British Overseas Territories. It is also the standard unit in six countries including Antigua and Barbuda, Grenada, Saint Lucia and others. A better way to understand this is that the countries which use imperial gallons also use miles per hour for the speed limit and drive on the left side of the road. 

The US gallon on the other hand is issued in the United States along with countries like Liberia, Haiti, Colombia, Belize and others. 

What is a Liter? 

Litre is a metric unit of volume. The value of one litre is commensurate to one-thousandth of a cubic metre. Litre was used as a base unit in the elementary French system of metric systems. A litre has the volume of a cube which means 10 cm x 10 cm x 10 cm. Therefore, 1 litre = 1000 cm3 and one litre = 0.2641720524 gallons. 

This unit of volume is acceptable with the International System of Units, even though it is not a SI unit. 

History of Liter

The liter is a measurement unit with a simple history. It was created during the French Revolution to make measurements standard and easy. A liter is the same as the volume of one small box (10 centimeters on each side). This was chosen because it’s easy to work with, especially in decimals. Many countries around the world liked this idea and agreed to use it. They signed a treaty called the Convention of the Meter in 1875 to make it official. So, a liter is a common way to measure liquids, and it’s part of the international measurement system.

Current use of Litre

Litre is majorly used for the items that can be poured (these items can be solid or fluid). These items are measured by the size or capacity of the containers. It is also used to measure the non-liquid volumes like backpacks, car trunks, etc.  

Relation between Gallon and Litre

It is not rocket science to understand the relation between gallon and litre. Read on to understand the simple concept and train yourself to convert 1 gallon into litres. But how many litres are there in a gallon? You will also be able to convert one gallon to liter in other figures or volumes. 1 gallon is equal to 3.785411784 liters. And, if we see it in the other way, 1 liter is equal to 0.2641720524 gallons. By understanding this relation you will be able to work on the formula yourself. 

How to convert gallons into litres?

Now that you have become familiar with the basic concepts of gallon and litres, you can easily convert 1 gallon into litres. To convert a gallon into litres, multiply the gallon figure by 3.785411784 and you will get the result in litres. 

Formula for Converting Gallons to litres

The formula for converting 1 gallon of water in litres is 

Litre = Gallon x 3.785411784

Example of Gallon into Litres

By using the above formula let’s look at an example to convert US gallons to litres. 

Example: 8 gallons to litres

Solution: Inserting the value of a gallon in the above formula we will get: 

Litre = 8 x 3.785411784 = 30.2833 litres

Hence, 8 gallons are equal to 30.2833 litres. 

Don’t miss It!

• Gallon to Milliliter (gal to ml) Conversion, 1 gal is 3785.41 ml
• Liters to Gallons (L to Gal) Conversion – 1 L is 0.264172 Gal
• Cups to Gallons (c to gal) Conversion – 1 C is 0.0625 Gal
• Cups to Liters (c to l) Conversion – 1 cup is 0.236588 l
• Liters to Cubic Meters Conversion Formula and Process

Gallon into Litres Conversion Table 

Difference between Gallon and Litre

Find below a table that clearly differentiates the gallon and litre in their characteristics. 

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