What is short ton (US)?
A short ton is a unit of mass used primarily in the United States, equal to 2,000 pounds. It is used in industries such as mining, agriculture, and freight transportation.
Real-world uses
The short ton is the standard ton in US commerce and industry, used for coal, grain, and bulk commodity trading. HVAC cooling capacity was traditionally rated in tons (1 ton of refrigeration ≈ cooling of 1 short ton of ice per day).
History
The short ton of 2,000 pounds became standard in the United States as a simplified version of the older English long ton. It gained legal definition in US commerce during the 19th century and remains the default "ton" in American industry.
Common mistakes
Assuming "ton" means the same thing globally. In the US it means 2,000 lb (short ton), in the UK it traditionally meant 2,240 lb (long ton), and internationally it usually means 1,000 kg (metric tonne).
What is tonne?
A tonne, also known as a metric ton, is a unit of mass equal to 1,000 kilograms. It is used in industrial shipping, cargo measurement, and large-scale material production and trade.
Real-world uses
Tonnes (metric tons) are used globally for cargo shipping weights, industrial raw materials, agricultural harvest yields, and carbon emissions reporting. A standard shipping container might carry up to about 28 tonnes of cargo.
History
The tonne derives from the Old French "tonne" meaning a large cask. It was formalized in the metric system as exactly 1,000 kilograms. Though not an official SI unit, it is accepted for use with SI and is the global standard in trade.
Common mistakes
Confusing the metric tonne (1,000 kg) with the US short ton (907.18 kg) or the Imperial long ton (1,016.05 kg). Using "ton" ambiguously without specifying which system creates significant commercial errors.
When is this conversion used?
Converting between short ton (US) and tonne is common when working across metric and imperial systems, such as international trade, travel between countries with different measurement standards, or following instructions from a different region.
Worked examples
1 short ton (US) = 0.90718474 tonne
1 tonne = 1,000 kilogram
How to convert short ton (US) to tonne
To convert short ton (US) to tonne, multiply the value by 0.90718474.
To convert tonne back to short ton (US), multiply by 1.10231131.
Measurement standards
The kilogram is defined by fixing the Planck constant to exactly 6.62607015 × 10⁻³⁴ joule-seconds, as established at the 26th General Conference on Weights and Measures in 2018. This ended the last SI definition based on a physical artefact.
Did you know?
The International Prototype of the Kilogram, a platinum-iridium cylinder stored near Paris since 1889, was found to have drifted by about 50 micrograms relative to its copies over a century — roughly the mass of a fingerprint.
Quick reference: short ton (US) to tonne
| short ton (US) | tonne |
|---|---|
| 0.1 | 0.09071847 |
| 0.5 | 0.45359237 |
| 1 | 0.90718474 |
| 2 | 1.81436948 |
| 5 | 4.5359237 |
| 10 | 9.0718474 |
| 25 | 22.6796185 |
| 50 | 45.359237 |
| 100 | 90.718474 |
| 250 | 226.796185 |
| 500 | 453.59237 |
| 1,000 | 907.18474 |
Common values
| short ton (US) | tonne | |
|---|---|---|
| A paperclip | 0.00110231 short ton (US) | 0.001 tonne |
| A smartphone | 0.19290448 short ton (US) | 0.175 tonne |
| A bag of sugar | 0.00110231 short ton (US) | 0.001 tonne |
| Average adult human | 0.07716179 short ton (US) | 0.07 tonne |
| A small car | 1.32277357 short ton (US) | 1.2 tonne |