What TNT equivalent means
TNT equivalent is a way of expressing an amount of energy by comparing it to the energy released by exploding a given mass of TNT (trinitrotoluene), a common reference explosive. It is widely used to describe the energy of explosions, impacts, and other energetic events.
The formula used
By international convention, one kilogram of TNT releases approximately 4,184,000 joules (4.184 megajoules) of energy. This calculator divides the entered energy in joules by that value to find the equivalent mass of TNT, then converts to metric tons or kilotons if selected (1 kiloton = 1,000,000 kg of TNT).
This is an energy-equivalence convention, not a claim about actual explosive composition or chemistry. For general physics education purposes.
Last reviewed August 2026