Cubic Feet to Cubic Meters Converter

How to Convert Cubic Feet to Cubic Meters

To convert a volume measurement from cubic feet to cubic meters, divide the volume by the conversion factor. Since one cubic foot is equal to 0.028317 cubic meters, you can use this formula:

The volume in cubic meters is equal to the cubic feet divided by 35.31467.

How Many Cubic Meters Are in a Cubic Foot?

There are 0.028317 cubic meters in one cubic foot.

What Is a Cubic Foot?

The cubic foot (symbol: ft³) is a unit of volume in the US customary and imperial systems equal to the volume of a cube with sides of exactly one foot. One cubic foot contains exactly 1,728 cubic inches and equals approximately 28.3168 litres. Cubic feet are commonly used in the United States for measuring the capacity of refrigerators, freezers, ovens, and other appliances. They are also used for natural gas consumption (billing is often per 100 cubic feet or per therm), HVAC airflow (cubic feet per minute, CFM), and the volume of rooms and buildings. In construction, concrete volume is sometimes estimated in cubic feet before being ordered in cubic yards. Firewood is measured in cords (128 ft³) and fractions thereof. One cubic foot holds approximately 7.48 US gallons of liquid. The volume of a standard bathtub is roughly 10–15 cubic feet, and a typical household refrigerator has a capacity of 18–25 cubic feet.

One cubic foot is equal to:

• 1,728 cubic inches (in³)
• 0.037037 cubic yards (yd³)
• 7.480519 gallons (gal)
• 28.31685 litres (L)
• 28,316.85 millilitres (mL)
• 28,316.85 cubic centimetres (cm³)
• 0.028317 cubic metres (m³)

What Is a Cubic Meter?

The cubic metre (symbol: m³) is the SI derived unit of volume, equal to the volume of a cube with sides of exactly one metre. One cubic metre equals 1,000 litres, 1,000,000 millilitres, or 1,000,000 cubic centimetres. The cubic metre is the standard unit of volume in the International System of Units and is used in science, engineering, and industry worldwide. Water consumption, natural gas usage, reservoir capacity, and industrial tank volumes are measured in cubic metres. In construction and civil engineering, excavation volumes, concrete pours, and earth-moving quantities are specified in cubic metres in metric countries. A standard swimming pool might hold 50–200 m³ of water. A shipping container (20 ft standard) has an internal volume of approximately 33 m³. One cubic metre of water has a mass of approximately 1,000 kg (1 metric tonne) at 4 °C. This relationship makes the cubic metre convenient for estimating the weight of water and aqueous solutions. Rainfall is sometimes expressed in cubic metres per unit area.

One cubic meter is equal to:

• 1,000 litres (L)
• 1,000,000 millilitres (mL)
• 1,000,000 cubic centimetres (cm³)
• 61,023.74 cubic inches (in³)
• 35.31467 cubic feet (ft³)
• 1.307951 cubic yards (yd³)
• 264.1721 gallons (gal)

Understanding Volume Units

Volume is a measure of the three-dimensional space occupied by a substance or enclosed within a container. It is a fundamental physical quantity used in cooking, science, engineering, construction, medicine, and everyday life.

Volume units fall into two broad families: metric units (based on the litre and cubic metre) and US customary/imperial units (based on the gallon and cubic foot). While the metric system is used by most of the world, the US customary system remains dominant in the United States for everyday measurements.

US Customary Volume Units

• Cooking measures: The teaspoon (tsp), tablespoon (tbsp), cup, pint (pt), quart (qt), and gallon (gal) form a system of nested units. There are 3 tsp in 1 tbsp, 16 tbsp in 1 cup, 2 cups in 1 pint, 2 pints in 1 quart, and 4 quarts in 1 gallon.
• Fluid ounces: The fluid ounce (fl oz) bridges cooking and commercial measurement. One cup = 8 fl oz. Beverage containers are labelled in fluid ounces.
• Cubic measures: Cubic inches (in³), cubic feet (ft³), and cubic yards (yd³) are used in construction, shipping, and engineering. One cubic foot = 1,728 cubic inches, and one cubic yard = 27 cubic feet.

Metric Volume Units

• Litre (L): The fundamental metric volume unit for everyday use. Equal to 1,000 mL, 1,000 cm³, or 0.001 m³.
• Millilitre (mL) / Cubic centimetre (cm³): These two units are exactly equal (1 mL = 1 cm³). Used for small volumes in cooking, medicine, and science.
• Cubic metre (m³): The SI derived unit of volume. Equal to 1,000 litres. Used for large-scale measurements in construction, water management, and industry.

Key Relationships

• 1 US gallon = 231 cubic inches = 3.785412 litres (exact)
• 1 litre = 1,000 millilitres = 1,000 cubic centimetres (exact)
• 1 cubic metre = 1,000 litres (exact)
• 1 cubic foot = 1,728 cubic inches = 28.31685 litres = 7.480519 gallons
• 1 cubic yard = 27 cubic feet = 764.555 litres
• 1 millilitre = 1 cubic centimetre (exact by definition)

Tips for Volume Conversions

• For US cooking conversions, remember the chain: 3 tsp = 1 tbsp, 2 tbsp = 1 fl oz, 8 fl oz = 1 cup, 2 cups = 1 pint, 2 pints = 1 quart, 4 quarts = 1 gallon.
• Quick metric-to-US approximation: 1 litre ≈ 1.06 quarts, or about 4.23 cups. A litre is slightly more than a quart.
• Quick US-to-metric approximation: 1 gallon ≈ 3.79 litres, or roughly 3.8 litres. Think “a gallon is about 4 litres” for rough estimates.
• 1 millilitre and 1 cubic centimetre are exactly the same volume. Use whichever is conventional in your field (mL in cooking/medicine, cm³ in engineering/automotive).
• For cubic measure conversions, remember that volume scales as the cube of length: 1 ft³ = 12³ = 1,728 in³, and 1 yd³ = 3³ = 27 ft³.
• US fluid ounces are NOT the same as weight ounces. One fluid ounce of water weighs about 1.043 oz. The names are similar but the measurements are different.
• US gallons are NOT the same as imperial (UK) gallons. The US gallon is 3.785 L, while the imperial gallon is 4.546 L — about 20% larger.
• The “metric cup” (250 mL) used in Australia is slightly larger than the US cup (236.6 mL). When following international recipes, check which cup standard is intended.

Cubic Feet to Cubic Meters Conversion Table

The following table shows conversions from cubic feet to cubic meters.

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