CGS System of Units Converter: Length, Mass, Force & Energy

CGS System of Units Converter

Convert CGS units to SI & common equivalents

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The CGS system (centimeter–gram–second) is an older metric system of units, largely superseded by the SI system (meter–kilogram–second) for everyday and engineering use. CGS units such as the dyne (force) and erg (energy) are still commonly used in physics, astronomy and electromagnetism.

Pick a Quantity below (Length, Mass, Force or Energy), then choose the units to convert between.

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The dyne and erg still appear regularly in physics, astronomy, and electromagnetism, even though everyday engineering has moved to SI, this converter switches between CGS units and their SI/common equivalents.

How to use this CGS system converter

Choose a Quantity: Length, Mass, Force, or Energy.
Select the units to convert between.
Enter your value and read the converted result.

What this converter does

The CGS system (centimeter-gram-second) is an older metric system of units, largely superseded by the SI system (meter-kilogram-second) for everyday and engineering use. CGS units such as the dyne (force) and erg (energy) are still commonly used in physics, astronomy, and electromagnetism.

1 dyne = 10⁻⁵ newtons (SI force)
1 erg = 10⁻⁷ joules (SI energy)

Why CGS persists in specific scientific fields

Despite SI’s dominance in general engineering, CGS units remain deeply embedded in certain areas of theoretical physics and astrophysics, where historical convention, existing literature, and certain formula simplifications (particularly in electromagnetism) have kept CGS in active use. Researchers and students working in these fields regularly need to translate between CGS and SI figures, which is exactly what this converter handles.

Frequently asked questions

What is a dyne, and how does it relate to the newton?

A dyne is the CGS unit of force, equal to 10⁻⁵ newtons (the SI unit of force), it’s a much smaller unit since it’s based on centimeters and grams rather than meters and kilograms.

Why hasn’t CGS been fully replaced by SI?

Certain fields, particularly astrophysics and parts of electromagnetism, retain CGS units due to historical convention, existing published literature, and specific formula simplifications that CGS provides in those contexts.