The Easiest Way to Convert KG Weight Plates to LB (& Vice-Versa)

The weight room shouldn’t feel like math class.

But if you’re lifting in a facility with plates measured in a unit you’re unfamiliar with, your workouts can start to feel like homework — and that’s the last thing you need when you’re trying to lock in for a new personal record.

Luckily, converting kilograms (KG) to pounds (LB) and back again is a lot easier than you think once you get the hang of it. We’ll show you how; this article is your cheat sheet. 

KG to LB Conversion Calculator

In a hurry? Use our handy calculator below to quickly convert kilogram weights to pounds:

KG to LB Conversion Chart

What you need to know: One kilogram is roughly equal to 2.2 pounds. 

The actual value is 1KG = 2.20462LB, but who wants to type all that every time? When you’re in the middle of a heavy-duty training session, your hands might be shaking, there’s probably sweat in your eyes, and the last thing you want to do is break out the calculator every few minutes. 

When it comes to working with weight plates, exact conversions aren’t necessary — most gyms don’t carry plates lighter than 1KG or 2.5LB, which prevents you from loading plates by the pound or kilogram, or exactly what you need. 

The KG plate chart below illustrates a common 20kg bar plus weight in both KG and LB: 

Common Weight Plate Conversions 

Whether you’re working out in a big box gym or a hardcore powerlifting facility, you’ll need to be able to do mental math on the fly if you want your workouts to be quick and efficient. 

Experienced strength athletes can glance at a loaded barbell and instantly know what it weighs. How? Weight plates are often color-coordinated. If you’ve ever seen an Olympic lifter on stage, their barbell looks like a rainbow when it’s loaded up with bumper plates. 

• Red plates weigh 25KG / 55.1LB

• Blue plates weigh 20KG / 44LB

• Yellow plates weigh 15KG / 33LB

• Green plates weigh 10KG / 22LB

• White plates weigh 5KG / 11LB

One big thing: Change plates are smaller versions of full-sized colored weight plates. They follow the same color coordination, you just have to move the imaginary decimal place back one digit. If a “big red” is 25KG, a small red change plate would be 2.5KG, or 5.5LB.

If your weight plates aren’t color-coordinated, like calibrated weight plates and Olympic weight plates, all you need to do is…

• From KG to LB: Multiply the weight by 2.2.

• From LB to KG: Divide the weight by 2.2.

…And then load the closest possible weight onto the bar. 

Bar & Collar Weights

Whenever you’re calculating the amount of weight you need to lift, or telling someone what your 1-rep-max is, you always include the weight of the barbell. 

Standard barbells come in either 20KG (44LB), or 45LB (20.4KG) weights.

What about collars?: Competition collars, which keep the plates snug on the bar, weigh 2.5KG, or 5.5LB. Commercial gyms will usually only have clips, which are light enough that you don’t need to really worry about them when calculating the weight you need. 

Your Takeaways

Weight plates come in both kilograms and pounds. Depending on the type of equipment you have access to, you'll need to be able to do some quick mental math during your workouts. 

• Both KG and LB plates are often, but not always, color-coordinated. 
• Colored kilogram plates are most commonly found in powerlifting and Olympic lifting gyms, and are used in competition as well.
• The quickest way to convert KG plates to LBs is to divide the weight by 2.2 — to go the other way, just multiply! 

FAQs

Are 45LB plates the same as 20KG plates?

Almost, but not exactly. The standard full-sized weight plate you'll find in most gyms weighs either 45LB (20.5KG) or 20KG (44LB). They're basically identical, but the values begin to drift away from each other as you add more weight to the bar. For example, four 45LB weight plates on a bar weighs 405LB—four 20KG plates on a bar weighs 397LB.

Are all weight plates color-coordinated?

No. Color can vary between brand, and many bumper plates are all-black—you'll see those in CrossFit gyms most of the time. For strength athletes or in competition venues, the color coordination always holds up. 

How much does a plate weigh?

Common Olympic plates can be identified based on their color: white 5kg(11lb), green 10kg(22lb), yellow 15kg(33lb), blue 20kg(44lb), and red 25kg(55lb).

How much do red plates weigh?

Red plates weigh 25kg (55lbs).

How much is 2 plates?

To calculate the weight of two plates, simply multiply the weight of one plate by two. Knowing this is useful because you'll usually load the bar with equal plates on both sides.

Jake Dickson holds a B.S. degree in Exercise Science and is a NASM-CPT. As a health & wellness writer, Jake focuses on making fitness practical and accessible for any audience. Off the clock, you can find Jake at the gym or unwinding by the beach.

This article was reviewed by Noah Tenebaum, MS Applied Physiology and Kinesiology, CSCS, FMS-L1, FMS-YBT, FMS-FCS, and Rosie Borchert, NASM-CPT, for accuracy.