Reference for one unit; displayed values may be rounded.
Feet per Second
Use a dot or comma for decimals, without thousands separators.
Meters per Second
Display rounding does not improve the accuracy of your original measurement. Very large or very small results use scientific notation.
Method and sourcefps to m/s Conversion Formula
To convert feet per second to meters per second, multiply the fps value by 0.3048. This is exact, because the international foot is defined as precisely 0.3048 meters.
Feet per Second and Meters per Second Explained
Feet per Second (ft/s)
The foot per second (fps, ft/s) is the speed of covering one international foot each second, equal to exactly 0.3048 m/s and about 0.681818 mph. It is the native unit of US shooting sports and pocket ballistics: airgun pellets leave the muzzle at 500-900 fps, handgun rounds at 900-1350 fps, and full-power rifle bullets at 2500-3200 fps, with the sound barrier sitting at 1125 fps in warm air.
Where it is used: It dominates American ammunition boxes, chronograph readouts, airsoft and paintball field rules, and US engineering handbooks that tabulate velocities per second.
Origin: It builds on the foot, whose length varied across jurisdictions until the 1959 international agreement fixed it at exactly 0.3048 meters.
Meters per Second (m/s)
The meter per second (m/s) is the SI derived unit of velocity — meters traveled per second — with 1 fps equal to 0.3048 m/s and 1 m/s equal to 3.28084 fps. Its scale covers the physics of flight and machinery: a 91.44 m/s paintball, 381 m/s pistol round, 853.44 m/s rifle bullet, and 343 m/s sound wave in air all read naturally in m/s, which is why ballistic coefficient tables and drag models are computed in SI.
Where it is used: It is standard in scientific ballistics, European reloading manuals, ISO engineering documents, physics education, and metrology labs worldwide.
Origin: It rests on the meter, born in 1790s France and redefined in 1983 via the distance light travels in 1/299,792,458 of a second.
fps to m/s Conversion Table
Select a value to use it in the calculator.
| Feet per Second (ft/s) | Meters per Second (m/s) |
|---|---|
| 3.048 m/s | |
| 7.62 m/s | |
| 15.24 m/s | |
| 30.48 m/s | |
| 60.96 m/s | |
| 76.2 m/s | |
| 91.44 m/s | |
| 106.68 m/s | |
| 121.92 m/s | |
| 152.4 m/s | |
| 213.36 m/s | |
| 274.32 m/s | |
| 304.8 m/s | |
| 342.9 m/s | |
| 381 m/s | |
| 457.2 m/s | |
| 609.6 m/s | |
| 762 m/s | |
| 853.44 m/s | |
| 975.36 m/s |
Meters per Second to Feet per Second Conversion Table
| Meters per Second (m/s) | Feet per Second (ft/s) |
|---|---|
| 1 m/s | 3.280839895 ft/s |
| 5 m/s | 16.4041994751 ft/s |
| 10 m/s | 32.8083989501 ft/s |
| 30 m/s | 98.4251968504 ft/s |
| 50 m/s | 164.0419947507 ft/s |
| 91.4 m/s | 299.8687664042 ft/s |
| 100 m/s | 328.0839895013 ft/s |
| 200 m/s | 656.1679790026 ft/s |
| 250 m/s | 820.2099737533 ft/s |
| 300 m/s | 984.2519685039 ft/s |
| 343 m/s | 1125.3280839895 ft/s |
| 500 m/s | 1640.4199475066 ft/s |
| 1000 m/s | 3280.8398950131 ft/s |
Feet per Second to Meters per Second in Everyday Objects
Common real-world examples that make Feet per Second and Meters per Second easy to picture at a glance.
| Feet per Second (ft/s) | Meters per Second (m/s) | |
|---|---|---|
| Paintball field velocity limit | 300 ft/s | 91.44 m/s |
| Airsoft site velocity limit | 350 ft/s | 106.68 m/s |
| Full-power air rifle pellet | 900 ft/s | 274.32 m/s |
| Speed of sound in air | 1125 ft/s | 342.9 m/s |
| 9mm pistol muzzle velocity | 1250 ft/s | 381 m/s |
| .308 rifle muzzle velocity | 2800 ft/s | 853.44 m/s |
| .223 rifle muzzle velocity | 3200 ft/s | 975.36 m/s |
When You Need Feet per Second to Meters per Second Conversions
Meeting airgun and airsoft field limits
US fields chronograph in fps while European sites post m/s. A 300 fps (91.44 m/s) paintball ceiling or 350 fps (106.68 m/s) airsoft rule converts exactly, so borrowed guns pass tech checks on either continent.
Cross-referencing reloading manuals
US manuals list a .308 load at 2800 fps while its European edition prints 853.44 m/s. Converting fps to m/s lets handloaders compare charge tables and chrono logs across publishers without guesswork.
Setting up high-speed photography
Bullet-photography rigs trigger a flash microseconds after a sound sensor fires. Knowing a 1250 fps round travels 381 m/s sets the sensor-to-frame distance, since the timing geometry is computed in meters.
Converting US engineering handbooks
American fluid and piping references quote velocities like 5 fps (1.524 m/s) for drain self-cleansing, while ISO documents use m/s. Converting fps to m/s keeps hydraulic and pneumatic calculations dimensionally consistent.
Related Speed Conversions
How to Use
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1
Enter fps Value
Type the speed in feet per second — typical entries include airgun pellets (500-900 fps), pistol rounds (900-1350 fps), or rifle loads (2500-3200 fps)
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2
View m/s Result
The equivalent m/s value appears instantly. For example, a 1250 fps 9mm load converts to 381 m/s
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3
Copy or Swap
Copy the result or click Swap to convert m/s back to fps
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4
Compare With the Sound Barrier
Check your value against 343 m/s (1125 fps at 20°C) — anything below is subsonic and stays quiet with a suppressor; anything above breaks the barrier
Why Use Be Converter?
Instant Conversion
Get precise fps to m/s results in real-time as you type — ideal at the chronograph or while reading European ballistic tables
High Accuracy
Uses the exact definition 1 fps = 0.3048 m/s, anchored to the 1959 international foot agreement
Conversion Table
Quick reference for field limits: 300 fps = 91.44 m/s (paintball), 350 fps = 106.68 m/s (airsoft), and 1125 fps = 342.9 m/s (sound)
Bidirectional
Easily swap between fps and m/s with one click for reverse conversions
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Frequently Asked Questions
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About fps to m/s Converter
Our free online fps to m/s converter turns US ballistic and engineering velocities into SI units. Whether you are checking a 300 fps paintball limit against a field that posts 91.44 m/s, tuning an airsoft gun to a 350 fps (106.68 m/s) site rule, comparing your chronograph readings with European reloading manuals, timing a high-speed camera trigger against the 1125 fps sound barrier, or converting American fluid-handbook pipe velocities of 5 fps (1.524 m/s) for ISO calculations, this tool applies the exact definition 1 fps = 0.3048 m/s. Feet per second governs US ranges and handbooks; meters per second governs science — this converter joins them instantly.
Expert Tips for fps to m/s Conversion
Multiply by 0.3048 exactly: 343 m/s sound speed converts back to 1125.33 fps, so any supersonic rifle at 3000 fps is running 914.4 m/s — 2.67 times the barrier
Field-limit anchors: 300 fps = 91.44 m/s (paintball), 350 fps = 106.68 m/s (UK airsoft sites), 500 fps = 152.4 m/s (many airgun power ceilings abroad)
Suppressor math: anything under 1125 fps (342.9 m/s at 20°C) avoids the supersonic crack. Subsonic .22 LR near 1070 fps is 326.14 m/s — already below the line
Engineering crossover: US plumbing codes size drains around 2 fps (0.61 m/s) minimum velocity, while ISO literature quotes m/s directly — converting keeps hydraulic calcs consistent
High-speed photography: freezing a 1250 fps (381 m/s) bullet needs a flash around 1/50,000 s; knowing the m/s value sets your sound-trigger delay since the sensor geometry is metric
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