Decibel (dB) Power & Voltage Converter
Convert between dBm, Watts, mW, dBV, and Volts for any reference impedance (Z₀) in real time.
Conversion Settings
Ω
Common Reference Impedances:
- RF systems: 50Ω (standard)
- Cable TV / antenna: 75Ω
- Audio / telephone: 600Ω
- RF systems: 50Ω (standard)
- Cable TV / antenna: 75Ω
- Audio / telephone: 600Ω
Conversion Results
Power (dBm)10.00dBm
Power (W)0.010W
Power (mW)10.00mW
Voltage (dBV)-3.010dBV
Voltage (V)0.707V
Key Decibel Conversion Formulas
• dBm = 10 × log₁₀(mW)
• mW = 10^(dBm/10)
• dBV = 20 × log₁₀(Volts)
• Volts = 10^(dBV/20)
• Power-voltage: P = V² / Z₀
Why Engineers Use Decibels
The decibel (dB) compresses an enormous dynamic range — from microwatt receiver sensitivity to kilowatt motor drive power — into a manageable log scale. It lets engineers add gains and subtract losses in a signal chain instead of multiplying and dividing large numbers.
dBm vs dBV: Key Difference
- dBm (Decibel-Milliwatts): An absolute power level referenced to 1 mW (0 dBm). The standard unit for RF transmit power and receiver sensitivity specifications.
- dBV (Decibel-Volts): An absolute voltage level referenced to 1 V RMS (0 dBV). Commonly used for audio preamplifier and line-level signal specifications.