Hydrostatic Pressure Calculator

Calculate the pressure exerted by a column of fluid at a given depth.

About Hydrostatic Pressure Calculator

Hydrostatic pressure depends only on depth, density and gravity — not on the shape or volume of the container. In water, roughly every 10 metres of depth adds one atmosphere. Because pressure depends on depth alone, a narrow tall pipe exerts the same pressure at its base as a wide tank of the same height.

Formula

Hydrostatic Pressure

p = ρ g h, plus atmospheric pressure for the absolute value

gauge pressure: Pressure above atmospheric, what most gauges read
ρ g h: Density times gravity times depth

Worked example

With the default values below, Hydrostatic Pressure Calculator returns Absolute Pressure of 199,425.00. Change any input above and every figure here is recalculated in your browser.

Inputs used

Depth below the surfaceminimum 0 m: 10 m
Fluid densityminimum 0.01 kg/m3: 1,000 kg/m3
Atmospheric pressure at the surfaceminimum 0 Pa: 101,325 Pa
Gravitational accelerationminimum 0.01 m/s2: 9.81 m/s2

Results

Absolute Pressure: 199,425.00 Pa
Gauge Pressure: 98,100.00 Pa
Gauge Pressure: 0.98100 bar
Equivalent Head of Water: 10.000 m
Depth That Adds One Bar: 10.194 m

Step by step

1Values used
2Hydrostatic Pressure
3Absolute Pressure= 199,425.00 Pa
4Gauge Pressure= 98,100.00 Pa
5Gauge Pressure= 0.98100 bar
6Equivalent Head of Water= 10.000 m
7Depth That Adds One Bar= 10.194 m

Assumptions and limits

The result is derived only from the 4 inputs listed above. Anything not among them is not part of the calculation.
In particular, this calculator does not take inflation, tax, fees or charges or compounding frequency into account.
Figures are rounded for display to 5 decimal places, so totals built from several rounded parts can differ slightly from the unrounded arithmetic.

How these calculators are built and tested is described on the Methodology page. If a figure looks wrong, please report it.

Frequently Asked Questions

How is Hydrostatic Pressure calculated?

p = ρ g h, plus atmospheric pressure for the absolute value Hydrostatic pressure depends only on depth, density and gravity — not on the shape or volume of the container. In water, roughly every 10 metres of depth adds one atmosphere.

Why does Hydrostatic Pressure matter?

Because pressure depends on depth alone, a narrow tall pipe exerts the same pressure at its base as a wide tank of the same height.

What values do I need to enter?

This calculator takes 4 inputs: Depth below the surface, Fluid density, Atmospheric pressure at the surface, Gravitational acceleration. The pre-filled defaults are a realistic starting point — replace them with figures from your own environment for a result you can act on.