Work Calculator

Calculate mechanical work from force, distance and the angle between them.

About Work Calculator

Only the force component along the direction of motion does work, which is why a force at right angles does none at all. Dividing by time converts work into average power. Carrying a load horizontally does no work against gravity in the physics sense, which is often counter-intuitive but matters for machine sizing.

Formula

Work

W = F d cos θ

θ: Angle between the force and the direction of motion
cos θ: Only the component along the motion does work

Worked example

With the default values below, Work Calculator returns Work Done of 2,000.00. Change any input above and every figure here is recalculated in your browser.

Inputs used

Force appliedminimum 0 N: 200 N
Distance movedminimum 0 m: 10 m
Angle between force and motionaccepts 0–180 degrees: 0 degrees
Time takenminimum 0.01 s: 8 s

Results

Work Done: 2,000.00 J
Component of Force Along the Motion: 200.000 N
Average Power Developed: 250.000 W
Work Done: 2.0000 kJ
Average Power: 0.3353 hp

Step by step

1Values used
2Work
3Work Done= 2,000.00 J
4Component of Force Along the Motion= 200.000 N
5Average Power Developed= 250.000 W
6Work Done= 2.0000 kJ
7Average Power= 0.3353 hp

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 4 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 Work calculated?

W = F d cos θ Only the force component along the direction of motion does work, which is why a force at right angles does none at all. Dividing by time converts work into average power.

Why does Work matter?

Carrying a load horizontally does no work against gravity in the physics sense, which is often counter-intuitive but matters for machine sizing.

What values do I need to enter?

This calculator takes 4 inputs: Force applied, Distance moved, Angle between force and motion, Time taken. The pre-filled defaults are a realistic starting point — replace them with figures from your own environment for a result you can act on.