Orders of magnitude (mass)

To help compare different orders of magnitude, the following lists describe various mass levels between 10⁻⁴⁰ kg and 10⁵³ kg.

Units of mass

The table below is based on the kilogram (kg), the base unit of mass in the International System of Units (SI). The kilogram is the only standard unit to include an SI prefix (kilo-) as part of its name. The gram (10⁻³ kg) is an SI derived unit of mass. However, the names of all SI mass units are based on gram, rather than on kilogram; thus 10³ kg is a megagram (10⁶ g), not a "kilokilogram".

The tonne (t) is a SI-compatible unit of mass equal to a megagram, or 10³ kg. The unit is in common use for masses above about 10³ kg and is often used with SI prefixes.

Other units

Other units of mass are also in use. Historical units include the stone, the pound, the carat, and the grain.

For subatomic particles, physicists use the mass equivalent to the energy represented by an electronvolt (eV). At the atomic level, chemists use the mass of one-twelfth of a carbon-12 atom (the dalton). Astronomers use the mass of the sun (M_☉).