Volume Calculator
Volume of boxes, cylinders, spheres, cones and tanks.
Geometry Calculators
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Cylinder Volume Calculator
Cylinder and pipe volume, including a partly filled tank.
Cylinder Volume Calculator tool
Optional. For a tank lying on its side, the depth of liquid.
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Volume
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In litres
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Surface area
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Filled volume
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Share filled
| Measure | Value |
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About the Cylinder Volume Calculator
Cylinder Volume Calculator covers the shape most tanks, pipes and containers actually are. Volume is pi r squared times the height, and the answer is given in litres as well as cubic units because that is how capacity is quoted.
The partial fill option handles the question that makes this more than one multiplication: how much is in a tank that is not full. For an upright tank it is simple proportion. For one lying on its side it is not: the cross-section of the liquid is a circular segment, so a tank filled to half its diameter is exactly half full, but one filled to a quarter of its diameter holds only about 20 per cent. The calculator uses the segment formula rather than pretending the relationship is linear.
Entering the diameter rather than the radius is offered because that is what you can actually measure on a pipe or a tank. Halving a diameter is trivial arithmetic and a very common source of a fourfold error in the answer, since the radius is squared.
The page shows its working, not just its answer. Where there is a formula it is printed with your own numbers substituted in, so you can check the result rather than take it on trust -- which is the difference between a calculator you can use for something that matters and one you cannot.
Everything runs inside your browser. What you type is never uploaded, never logged and never stored, and the calculator keeps working if your connection drops after the page has loaded.
Looking for something this does not cover? FreeToolsZone.org is more free browser-based tools, organised by job, and it is worth a look if cylinder volume calculator is only part of what you are working on.
How to use the Cylinder Volume Calculator
- Choose enter the and measurements inThe fields below change to match what you pick, so only the figures that matter to your case are asked for.
- Enter radius or diameter, height or length and filled depthDecimals are fine, and thousands separators are accepted and ignored.
- Read the volume, in litres and surface areaThe figures update as you type. The Calculate button is there if you would rather press something, but nothing waits for it.
- Copy or check the resultCopy the summary with the copy button, or open the table to check it row by row and read the formula with your own numbers in it.
Features
- Shows volume, in litres, surface area, filled volume and share filled together, so you are not running it twice
- A results table you can read across
- Prints the formula with your own figures substituted in
- Updates as you type, with no button to press and no page reload
- Copy the result in one click
- Free, no sign-up, and it runs entirely in your browser
Who uses this tool
The cylinder volume calculator is used by writers, developers, students, marketers and anyone else who needs the job done once without installing software. Common cases include:
- Working out a water or oil tank's capacity in litres
- Finding how much liquid is in a partly filled horizontal tank
- Calculating the volume of a length of pipe
- Getting the surface area of a cylinder for coating
Frequently asked questions
Why is a horizontal tank not half full at half the depth?
It is, exactly, at half the diameter. But below that the relationship is not linear: the cross-section is a circular segment, so a quarter of the depth holds roughly a fifth of the volume.
Should I enter radius or diameter?
Whichever you measured. Choose it from the list; entering a diameter as a radius makes the volume four times too large.
How do I get the volume of a pipe?
Use the internal radius and the length as the height. The result in litres is the water it holds.
Related tools
If the cylinder volume calculator is not quite what you need, these other free tools solve closely related problems, and there are 16 more in geometry calculators.
Sphere Calculator
Sphere volume, surface area, radius and diameter.
Geometry Calculators
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Cone Volume Calculator
Cone volume, surface area and slant height.
Geometry Calculators
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Surface Area Calculator
Surface area of boxes, cylinders, spheres and cones.
Geometry Calculators
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Circle Calculator
Radius, diameter, circumference and area of a circle.
Geometry Calculators
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Checked and rebuilt on 2026-10-14. The method this calculator uses is described in the section above, and corrections go through the contact page.