Quarts To Gallons | How Many Quarts In A Gallon

How many quarts in a gallon? This question comes up to me everytime I need to convert from quarts to gallons. So we, the Calculatorful team, have compiled this article to help you gain a better understanding underline the conversion from quarts to gallons.

Quart (qt) definition

The quart is a measurement unit of volume used in the US customary system and the British imperial system. The unit can be abbreviated as qt. A quart equals 2 pints. If you are someone from a country that adopts the metric system, a quart is equal to approximately a liter. US liquid and dry quarts are equivalent to approximately 0.95 liter and 1.1 liters respectively, and an imperial quart is 1.13 liters.

Quart history

The history of quart, a commonly used measurement unit in the USA and the UK, dates back hundreds of years to the Medieval Ages. The quart was found to be used in Geoffrey Chaucer’s Miller’s Tale (1380s - 1390s)  as a measure for ale, a type of beer. Etymologically, the word quart originates from the Latin word quartus, which means one-quarter.

Quart current use

The quart can be seen all over places in the USA from a quart of milk at the supermarket to a quart of whipping cream in a cooking book. 

There are three types of quart that are currently used, an Imperial quart, a US liquid quart, and a slightly larger US dry quart. As their terms imply, a liquid quart measures liquid substances like water, milk, oil, etc. while a dry quart is used to measure dry ingredients 

Gallon (gal) definition

A gallon is a unit of measure, which is used to measure volume commonly used in the USA and Britain. The gallon can be abbreviated as Gal. In comparison to the liter in the metric system, there are approximately 4.546 liters in an imperial gallon, 3.785 liters in a US liquid gallon, and 4.405 liters in a US dry gallon. In their own measurement systems, both US gallon and imperial gallon equal 4 quarts and 8 pints in their respective systems. 

Gallon history

Like other units in the US customary and imperial systems, the history of gallon as a volumic measurement unit dates back to the Medieval Ages when the gallon was used to measure wine and beer in England. The wine gallon size and the ale (beer) gallon size were different. The first one was equal to the size of a US gallon, while the second was a bit larger and equal to the size of an imperial gallon. 

Historically, the word gallon originates from the Old Norman French galon, corresponding to Old French jalon, which is related to jale (meaning bowl) in Old French.

Gallon current use

Similar to the quart, there are three types of gallons including a US liquid gallon, a US dry gallon, and an imperial gallon. The sizes of these gallons are slightly different as can be seen above. Of the three types, an imperial gallon is the largest one which is equal to 4.54609 liters (exactly) or approximately 10 pounds of pure water at 62° Fahrenheit. 

Of the two US gallons, the US liquid gallon is more commonly used to measure gasoline, water, and milk while the US dry gallon is less common. 

The gallon is commonly used in the sale of fuel for vehicles. The imperial gallon is widely used in the sale of petrol in British Overseas Territories and the countries influenced by the UK even though the UK has switched to a newer system of measurement, the SI. Gasoline sold by the US is measured in the US liquid gallon, which can be found in, certainly, the USA, and some countries in Latin America. 

Relationship between quarts and gallons

Both quarts and gallons are two units of measurement in both the US customary system and the British imperial system. The quart is a smaller unit than the gallon. There are 4 quarts in a gallon, or a quart equals a quarter of a gallon, which explains its unit name, a quart. 

Both units are commonly used in the US to measure the volume of water, milk, and especially gasoline or petrol. 

Generally speaking, the relationship between quarts and gallons can be expressed as:

1 gallon = 4 quarts

Difference between quarts and gallons

Basically, quarts and gallons are highly related. Hence, there aren’t many differences between them. However, a few differences can be summarized in the table below.

Quarts to Gallons Conversion Chart

Below is a table showing quart measurements converted to gallons.

Converting Quarts to Gallons with Formula and Examples

The most convenient method to convert quarts to gallons is to use a converter that can show the conversion result in the blink of an eye saving you a lot of time. However, you can also calculate it manually in case you don’t have an Internet connection. 

As we know, 1 gallon equals 4 quarts, so if you want to convert quarts to gallons, divide the value in quarts by 4 as the formula below:

Gallons = quarts ÷ 4

Now, to convert 8 quarts to gallons, by applying the above formula, you divide 8 qt by 4 to get the value in gallons.

Gallons              = 8 ÷ 4 

                          = 2 gal

So, 8 qt equals 2 gal. It isn’t very complicated, but using an online converter, you only need to enter 8 qt in the tool. 2 gal will be automatically shown without any mental effort. 

Now you know how to convert gallons to quarts, you might be interested in how other imperial measurement units relate to others. Use Caculatorful to learn more about Ounces to gram |  Gallons to quarts. 

Example 1: Converting 4 quarts to gallons

Applying the above-mentioned formula, divide 4 qt by 4 to get a solution.

Gallons     = 4  ÷ 4

                 = 1 gal

Then, 4 qt equals 1 gal.

Example 2: Converting 12 quarts to gallons

Using the formula above, divide 12 qt by 4 to get your answer.

Gallons         = 12 ÷ 4

                     = 3 gal

The answer is that there are 3 gal in 12 qt.

Example 3: Converting 2 quarts to gallons

Applying the formula above, divide 2 qt by 4 to get a solution.

Gallons     = 2 ÷ 4

                 = 0.5 gal

So, 2 quarts can be converted to 0.5 gallon.

FAQ's about quarts to gallons conversion

Which formula to use when converting quarts to gallons?

When converting quarts to gallons, you have to remember this equation: 1 US gal = 4 US qt.

So there are 4 US qt in the conversion from 1 US gal to qt. For example, you need to convert 8 quarts to gallons, you can do like following:

8 qt x ($\frac{1}{4}$ gal per qt ) = 2 gal

Why is 1 gallon equal to 4 quarts?

The name quart comes from the Latin quartus, which means "one quart." Historically, gallons of various sizes were used. The liquid gallon in the United States is now split into four quarts, or 1 US gal = 4 US qt.

Will a quart of paint cover a door?

It’s more than enough because one quart will cover a surface of 100 sg ft while the are of a door is normally 21 sq ft.

Conclusion

In this article, we have shown how to convert quarts to gallons, how quarts and gallons related to each other. We also provide the tool for you to easily convert from quarts to gallons.