Decibar (dbar)
The decibar (dbar) is one tenth of a bar, exactly 10 000 pascals. In seawater one decibar of pressure corresponds to roughly one metre of depth.
Symbol: dbar
Quantity: pressure, stress and differential pressure (force per unit area)
SI relation: 1 dbar = 10000 Pa (exact)
Derivation: 1 dbar = 10⁻¹ bar = 10⁴ Pa
Exact: yes, by definition
Typical uses
- Oceanography: CTD instruments report sea pressure in dbar
- Converting ocean depth to pressure (≈ 1 dbar per metre)
- Argo float profiles (0–2000 dbar)
Convert decibars to other units
| Conversion | 1 dbar equals | Reverse |
|---|---|---|
| decibar to pascal | 10000 Pa | pascal to decibar |
| decibar to kilopascal | 10 kPa | kilopascal to decibar |
| decibar to psi | 1.450377377 psi | psi to decibar |
| decibar to bar | 0.1 bar | bar to decibar |
| decibar to millimeter of mercury | 75.00615758 mmHg | millimeter of mercury to decibar |
| decibar to inch of water | 40.1463076 inH₂O | inch of water to decibar |
| decibar to atmosphere | 0.09869232667 atm | atmosphere to decibar |
| decibar to megapascal | 0.01 MPa | megapascal to decibar |
| decibar to millibar | 100 mbar | millibar to decibar |
| decibar to torr | 75.00616827 Torr | torr to decibar |
| decibar to millimeter of water | 1019.716213 mmH₂O | millimeter of water to decibar |
| decibar to centimeter of water | 101.9716213 cmH₂O | centimeter of water to decibar |
| decibar to inch of mercury | 2.95299833 inHg | inch of mercury to decibar |
| decibar to inch of water (60 °F) | 40.1864652 inH₂O (60 °F) | inch of water (60 °F) to decibar |
| decibar to barye | 100000 Ba | barye to decibar |
Open the Pressure Converter to convert any value between all units.
Sources
- Guide for the Use of the International System of Units (SI), NIST Special Publication 811, 2008 Edition, National Institute of Standards and Technology , Appendix B.8, "bar", with SI prefix deci (10⁻¹).
Last reviewed: . Factors are stored exactly and computed with 50-digit decimal arithmetic. See how we verify conversion factors.
Cite this page
APA
Scientific Converters. (2026, October 15). Decibar (dbar). Retrieved October 17, 2026, from https://scientificconverters.com/units/decibar/
IEEE
Scientific Converters, "Decibar (dbar)," scientificconverters.com. Accessed: Oct. 17, 2026. [Online]. Available: https://scientificconverters.com/units/decibar/