Enter the total potential energy and the distance traveled into the calculator to determine the force.

Potential Energy to Force Formula

The following equation is used to calculate the force from potential energy.

F = PE / d
  • Where F is the force (N)
  • PE is the potential energy (Joules)
  • d is the distance (m)

To calculate the force from potential energy, divide the potential energy by the distance.

How to Calculate force from potential energy?

Example Problem:

The following example outlines the steps and information needed to calculate force from potential energy.

First, determine the total potential energy. In this example, we are looking at a spring compressed by a certain distance. Using the formula for a spring’s potential energy, we find this value to be 600 joules.

Next, determine the distance the force is acting on the object. For this problem, that distance is 3m.

Finally, calculate the force using the formula above:

F = PE / d

F = 600/3

F = 200 N