Calculate the air pressure needed for a pneumatic cylinder or air actuator to produce a target force. Enter force, bore diameter, rod diameter, piston area, and efficiency to estimate required PSI, kPa, bar, MPa, and pascals.
Target force:
Enter the force the air cylinder or pneumatic actuator needs to create.
Effective area:
For extension, the calculator uses full bore area. For retraction, it subtracts rod area from bore area.
Efficiency and safety factor:
Efficiency accounts for losses, while safety factor adds extra pressure margin.
A pneumatic pressure calculator is useful for air cylinders, pneumatic clamps, actuators, shop air systems, packaging machines, automation projects, air tools, and comparing bore size, pressure, and output force.
This calculator is for estimates. Real pneumatic systems also need regulator settings, valve flow, tubing size, compressor capacity, cylinder friction, pressure drop, and safety ratings.
The basic pneumatic pressure formula is:
Pressure = Force ÷ Effective Area
Divide the target force by the effective cylinder area. In U.S. units, PSI equals pounds-force divided by square inches.
Many shop and industrial pneumatic systems commonly run around 80 to 120 PSI, but the correct pressure depends on the cylinder, tool, regulator, and application.
Yes. A larger cylinder bore has more piston area, so it needs less pressure to produce the same force.
Retract force is often lower because the rod takes up part of the piston area, reducing the effective annular area.