Cholesterol Converter

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Health • mg/dL ↔ mmol/L

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How to Use the Cholesterol Converter

Enter a value — type any number. Invalid text and symbols are blocked automatically.
Select From and To units — choose the units to convert between.
Read the animated result — the converted value, factor, and full reference table update instantly.
Use Swap (⇄) — reverse the conversion in one click.

Why Use This Cholesterol Converter

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mmol/L is the reference unit

All 2 units on the Cholesterol Converter are defined against the Millimole/liter (mmol/L), so each result is one conversion factor away from a single reference rather than the end of a chain of roundings.

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Opens on Milligram/deciliter → Millimole/liter

The conversion this page is most often opened for is ready before you type anything: 1 mg/dL = 0.0258598 mmol/L. Change either side and every row in the table recalculates with it.

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Understanding the Cholesterol Converter

The US reports cholesterol in milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL); most other countries use millimoles per litre (mmol/L). For total, LDL and HDL cholesterol the conversion is mmol/L = mg/dL ÷ 38.67. (Triglycerides use ÷ 88.57.) A total cholesterol of 200 mg/dL is about 5.2 mmol/L.

Use this when reading lab results from another country or comparing international guidelines. It is informational and not medical advice — discuss your numbers and targets with your doctor.

Common Cholesterol Converter Values

Quick reference — 1 Milligram/deciliter (mg/dL) is equal to:

Millimole/liter

mmol/L

0.0258598

Formula & Logic

Cholesterol results are reported in milligrams per decilitre in the United States and in millimoles per litre almost everywhere else, and the conversion is not one factor but two. Cholesterol itself divides by 38.67, derived from its molar mass of about 386.65 g/mol. Triglycerides, being much larger and more variable molecules, use 88.57 instead. Applying the cholesterol factor to a triglyceride result — an easy mistake on a lipid panel where the values sit adjacent — produces an error of well over two-fold, which is enough to move a result across a treatment threshold in either direction.

Total, LDL, HDL: mmol/L = mg/dL ÷ 38.67Triglycerides: mmol/L = mg/dL ÷ 88.57Reverse: mg/dL = mmol/L × the same factorFriedewald: LDL = Total − HDL − (Triglycerides ÷ 5), in mg/dL

where:

38.67: from cholesterol's molar mass of 386.65 g/mol
88.57: the triglyceride factor — different molecule, different molar mass
Friedewald: the estimate for LDL; unreliable when triglycerides exceed 400 mg/dL

Assumptions: Reference ranges are population guidance, not individual targets. Treatment decisions depend on overall cardiovascular risk rather than any single number, and are a matter for a clinician.

Worked Example: A Full Lipid Panel Converted

Convert a complete US-format panel to European units, using the correct factor for each line.

Total cholesterol212 mg/dL
HDL48 mg/dL
Triglycerides150 mg/dL

Total cholesterol: 212 ÷ 38.67 = 5.48 mmol/L.
HDL: 48 ÷ 38.67 = 1.24 mmol/L.
Triglycerides use the other factor: 150 ÷ 88.57 = 1.69 mmol/L.
Estimate LDL in mg/dL first: 212 − 48 − (150 ÷ 5) = 212 − 48 − 30 = 134 mg/dL.
Convert it: 134 ÷ 38.67 = 3.47 mmol/L.
Check the error if 38.67 were wrongly used for triglycerides: 3.88 instead of 1.69 — more than double.

ResultTotal 5.48, HDL 1.24, LDL 3.47, triglycerides 1.69 mmol/L

The two-factor rule is the whole difficulty here. A triglyceride value converted with the cholesterol factor reads 2.29 times too high, which would turn a normal 1.69 mmol/L into an apparently elevated 3.88 — a false alarm generated purely by arithmetic.