How to Use Energy Use Intensity Calculator
The Energy Use Intensity Calculator turns annual building energy and floor area into an EUI benchmark. EUI is widely used in building operations, energy audits, sustainability reporting and early retrofit screening because it normalizes energy use by building size.
- Enter annual energy use — sum electricity, gas and other fuels.
- Enter gross floor area — conditioned area.
- Pick output unit — kBtu/ft² or kWh/m².
- Read EUI — compare with code targets and peers.
- Drill down by isolating end-uses if EUI is too high.
Formula & Theory — Energy Use Intensity Calculator
The Energy Use Intensity Calculator converts the selected energy unit to either kBtu or kWh, converts floor area to the matching area unit, then divides energy by area. Lower EUI usually means a more efficient building, but occupancy, weather and operating hours matter.
EUI = annualEnergy / grossFloorArea
kBtu_per_ft2 = (annual_kBtu) / area_ft2
kWh_per_m2 = (annual_kWh) / area_m2| Input energy | kBtu conversion | kWh conversion |
|---|---|---|
| 1 kWh | 3.412 kBtu | 1 kWh |
| 1 therm | 100 kBtu | 29.3001 kWh |
| 1 MMBtu | 1000 kBtu | 293.071 kWh |
Assumptions and Limits
This is site EUI unless your energy inputs have already been converted to source energy. Weather normalization, vacancy, data centers, commercial kitchens and long operating hours can make a direct peer comparison misleading. Use submetering or utility breakdowns to diagnose a high EUI.
Use Cases for Energy Use Intensity Calculator
The Energy Use Intensity Calculator is useful for:
- Benchmarking — Compare a building with similar property types.
- Audit screening — Flag sites that deserve deeper investigation.
- Sustainability reports — Normalize annual energy for portfolio dashboards.
- Retrofit planning — Estimate improvement targets before detailed modeling.
For year-over-year tracking, use the same area definition and the same energy boundary every time.