Let’s assume a situation like this, you go to the store to buy any bottle of e-liquid with a concentration of 12 mg/mL, but you don’t see any bottles that say that. Most bottles are marked with percentages like 0.3%, 0.6%… So what should you do? What is the difference between nicotine concentration written in mg/mL and percentage? How do you convert the two units?
Nicotine concentration measured in mg/mL
Nicotine concentration is usually measured in mg/mL, which means milligrams per milliliter, meaning that 1ml of e-liquid contains a certain amount of nicotine.
For example, a 6 mg/mL e-liquid means that each milliliter of e-liquid contains 6 mg of nicotine. If you want to calculate how much nicotine is in a bottle or atomizer, simply multiply the nicotine concentration by the amount of e-liquid you have.
For example, if you fill a 5ml tank with 6mg/mL e-liquid, you have 5 mL x 6 mg/mL = 30 mg of nicotine. Likewise, a 10 mL, 6 mg/mL bottle of e-liquid contains a total of 60 mg of nicotine.
Nicotine concentration measured as a percentage
Nicotine concentration measured in percentages is similar to mg/mL, but a little easier to understand. Instead of counting nicotine and e-liquid separately, percentages use the mass of both. In simpler terms, 0.3% or 1.8% refers to what percentage of your e-liquid is nicotine.
That means, if you have a bottle of e-liquid that says 1.2% nicotine, no matter how much you pour out, the e-liquid will still contain 1.2% nicotine and 98.8% PG, VG and flavoring.
Basically, this measurement is called “nicotine by weight.”
Convert mg/mL to percent and vice versa
Converting nicotine concentration from mg/mL to a percentage is actually very simple. Just divide the mass in mg/mL by 10. If you have 6mg/mL, that means it's equal to a bottle of 0.6% nicotine e-liquid.
Converting it back is also very simple, you just need to multiply the percentage by 10 times.
You will never buy the wrong thing again
Once you understand this simple conversion, you can immediately explain what mg/mL and percentages are, as well as how to convert between the two. So no matter where you shop, you will never buy the wrong ratio again.
