Steel channel weight calculator
UPN and UPE, the whole range from 50 to 400. Pick the section, enter length and quantity — mass per metre is taken from the standard's table, not calculated from a cross-section formula.
Short answer
The sizes asked for most: UPN 65 — 7.09 kg/m, UPN 80 — 8.64 kg/m, UPN 100 — 10.6 kg/m, UPN 120 — 13.4 kg/m, UPN 160 — 18.8 kg/m, UPN 200 — 25.3 kg/m. UPE at the same depth is 5–10 % lighter up to depth 200 and heavier above 300, because the web thickens there.
Section tables
Depth h, flange width b, web thickness
s, flange thickness t, mass per metre and
cross-sectional area A.
UPN channels — DIN 1026-1
| Section | h, mm | b, mm | s, mm | t, mm | Mass, kg/m | A, cm² |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UPN 50 | 50 | 38 | 5 | 7 | 5.59 | 7.12 |
| UPN 65 | 65 | 42 | 5.5 | 7.5 | 7.09 | 9.03 |
| UPN 80 | 80 | 45 | 6 | 8 | 8.64 | 11 |
| UPN 100 | 100 | 50 | 6 | 8.5 | 10.6 | 13.5 |
| UPN 120 | 120 | 55 | 7 | 9 | 13.4 | 17 |
| UPN 140 | 140 | 60 | 7 | 10 | 16 | 20.4 |
| UPN 160 | 160 | 65 | 7.5 | 10.5 | 18.8 | 24 |
| UPN 180 | 180 | 70 | 8 | 11 | 22 | 28 |
| UPN 200 | 200 | 75 | 8.5 | 11.5 | 25.3 | 32.2 |
| UPN 220 | 220 | 80 | 9 | 12.5 | 29.4 | 37.4 |
| UPN 240 | 240 | 85 | 9.5 | 13 | 33.2 | 42.3 |
| UPN 260 | 260 | 90 | 10 | 14 | 37.9 | 48.3 |
| UPN 280 | 280 | 95 | 10 | 15 | 41.8 | 53.3 |
| UPN 300 | 300 | 100 | 10 | 16 | 46.2 | 58.8 |
| UPN 320 | 320 | 100 | 14 | 17.5 | 59.5 | 75.8 |
| UPN 350 | 350 | 100 | 14 | 16 | 60.6 | 77.3 |
| UPN 400 | 400 | 110 | 14 | 18 | 71.8 | 91.5 |
UPE channels — DIN 1026-2
| Section | h, mm | b, mm | s, mm | t, mm | Mass, kg/m | A, cm² |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UPE 80 | 80 | 50 | 4 | 7 | 7.9 | 10 |
| UPE 100 | 100 | 55 | 4.5 | 7.5 | 9.82 | 12.5 |
| UPE 120 | 120 | 60 | 5 | 8 | 12.1 | 15.4 |
| UPE 140 | 140 | 65 | 5 | 9 | 14.5 | 18.4 |
| UPE 160 | 160 | 70 | 5.5 | 9.5 | 17 | 21.7 |
| UPE 180 | 180 | 75 | 5.5 | 10.5 | 19.7 | 25.1 |
| UPE 200 | 200 | 80 | 6 | 11 | 22.8 | 29 |
| UPE 220 | 220 | 85 | 6.5 | 12 | 26.6 | 33.9 |
| UPE 240 | 240 | 90 | 7 | 12.5 | 30.2 | 38.5 |
| UPE 270 | 270 | 95 | 7.5 | 13.5 | 35.2 | 44.8 |
| UPE 300 | 300 | 100 | 9.5 | 15 | 44.4 | 56.6 |
| UPE 330 | 330 | 105 | 11 | 16 | 53.2 | 67.8 |
| UPE 360 | 360 | 110 | 12 | 17 | 61.2 | 78 |
| UPE 400 | 400 | 115 | 13.5 | 18 | 72.2 | 92 |
Dimensional and mass tolerances for rolled channels are in EN 10279. Within a batch the difference reaches a few per cent, so settlement goes by the certified mass, and the table serves the design, the estimate and the choice of slings.
UPN and UPE are the DIN 1026 range held across the EU and the UK. American C and MC channels to ASTM A6 are a separate series with different proportions and different mass per foot; the numbers in the designation do not translate between the two systems.
UPN against UPE
UPN (DIN 1026-1) is the classic channel with the flange tapered 8 % on the inside. The shape dates from a time when rolling a tapered flange was the simpler operation. The consequence is entirely practical: the flange face is not parallel to the web, so a flat plate touches along an edge only, and a bolt needs a tapered washer or a machined seat.
UPE (DIN 1026-2) has parallel flanges. A plate beds on the full face, the fillet weld sits in an ordinary corner rather than in a wedge, and it is easier to inspect. At equal depth UPE is usually a little lighter and has a larger second moment of area about the weak axis — a section designed later and for present-day connections.
Where it gets welded
Channel turns up in three places above all: as a purlin or side rail in wall cladding, as a frame under equipment, and as a box element made from two sections web to web. In each of them the point is the welding sequence rather than the weld itself — an open section twists under one-sided heating far more than a closed one.
The working rule: lay the welds alternately on both sides, in runs, not continuously from one end to the other. A box of two channels is tacked every 300–400 mm and only then welded in 100–150 mm runs, working from the middle outwards. Weld size is set by the thinner of the parts joined — that conversion is in the fillet weld size calculator.
From UPN 320 upwards the flange passes 17 mm and this stops being single-run work: edge preparation appears, several layers, control of heat input, and for steel with a higher carbon equivalent also preheat.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a 6 m channel 100 weigh?
UPN 100 weighs 10.6 kg/m, so a 6 m length is 63.6 kg. UPE 100 at the same depth weighs 9.82 kg/m, that is 58.9 kg — lighter, because it has a thinner web and parallel flanges.
UPN or UPE — which one?
UPN has a flange tapered 8 % on the inside, UPE a parallel one. Wherever a flat plate is bolted or welded to the flange, UPE saves packers and fitting. UPN is often cheaper and more readily in stock, and at the larger depths it has a thicker web, so it takes concentrated load better. For welded structures UPE is usually the easier one to work with.
How do I work out two channels welded into a box?
Simply twice over: section mass times two times the length. The welds add little — a metre of fillet weld at a = 4 mm is about 0.13 kg of deposited metal, so six metres on both sides comes to roughly 1.5 kg. In costing that counts as consumable usage, not as structure mass.
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