What are the units of specific latent heat?

The S.I. units of specific latent heat are joules per kilogram (\(\textrm{J / kg}\)).

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The latent heat of an amount of a material for a given change of state is the amount of energy absorbed or released when the material undergoes that change of state (while remaining at constant temperature). Thus latent heat has units of energy – which in the S.I. system is joules (J).

The specific latent heat of a material is the latent heat for a given change of state per unit mass, so its units are the units of latent heat divided by the units of mass. In S.I., this is joules per kilogram (\(\textrm{J / kg}\)).

Very often, the specific latent heat of a substance is quite high, and it is common to see it in units of kilojoules per kilogram (\(\textrm{kJ / kg}\)).