The Resistor Color Code Calculator is an interactive online tool designed to determine the resistance value based on the color bands or color-coded stripes on a resistor. With various resistor types available in electronics today, using a resistance calculator for resistor color codes is an effective way to identify the correct resistor for your needs, whether for a circuit or to understand what type of resistor you have in your collection. This tool, also known as an ohmmeter calculator, integrates 4 Band, 5 Band, and 6 Band Resistor Color Code Calculators. It allows you to create both basic and complex electrical circuits for home and industrial use. Below, you will learn how to use this tool to read the color code of resistors, calculate the resistor value in Ohms (Ω) for 4-band, 5-band, and 6-band resistors, and determine the resistor’s value, tolerance, and power rating.
How to Use the Resistor Color Code Calculator
The online resistor calculator provided by Utmel Electronic is used to determine resistor values for 4-band, 5-band, and 6-band resistors, typically ranging from ohms to kilo-ohms and mega-ohms. This calculator is designed to interpret color codes on resistors’ surfaces. Simply select the colors corresponding to each column, and the resistor value will be displayed immediately on the right side of the calculator.
Examples: Calculating 10k/100 Ohm Resistor Color Code
For a 4-band resistor, the color code for a 10k ohm resistor is: Brown-Black-Orange-Red. In this example, the 1st band is Brown, the 2nd band is Black, the Multiplier is Orange, and the Tolerance is Red. Therefore, the resistor value output is 10K ohms with 2% tolerance. The picture below illustrates the 100 Ohm Resistor Color Code for 4-band resistors.
Introduction to Resistors
Resistors are commonly used in electrical components to limit the flow of electric current. Typically small components with wire leads extending from all sides, resistors are crucial in circuits. They are designed to provide a specific amount of electrical resistance.
Resistor values can range from less than 1 Ohm (Ω) to over 20 mega Ohms (Ω), or 20 million Ohms (Ω). There are two main types of resistors: variable resistors and fixed resistors. A variable resistor offers different resistance values, while a fixed resistor provides a single value. Fixed resistors are categorized into four main types: carbon-composition resistors, film resistors, wire-wound resistors, and surface-mount resistors.
How to Read a Resistor Color Code Chart for 3/4/5/6 Band Resistors
Carbon-composition resistors typically have 3 to 6 color bands. The electrical color code resistor chart below displays the color bands for 3-band, 4-band, 5-band, and 6-band resistors. A 5-band resistor is more precise than a 4-band resistor due to its third significant digit. Additionally, a 6-band resistor includes a 6th band, which represents the temperature coefficient.
According to the Resistor Color Code Chart Calculator, each color represents a number for the 1st to 3rd bands on 6-band and 5-band resistors or the 1st to 2nd bands on a 4-band resistor. This color also serves as a multiplier if located on the 4th band of 5-band and 6-band resistors or the 3rd band of a 4-band resistor. Tolerance values are indicated by the 4th band on a 4-band resistor, and the 5th band on 5-band and 6-band resistors, as shown in the resistor color chart for 5-band and 6-band resistors. The 6th band on a 6-band resistor indicates the temperature coefficient, which shows how much the resistor’s actual resistance value changes with temperature fluctuations.
How to Read Resistor Color Code
The simplest way to identify a resistor color code is by recognizing which colors represent the most significant digits. Follow these steps to read a resistor color code:
Examine the colored bands on the resistor’s body.
Identify which colors correspond to the significant digits.
Determine the numbers represented by these colors and their position.
Read each digit from left to right according to its position on the bands.
What is the Purpose of Resistor Color Codes?
Color codes are used instead of written text to indicate the value, rating, or tolerance of very small electronic components.
Resistors come with four, five, or more color bands, with the four-band color code being the most common. The first and second bands represent the first and second significant digits of the resistor’s ohm value, respectively. The third band shows the decimal multiplier. After a slight gap to differentiate between the left and right sides of the component, the fourth band indicates the resistor’s tolerance.
Resistor Color Code Explained
4-Band Resistor Color Code
IEC 60062 defines the color coding for resistors as an international standard. Different colors in the resistor color code represent significant figures, multiplier, resistance, reliability, and temperature coefficient, as shown in the table below. The position of each color band on the resistor indicates which of these attributes it refers to. In a standard four-band resistor, there is a spacing between the third and fourth bands to indicate how the resistor should be read (from left to right, with the band after the spacing being the right-most band).
4 Band Resistors Color Code Table
Significant figure component:
In a standard four-band resistor, the first and second bands represent significant figures. For example, in the illustration with green, red, blue, and gold bands, the green band denotes the number 5, while the red band denotes the number 2.
Multiplier:
The third band, which is blue, represents the multiplier. According to the table, the multiplier is 1,000,000. This multiplier is then applied to the significant figures from the previous bands, which in this case are 52, resulting in a value of 52,000,000 Ω or 52 MΩ.
Tolerance:
The fourth band, while not always visible, represents tolerance when present. This percentage indicates how much the resistor value can vary. In this case, the gold band signifies a tolerance of 5%, denoted by the letter J. Therefore, the value of 52 MΩ could vary by up to 5% in either direction, resulting in a resistor value range of 49.4 MΩ to 54.6 MΩ.
Resistor Color Code 5 Band
The 5-band code is used for creating precise and high-quality resistors with tolerances of 1%, 2%, or less. The system is similar to the previous one, but with an additional digit band. In this code, the first three bands represent the value, the fourth band is the multiplier, and the fifth band indicates the tolerance.
Band (Optional)
Some resistors have an extra band that denotes either reliability or temperature coefficient, which might be confusing for beginners.
The reliability band specifies the failure rate per 1,000 hours, assuming the resistor is operating at full wattage. This band is most commonly found on 4-band resistors intended for military applications and is rarely seen in consumer circuits.
Temperature coefficients are becoming more common, especially on high-quality 5-band resistors, as they are crucial for precision components. For instance, a resistor with a temperature coefficient of 200 ppm will experience a 1% change in value for a 50°C temperature change. The color chart above displays the most common values for this band.