American wire gauge
American wire gauge (AWG) is a standard wire gauge system used predominantly in the United States and Canada for the diameters of a single non-ferrous, solid, round conductor.[1] Increasing gauge numbers give decreasing wire diameters.
Single core and stranded
The cross-sectional area of each gauge is an important factor for determining its current-carrying capacity and resistance. The AWG of a stranded wire is determined by the total cross-sectional area of the conductor. Because there are also small gaps between the strands, a stranded wire will be about 5% thicker than a solid wire with the same AWG.
AWG/Metric wire size equivalents
| AWG | Cross section area (mm2) | AWG stranding | AWG stranding (inches) | Metric stranding | Approx. conductor resistance (Ohms/km) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 32 | 0.032 | 1/32, 7/40, 19/44 | 1/0.008", 7/0.003" | 1/0.2, 7/0.08 | 578 |
| 30 | 0.051 | 1/30, 7/38, 19/42 | 1/0.01", 7/0.004" | 1/0.25, 7/0.1 | 350 |
| 28 | 0.081 | 1/28, 7/36, 19/40 | 1/0.013", 7/0.005" | 1/0.315, 7/0.125 | 232 |
| 26 | 0.128 | 1/26, 7/34, 19/38 | 1/0.016", 7/0.006" | 1/0.4, 7/0.15, 19/0.1 | 146 |
| 25 | 0.163 | 1/25 | 14/0.12 | 110 | |
| 24 | 0.22 | 1/24, 7/32, 19/36 | 1/0.02", 7/0.008", 19/0.005" | 1/0.5, 7/0.2, 19/0.12, 30/0.1 | 76.4 |
| 23 | 0.25 | 1/23 | 1/0.6, 14/0.15, 32/0.1 | 70.1 | |
| 22 | 0.32 | 1/22, 7/30, 19/34 | 1/0.25", 7/0.01", 19/0.005" | 7/0.25, 19/0.15, 30/0.12 | 54.8 |
| 21 | 0.41 | 14/36 | 14/0.008" | 13/0.2, 55/0.1 | 44 |
| 20 | 0.52 | 1/20, 7/28, 19/32 | 1/0.032", 7/0.013", 19/0.008" | 16/0.2, 44/0.12 | 34.5 |
| 18 | 0.75 | 1/18, 19/30, 33/32 | 1/0.04", 19/0.01", 33/0.0008" | 19/0.25, 24/0.2, 96/0.1 | 23 |
| 16 | 1.32 | 7/24, 19/29 | 7/0.02", 19/0.011" | 19/0.3 | 14.7 |
| 14 | 2.08 | 19/27, 73/32 | 19/0.014" 70/0.008" | 28/0.3 | 8.8 |
| 13 | 2.5 | 35/28 | 35/0.013" | 50/0.25, 140/0.15 | 6.8 |
| 11 | 4 | 56/0.3, 512/0.1 | 4.5 |
References
- ^ ASTM Standard B 258-02, Standard specification for standard nominal diameters and cross-sectional areas of AWG sizes of solid round wires used as electrical conductors, ASTM International, 2002
Further reading
- Donald G. Fink and H. Wayne Beaty, Standard Handbook for Electrical Engineers, Eleventh Edition,McGraw-Hill, New York, 1978, ISBN 0-07-020974-X, page 4-18 and table 4-11.