ELECTRICAL

Wire Size Calculator

Find the right wire gauge for your circuit — voltage drop · ampacity · NEC standards

AWG kcmil

Load & installation

A
material
temp
in cable
Recommended AWG AWG
Max ampacity A
Cross-section area mm²
NEC 310.16 — ampacity tables

Ampacity comparison

14 12 10 8 6 4
Common AWG sizes and their ampacity

Voltage drop calculator

V
A
ft
AWG
material
Voltage drop V
Voltage drop % %
Wire resistance Ω
Power loss W
VD = 2 × L × I × R

Drop vs length

Length ↑ Drop ↑ VD
Voltage drop increases with conductor length

NEC recommendations

  • < 3% — Acceptable
  • 3–5% — Marginal
  • > 5% — Requires larger gauge

AWG ↔ mm² conversion

AWG
mm²
AWG AWG
Cross-section mm²
Diameter mm
Resistance (per 1000ft) Ω
mm² = 0.5067 × 92^((36−AWG)/19.5)

AWG vs cross-section

14 12 10 8 6 4
Larger AWG number = smaller conductor