Standard Wire Gauge

STANDARD WIRE GAGE SIZES

The table shows a list of standard wire sizes in the system known as the American Wire Gauge (AWG). The gage numbers specify the size of round wire in terms of its diameter and cross-sectional circular area.

NOTES:

1. As the gage number increases from 1 upward, the diameter and circular area decreases. Higher gage numbers indicate thinner wire sizes.
2. The circular area doubles for every three gage sizes. For example, gage number 10 wire has an approximately twice the area of gage no. 13 wire.
3. The higher the gage number and the thinner the wire, the greater the resistance of the wire for any given length.

CIRCULAR MILS.

The cross sectional area of a round wire is measured in circular mils.   A mil is a one-thousand of an inch, or 0.001 in. One circular mil is the cross-sectional area of a wire with a diameter of 1 mil.   The number of circular mils in any circular area is equal to the square of the diameter in mils.

TYPES OF WIRE CONDUCTORS

Most of wire conductors are copper, but sometimes silver and aluminum are also used, copper is tinned with a thin coating of solder, which gives a silvery appearance, the wire can be solid or stranded.  Stranded wire is more flexible and less likely to break open.  Sizes for stranded wire are equivalent to the sum of the areas for the individual strands. For instance, two strands of no. 30 wire are equivalent to no. 27 solid wire.