WHAT IS AMERICAN WIRE GAUGE?
The American Wire Gauge (AWG), a wire-sizing standard also known as the Brown and Sharpe wire gauge, is used in North America to measure and regulate the thickness of conductive wires made from nonferrous metals. AWG is not to be confused with the Washburn and Moen (W&M), US Steel, or Music Wire gauging methods, which are used only for steel-based wire.
WHEN DID THE AMERICAN WIRE GAUGE SYSTEM COME INTO USE?
AWG was developed in 1856 by J.R. Brown and Sharpe, a small firm in Providence, Rhode Island that specialized in the crafting and repair of watches, clocks, and mathematical instruments. That same year, Lucian Sharpe presented the new system to the Waterbury Brass Association. Convinced that Brown and Sharpe's gauging system would greatly improve uniformity throughout the wire manufacturing industry, Waterbury Brass Association made a movement to adopt the standard. By February of 1857, eight major American manufacturers had signed resolutions to adhere to the Brown and Sharpe gauge standard; the following month, a nationwide circular was distributed, introducing the new wire gauge standard to the American public.
WHAT DO GAUGE NUMBERS MEAN?
The American Wire Gauge system is based on a total of 44 standardized wire sizes: 0-40, as well as the additional 00, 000, and 0000 gauges (the thickest of all). It may seem a little counterintuitive, but the higher a gauge number is, the thinner the wire will be. This is because each gauge is named after the number of sizing dies the wire needs to be drawn through to reach the correct diameter (for example, a 24 gauge wire is drawn through 24 different sizing dies).
AMERICAN WIRE GAUGE (AWG) CHART
| AWG | DIAMETER | AREA | WEIGHT (KG/M) | TURNS OF WIRE (PER/IN) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0000 (4/0) | 0.46" (11.7mm) | 212 kcmil (107mm²) | 0.953 | 2.17 |
| 000 (3/0) | 0.41" (10.4mm) | 168 kcmil (85 mm²) | 0.756 | 2.44 |
| 00 (2/0) | 0.365" (9.27mm) | 133 kcmil (67.4 mm²) | 0.599 | 2.74 |
| 0 | 0.325" (8.25 mm) | 106 kcmil (53.5 mm²) | 0.475 | 3.08 |
| 1 | 0.289" (7.35 mm) | 83.7 kcmil (42.4 mm²) | 0.377 | 3.46 |
| 2 | 0.258" (6.54 mm) | 66.4 kcmil (33.6 mm²) | 0.299 | 3.88 |
| 3 | 0.229" (5.83 mm) | 52.6 kcmil (26.7 mm²) | 0.237 | 4.36 |
| 4 | 0.204" (5.19 mm) | 41.7 kcmil (21.2 mm²) | 0.188 | 4.89 |
| 5 | 0.182" (4.62 mm) | 33.1 kcmil (16.8 mm²) | 0.149 | 5.5 |
| 6 | 0.162" (4.12 mm) | 26.3 kcmil (13.3 mm²) | 0.118 | 6.17 |
| 7 | 0.144" (3.66 mm) | 20.8 kcmil (10.5 mm²) | 0.0938 | 6.93 |
| 8 | 0.128" (3.26 mm) | 16.5 kcmil (8.37 mm²) | 0.0744 | 7.78 |
| 9 | 0.114" (2.91 mm) | 13.1 kcmil (6.63 mm²) | 0.059 | 8.74 |
| 10 | 0.102" (2.59 mm) | 10.4 kcmil (5.26 mm²) | 0.0468 | 9.81 |
| 11 | 0.0907" (2.30 mm) | 8.23 kcmil (4.17 mm²) | 0.0371 | 11 |
| 12 | 0.0808" (2.05 mm) | 6.53 kcmil (3.31 mm²) | 0.0294 | 12.4 |
| 13 | 0.0720" (1.83 mm) | 5.18 kcmil (2.62 mm²) | 0.0234 | 13.9 |
| 14 | 0.0641" (1.63 mm) | 4.11 kcmil (2.08 mm²) | 0.0185 | 15.6 |
| 15 | 0.0571" (1.45 mm) | 3.26 kcmil (1.65 mm²) | 0.0147 | 17.5 |
| 16 | 0.0508" (1.29 mm) | 2.58 kcmil (1.31 mm²) | 0.0116 | 19.7 |
| 17 | 0.0453" (1.15 mm) | 2.05 kcmil (1.04 mm²) | 0.00922 | 22.1 |
| 18 | 0.0403" (1.02 mm) | 1.62 kcmil (0.823 mm²) | 0.00732 | 24.8 |
| 19 | 0.0359" (0.912 mm) | 1.29 kcmil 0.653 mm²) | 0.0058 | 27.9 |
| 20 | 0.032" (0.812 mm) | 1.02 kcmil 0.518 mm²) | 0.0046 | 31.3 |
| 21 | 0.0285" (0.723 mm) | 0.810 kcmil (0.410 mm²) | 0.00365 | 35.1 |
| 22 | 0.0253" (0.644 mm) | 0.642 kcmil (0.326 mm²) | 0.00289 | 39.5 |
| 23 | 0.0226" (0.573 mm) | 0.509 kcmil (0.258 mm²) | 0.00229 | 44.3 |
| 24 | 0.0201" (0.511 mm) | 0.404 kcmil (0.205 mm²) | 0.00182 | 49.7 |
| 25 | 0.0179" (0.455 mm) | 0.320 kcmil (0.162 mm²) | 0.00144 | 55.9 |
| 26 | 0.0159" (0.405 mm) | 0.254 kcmil (0.129 mm²) | 0.00114 | 62.7 |
| 27 | 0.0142" (0.361 mm) | 0.202 kcmil (0.102 mm²) | 0.000908 | 70.4 |
| 28 | 0.0126" (0.321 mm) | 0.16 kcmil (0.081 mm²) | 0.00072 | 79.1 |
| 29 | 0.0113" (0.286 mm) | 0.127 kcmil (0.0642 mm²) | 0.000571 | 88.8 |
| 30 | 0.01" (0.255 mm) | 0.101 kcmil (0.0509 mm²) | 0.000453 | 99.7 |
| 31 | 0.00893" (0.227 mm) | 0.0797 kcmil (0.0404 mm²) | 0.000359 | 112 |
| 32 | 0.00795" (0.202 mm) | 0.0632 kcmil (0.032 mm²) | 0.000285 | 126 |
| 33 | 0.00708" (0.18 mm) | 0.0501 kcmil (0.0254 mm²) | 0.000226 | 141 |
| 34 | 0.00630" (0.16 mm) | 0.0398 kcmil (0.0201 mm²) | 0.000179 | 159 |
| 35 | 0.00561" (0.143 mm) | 0.0315 kcmil (0.0160 mm²) | 0.000142 | 178 |
| 36 | 0.005" (0.127mm) | 0.025 kcmil (0.0127 mm²) | 0.000113 | 200 |
| 37 | 0.00445" (0.113 mm) | 0.0198 kcmil (0.01 mm²) | 0.0000893 | 225 |
| 38 | 0.00397" (0.101 mm) | 0.0157 kcmil (0.00797 mm²) | 0.0000708 | 252 |
| 39 | 0.00353" (0.0897 mm) | 0.0125 kcmil (0.00632 mm²) | 0.0000562 | 283 |
| 40 | 0.00314" (0.0799 mm) | 0.00989 kcmil (0.00501 mm²) | 0.0000445 | 318 |
WHICH WIRE GAUGES AM I MOST LIKELY TO ENCOUNTER?
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Even though 44 different wire diameters are recognized within the AWG standard, they're not all widely used; and most people are likely to encounter only a small range of them. Below are a few common cable types we use every day, as well as the AWG sizes that correspond to them:
- • Speaker Cable: 14 and 16 AWG
- • Coaxial Cable (for cable TV and a few Ethernet applications): 18 and 20 AWG
- • Cat 5, Cat 5e, and Cat 6 cables (for LANs and Ethernet): 24 AWG
Shop at CableOrganizer® for all types of wires and cables for all your cable management projects, from network to A/V to USB and more.
