How to read the colour bands
Hold the resistor with the tolerance band on the right: it is usually gold, silver or brown, and often sits a little apart from the others. Read from the left. On a 4-band resistor the first two bands are digits, the third is the multiplier (the number of zeros) and the fourth is the tolerance. Yellow, violet, red, gold means 4, 7 and two zeros: 4,700 Ω, or 4.7 kΩ, ±5 %.
Resistors with 5 bands, usually 1 % metal film with a light blue body, have three digits before the multiplier. Those with 6 bands add a temperature coefficient band at the end, in ppm per kelvin.
| Colour | Digit | Multiplier | Tolerance | Temp. coeff. (6th band) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| black | 0 | ×1 | — | 250 ppm/K |
| brown | 1 | ×10 | ±1 % | 100 ppm/K |
| red | 2 | ×100 | ±2 % | 50 ppm/K |
| orange | 3 | ×1,000 | ±0.05 % | 15 ppm/K |
| yellow | 4 | ×10,000 | ±0.02 % | 25 ppm/K |
| green | 5 | ×100,000 | ±0.5 % | 20 ppm/K |
| blue | 6 | ×1,000,000 | ±0.25 % | 10 ppm/K |
| violet | 7 | ×10,000,000 | ±0.1 % | 5 ppm/K |
| grey | 8 | ×100,000,000 | ±0.01 % | 1 ppm/K |
| white | 9 | ×1,000,000,000 | — | — |
| gold | — | ×0.1 | ±5 % | — |
| silver | — | ×0.01 | ±10 % | — |
| pink | — | ×0.001 | — | — |
| no band | — | — | ±20 % | — |
Colour code from IEC 60062:2016. Pink as a ×0.001 multiplier was added in that edition. Older charts give grey as ±0.05 % and no tolerance for orange and yellow.
Which end to start from
Gold and silver are never the first band, because they are only multipliers and tolerances. A wider gap before the last band, or a wider tolerance band, marks the right-hand end. If both readings are possible, the calculator shows the reversed value as well: the right one is usually the standard value, and a multimeter settles it when it matters.
SMD resistor codes
Three digits: two figures and the number of zeros. 103 is 10 followed by three zeros, so 10 kΩ; 472 is 4.7 kΩ. This code is used on 2, 5 and 10 % resistors.
Four digits: three figures and the number of zeros, on 1 % resistors. 1002 is 10 kΩ, 4701 is 4.7 kΩ, 9762 is 97.6 kΩ.
R stands for the decimal point: 4R7 is 4.7 Ω, R10 is 0.1 Ω. Current-sense resistors in the milliohm range use m, L or R0 the same way: 1m5 is 1.5 mΩ, 10L0 and R010 are 10 mΩ. A plain 0, 00 or 000 is a zero-ohm jumper.
EIA-96 is used on 1 % resistors too small for four digits, typically 0603. Two digits give the position in the E96 table and a letter gives the multiplier: 01C is 100 × 100 = 10 kΩ, 68X is 499 × 0.1 = 49.9 Ω.
| 01–12 | 13–24 | 25–36 | 37–48 | 49–60 | 61–72 | 73–84 | 85–96 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 → 100 | 13 → 133 | 25 → 178 | 37 → 237 | 49 → 316 | 61 → 422 | 73 → 562 | 85 → 750 |
| 02 → 102 | 14 → 137 | 26 → 182 | 38 → 243 | 50 → 324 | 62 → 432 | 74 → 576 | 86 → 768 |
| 03 → 105 | 15 → 140 | 27 → 187 | 39 → 249 | 51 → 332 | 63 → 442 | 75 → 590 | 87 → 787 |
| 04 → 107 | 16 → 143 | 28 → 191 | 40 → 255 | 52 → 340 | 64 → 453 | 76 → 604 | 88 → 806 |
| 05 → 110 | 17 → 147 | 29 → 196 | 41 → 261 | 53 → 348 | 65 → 464 | 77 → 619 | 89 → 825 |
| 06 → 113 | 18 → 150 | 30 → 200 | 42 → 267 | 54 → 357 | 66 → 475 | 78 → 634 | 90 → 845 |
| 07 → 115 | 19 → 154 | 31 → 205 | 43 → 274 | 55 → 365 | 67 → 487 | 79 → 649 | 91 → 866 |
| 08 → 118 | 20 → 158 | 32 → 210 | 44 → 280 | 56 → 374 | 68 → 499 | 80 → 665 | 92 → 887 |
| 09 → 121 | 21 → 162 | 33 → 215 | 45 → 287 | 57 → 383 | 69 → 511 | 81 → 681 | 93 → 909 |
| 10 → 124 | 22 → 165 | 34 → 221 | 46 → 294 | 58 → 392 | 70 → 523 | 82 → 698 | 94 → 931 |
| 11 → 127 | 23 → 169 | 35 → 226 | 47 → 301 | 59 → 402 | 71 → 536 | 83 → 715 | 95 → 953 |
| 12 → 130 | 24 → 174 | 36 → 232 | 48 → 309 | 60 → 412 | 72 → 549 | 84 → 732 | 96 → 976 |
EIA-96 values (code → value). Multipliers: Z ×0.001, Y or R ×0.01, X or S ×0.1, A ×1, B or H ×10, C ×100, D ×1,000, E ×10,000, F ×100,000.
Standard values
Resistors are made in the preferred values of IEC 60063: E12 has 12 values per decade (10 % parts), E24 has 24 (5 %), E96 has 96 (1 %). 10 kΩ is in every series; 4.7 kΩ and 220 Ω are in E6 to E24, while E96 has 4.75 kΩ and 221 Ω instead. A value outside every series usually means a band was misread.
Frequently asked questions
What does 103 mean on an SMD resistor?
10 kΩ: the figures 10 followed by three zeros. With the 4-digit code the same value is written 1002, and with EIA-96 it is 01C.
How do I tell a 4-band resistor from a 5-band one?
Count the bands, starting from the end away from the tolerance band. 5-band resistors are usually 1 % metal film with a light blue body; 4-band ones are usually 5 % carbon film with a beige body.
What is a resistor with a single black band?
A zero-ohm jumper: a link in the shape of a resistor, used so that pick-and-place machines or the same board layout can bridge two pads.
What does 01C mean on a small resistor?
It is an EIA-96 code: 01 is the first value of the E96 table, 100, and C multiplies by 100. So 10 kΩ at 1 %.
Why does my multimeter read a different value?
The tolerance allows a spread: a 5 % 1 kΩ part can measure from 950 to 1,050 Ω. Measured on the board, other parts in parallel lower the reading, so lift one end for an exact value.