Resistor Color Code Calculator: 4, 5 and 6 Bands
Read a resistor's value, tolerance and temperature coefficient from its 4, 5 or 6 colour bands, or find the bands for a value. Shows the nearest E6, E12, E24 and E96 standard values.
- Resistance
- 4.7 kΩ ±5 %
- Range
- 4.465 kΩ to 4.935 kΩ
Nearest standard values
- E6
- 4.7 kΩ
- E12
- 4.7 kΩ
- E24
- 4.7 kΩ
- E96
- 4.75 kΩ
4.7 kΩ is already a standard E6, E12 and E24 value.
About the Resistor Color Code Calculator
The Resistor Color Code Calculator reads the value of a through-hole resistor from its coloured bands, and works out the bands for a value you need. Choose 4, 5 or 6 bands, pick each colour, and the calculator shows the resistance with an SI prefix, the tolerance, the minimum to maximum range and, on 6-band resistors, the temperature coefficient. Switch to Value to colours to type a resistance in Ω, kΩ or MΩ and see the bands drawn on a resistor, with every colour also named in text. For any value, a panel shows the nearest standard values in the E6, E12, E24 and E96 series.
The colour tables follow IEC 60062. The calculator reads the code as printed; it cannot tell whether a real part is within tolerance, damaged or faded, so measure with a multimeter when it matters.
How to read the bands
4 bands
Two digits, a multiplier and a tolerance. Yellow, violet, red, gold is 4, 7 and ×100, so 4,700 Ω or 4.7 kΩ, with ±5 % tolerance. A missing fourth band means ±20 %.
5 bands
Three digits, a multiplier and a tolerance, used for precision resistors. Brown, black, black, red, brown is 1, 0, 0 and ×100, so 10 kΩ at ±1 %.
6 bands
Five bands as above plus a temperature coefficient in ppm/K, which says how much the value drifts per degree. Orange, orange, black, brown, brown, red is 3.3 kΩ ±1 % at 50 ppm/K.
The colour table
Digits run from black 0, brown 1, red 2, orange 3, yellow 4, green 5, blue 6, violet 7 and grey 8 to white 9. A digit colour as the multiplier means 10 to that power, gold means ×0.1 and silver ×0.01. Tolerances are brown 1 %, red 2 %, green 0.5 %, blue 0.25 %, violet 0.1 %, grey 0.05 %, gold 5 % and silver 10 %. The first band is never black, gold or silver, which tells you which end to start reading from.
Nearest standard values
Resistors are made in preferred values whose steps are geometric, so the calculator picks the value with the smallest ratio to yours rather than the smallest difference. For 2 kΩ in E12 the neighbours are 1.8 kΩ and 2.2 kΩ: 2.2 kΩ wins because 2.2 ÷ 2 = 1.10 is closer than 2 ÷ 1.8 = 1.11. For 5 kΩ the nearest values are 4.7 kΩ in E6 and E12, 5.1 kΩ in E24 and 4.99 kΩ in E96.
Privacy
Nothing is uploaded; every calculation runs in your browser and never leaves your device.
Related tools
Work out the current through a resistor with the Ohm's Law Calculator, check how much a cable run loses with the Voltage Drop Calculator, or write very large and small values with the Scientific Notation Converter.
Frequently asked questions
How do I read a 4-band resistor?
Read the first two bands as digits, the third as the power of ten to multiply by and the fourth as the tolerance. Yellow, violet, red and gold make 47 × 100, which is 4.7 kΩ at ±5 percent.
Which end of the resistor do I start from?
Start from the end with the band closest to the edge. The tolerance band, often gold or silver, is usually set apart from the others, and the first band is never black, gold or silver.
What does a gold or silver third band mean?
As a multiplier, gold means multiply by 0.1 and silver by 0.01, which is how values below 10 Ω are coded. Green, blue, gold and gold is 5.6 Ω at ±5 percent.
What is the sixth band on a resistor?
On 6-band resistors the last band is the temperature coefficient in ppm per kelvin. Red means the value changes by about 50 parts per million for every degree of temperature change.
Why can 4.75 kΩ not be shown with four bands?
A 4-band resistor only has two digit bands, so it can show 4.7 kΩ or 4.8 kΩ but not 4.75 kΩ. Choose 5 or 6 bands, which carry three significant digits.
What are E12 and E24 values?
They are the preferred values in IEC 60063, with 12 or 24 steps per decade spaced evenly on a log scale. The calculator shows the nearest E6, E12, E24 and E96 value to any resistance.