There are two scales used to measure the sizes of wires: Metric and AWG (American Wire Gauge). The Metric scale is a measurement that indicates the cross-sectional area of the conductor in square millimetres. The AWG system uses a rating number; the larger the rating number, the smaller the wire and the lower its current carrying capability. Most countries use the metric scale.
AWG/Metric wire size comparison |
|
| Metric Wire Sizes | AWG Wire Sizes |
.22 |
24 |
.35 |
22 |
.5 |
20 |
.8 |
18 |
1.0 |
16 |
2.0 |
14 |
3.0 |
12 |
5.0 |
10 |
8.0 |
8 |
13.0 |
6 |
19.0 |
4 |
32.0 |
2 |
There are two different methods of describing a conductor within these standards. A wire may be described in metric size as 5.0, indicating it has a cross-sectional area of 5.0 mm². It can also be expressed as 10/0.5, indicating 10 strands of wire each with a cross-sectional area of 0.5 mm². The same can be applied to the AWG rating.
