Which side to read the stripes on the resistor?

Start with the stripe that is closest to the edge of the case. The gold or silver stripe (tolerance) is always at the end.

How to distinguish between a 4, 5 and 6 band resistor?

4 bars - standard accuracy. 5 bars - high accuracy (more significant digits). 6 bars - temperature coefficient added (for hot environments).

What does the golden stripe mean?

Gold color as a multiplier means multiply by 0.1. As a tolerance (last bar) it means ±5% accuracy.

Color marking of resistors

Online decoder for 4 and 5 band resistors

4 stripes

5 stripes

1st band (Number)

2nd band (Digital)

Multiplier

Tolerance (Error)

Resistance:

10 kOhm

Tolerance (Error) ±5%

Actual range 9.5 kOhm ... 10.5 kOhm

💡 Hint: Reading the stripes always starts from the side where they are located closer to each other. The last band (tolerance) is slightly distant from the rest.

Decoding the color markings of resistors

🎨 How to determine the value of a resistor by stripes

Color coding is an international standard (IEC 60062) that allows you to find out the resistance of a part without a multimeter. Our tool decrypts the code instantly, but it's useful to know how it works:

What is the difference between resistors with different numbers of stripes?

Больше по теме: Electrics

Ohm's law⚡ Formula of Ohm's law in simple words Ohm's Law is the basis of all electrical engineering. It relates the three main parameters of the circuit: Voltage (V), Current Strength (I) and Resistance (R).

LED savings💡 How much money do old light bulbs actually “eat up”? Replacing conventional incandescent lamps with light-emitting diode (LED) lamps is the simplest investment with a return of more than 100% per annum.

Electricity⚡ We calculate the real costs of electricity Have you ever wondered how many rubles a month your heater, powerful gaming computer or old refrigerator “eats”?

4 stripes: The most common type. The first two are numbers, the third is the multiplier, the fourth is the accuracy (tolerance).
5 bands: Precision resistors. The first three stripes are numbers, the fourth is the multiplier, the fifth is the tolerance.
6 bands: The same as 5, but the temperature coefficient (TC) is added - how much the resistance changes when heated.

Instructions for use

Take the resistor so that the gold or silver stripe is to theright. If there is none, look for the strip that is located closest to the edge of the case - this is the beginning.
Select the colors of the stripes in the calculator sequentially from left to right.
The result will appear automatically.

Color coding table (Crib)

If you don’t have the Internet at hand, you can determine the denomination manually using this table:

Color	Number	Multiplier	Tolerance	TCS (ppm/°C)
Black	0	×1	-	-
Brown	1	×10	±1%	100
Red	2	×100	±2%	50
Orange	3	×1k	-	15
Yellow	4	×10k	-	25
Green	5	×100k	±0.5%	-
Blue	6	×1M	±0.25%	10
Purple	7	×10M	±0.1%	5
Grey	8	-	±0.05%	-
White	9	-	-	-
Gold	-	×0.1	±5%	-
Silver	-	×0.01	±10%	-

Frequently asked questions (FAQ)

🔹 Which side should you read the marking on?

Usually the first stripe is located closer to the end (edge) of the resistor body, and the last (tolerance) is slightly further away from the rest. If there is a gold or silver stripe, this is always the end of the marking (5% or 10% tolerance).

🔹 What if I have a 4-band resistor?

In the "5 stripes" mode, simply leave the third stripe black (this means 0), or switch the calculator to 4 stripes mode, if such a function is available in the interface.

🔹 Why does the multimeter show a different value?

Each resistor has a “Tolerance” (last bar). For example, with a nominal value of 100 ohms and a tolerance of ±5% (gold), the actual resistance could be between 95 and 105 ohms. This is the norm.

Other useful tools

In the work of an engineer, accuracy in everything is important. If you need to keep track of the exact time when conducting experiments, use our Time Informer Generator.