How to Read Resistance Values

This article details how to read the resistance values of "axial leaded resistors" and "chip resistors".

E series

Resistance values are determined along the E series as follows.

The "E" in the E series stands for exponent, and the E12 series is completed by inserting the numbers 0 to 11 (12 numbers) into the "n" of the E12 series.

For resistors with an tolerance of ±10[%], using the E12 series values, 100[Ω] is 90 to 110[Ω], 120[Ω] is 108 to 132[Ω], and 150[Ω] is 135 to 165[Ω], so that the tolerance ranges overlap.

However, if the E series is too large, many types of resistors must be available, so the selection is usually made from the E12 series.

E6/E12/E24 seris

E6 ±20% $\sqrt[6]{10^n}$	E12 ±10% $\sqrt[12]{10^n}$	E24 ±5% $\sqrt[24]{10^n}$
1.0	1.0	1.0
		1.1
	1.2	1.2
		1.3
1.5	1.5	1.5
		1.6
	1.8	1.8
		2.0
2.2	2.2	2.2
		2.4
	2.7	2.7
		3.0
3.3	3.3	3.3
		3.6
	3.9	3.9
		4.3
4.7	4.7	4.7
		5.1
	5.6	5.6
		6.2
6.8	6.8	6.8
		7.5
	8.2	8.2
		9.1

Color Code(Axial Lead Resistor)

Axial lead resistors are indicated by a color that represents a number as shown below.

Color Code

Color	1st digit	2nd digit	3rd digit	Multiplier	Tolerance	PPM
Black	0	0	0	$10^0$	-	250[ppm/K]
Brown	1	1	1	$10^1$	±1[%]	100[ppm/K]
Red	2	2	2	$10^2$	±2[%]	50[ppm/K]
Orange	3	3	3	$10^3$	±0.05[%]	15[ppm/K]
Yellow	4	4	4	$10^4$	±0.02[%]	25[ppm/K]
Green	5	5	5	$10^5$	±0.5[%]	20[ppm/K]
Blue	6	6	6	$10^6$	±0.25[%]	10[ppm/K]
Purple	7	7	7	$10^7$	±0.1[%]	5[ppm/K]
Gray	8	8	8	$10^8$	±0.01[%]	1[ppm/K]
White	9	9	9	$10^9$	-	-
Gold	-	-	-	$10^{-1}$	±5[%]	-
Silver	-	-	-	$10^{-2}$	±10[%]	-
None	-	-	-	-	±20[%]	-

Some mnemonics that are easy to remember:

Easy to remember of color code

Color	Number	First Letter
Black	0	Black
Brown	1	Brown
Red	2	Red
Orange	3	Orange
Yellow	4	Yellow
Green	5	Green
Blue	6	Blue
Purple	7	Purple
Gray	8	Gray
White	9	White
Gold		-
Silver		-
None		-

Easy to remember

Big Boys Race Our Young Girls But Violet Generally Wins.

Better Be Right Or Your Great Big Venture Goes West.

Beetle Bailey Runs Over Your General Before Very Good Witnesses.

Beach Bums Rarely Offer You Gatorade But Very Good Water.

Buster Brown Races Our Young Girls But Violet Generally Wins.

Better Be Right Or Your Great Big Vacation Goes Wrong.

Better Be Right Or Your Great Big Values Go Wrong.

Better Be Right Or Your Great Big Plan Goes Wrong. (with P = Purple for Violet)

Back-Breaking Rascals Often Yield Grudgingly But Virtuous Gentlemen Will Give Shelter Nobly. (with tolerance bands Gold, Silver or None)

Better Be Right Or Your Great Big Plan Goes Wrong - Go Start Now!

Black Beetles Running Over Your Garden Bring Very Grey Weather.

Bad Booze Rots Our Young Guts But Vodka Goes Well – get some now.

Bad Boys Run Over Yellow Gardenias Behind Victory Garden Walls.

Bat Brained Resistor Order You Gotta Be Very Good With.

Betty Brown Runs Over Your Garden But Violet Gingerly Walks.

Big Beautiful Roses Occupy Your Garden But Violets Grow Wild.

Big Brown Rabbits Often Yield Great Big Vocal Groans When Gingerly Slapped Needlessly.

Black Bananas Really Offend Your Girlfriend But Violets Get Welcomed.

Black Birds Run Over Your Gay Barely Visible Grey Worms.

Badly Burnt Resistors On Your Ground Bus Void General Warranty.

Billy Brown Ran Out Yelling Get Back Violets Getting Wet.

Better Be Right Or You're Gonna Be Violently Gouged With Golden Spaghetti.

Bright Boys Rave Over Young Girls But Veto Getting Wed.

Black Bears Raid Our Yellow Green Bins Violently Grabbing Whatever Goodies Smell Nice.

Bad Bears Raid Our Yummy Grub But Veto Grey Waffles.

Bachelor Boys Rush Our Young Girls But Veronica Goes Wild for Gold or Silver Necklaces.

List of electronic color code mnemonics

Example:4 Band Resistor(3 Band Resistor)

Example:5 Band Resistor

Example:6 Band Resistor

Example:0Ω Resistor

Digit Numbering(Chip Resistor)

Chip resistors are indicated by numbers as follows, which is easier to understand than color codes. In addition to numbers, there are also special markings such as R (decimal point) and L (mΩ and decimal point).

Note that if the size is less than 1005, it will be no description, and the only way to measure it is with a tester.

Digit Numbering

1st digit	2nd digit	3rd digit	Multiplier
0	0	0	$10^0$
1	1	1	$10^1$
2	2	2	$10^2$
3	3	3	$10^3$
4	4	4	$10^4$
5	5	5	$10^5$
6	6	6	$10^6$
7	7	7	$10^7$
8	8	8	$10^8$
9	9	9	$10^9$
R(Decimal Point)	R(Decimal Point)	R(Decimal Point)	-
L($10^{-3}$/Decimal Point)	L($10^{-3}$/Decimal Point)	L($10^{-3}$/Decimal Point)	L($10^{-3}$)

Simplified Resistor Chart

Simplified Resistor Chart

Example	Resistance Value
106	10[MΩ]
105	1[MΩ]
104	100[kΩ]
103	10[kΩ]
102	1[kΩ]
101	100[Ω]
100	10[Ω]
1R0	1[Ω]
R10	0.1[Ω]

Example:3 digits Resistor

Example:4 digits Resistor