How to Read a Resistor Color Code
Resistors use colored bands to represent their resistance, multiplier and tolerance.
For a 4 band resistor, the first two bands represent the significant digits. The third band represents the multiplier. The fourth band represents tolerance.
Resistor Color Code Table
| Color | Digit | Multiplier | Tolerance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Black | 0 | ×1 | None |
| Brown | 1 | ×10 | ±1% |
| Red | 2 | ×100 | ±2% |
| Orange | 3 | ×1,000 | None |
| Yellow | 4 | ×10,000 | None |
| Green | 5 | ×100,000 | ±0.5% |
| Blue | 6 | ×1,000,000 | ±0.25% |
| Violet | 7 | ×10,000,000 | ±0.1% |
| Grey | 8 | ×100,000,000 | ±0.05% |
| White | 9 | ×1,000,000,000 | None |
| Gold | None | ×0.1 | ±5% |
| Silver | None | ×0.01 | ±10% |
Example
Consider a 4 band resistor with these colors:
Brown, Black, Red, Gold
Brown = 1
Black = 0
Red = ×100
Gold = ±5%
Therefore:
10 × 100 = 1000 Ω
The resistor value is 1 kΩ ±5%.