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Printable resistor colour code chart

The resistor colour code cheat sheet: a table of the twelve band colours with their digit, multiplier and tolerance, labelled drawings of a 4-band and a 5-band resistor, four practice resistors, and the E12 values with their bands.

A one-page resistor colour code chart for the classroom wall or the workbench. It lists what every band colour means, shows how to read 4-band and 5-band resistors, and ends with the standard E12 values and their bands.

Download PDF (A4)Download PDF (US Letter)

One page. Free to print and share for teaching. Print at actual size (100%), not fit to page. A4 suits most of the world; US Letter suits the USA and Canada.

What's on the sheet

  • The colour table: black to white, plus gold and silver, with each colour's digit, multiplier and tolerance
  • A 4-band and a 5-band resistor, each band labelled, with a worked example of each
  • How to read one in four steps, and why red, orange and brown are easy to mix up
  • Four practice resistors to read, with the answers printed upside down
  • The E12 values from 10 Ω to 8.2 MΩ, with the colours of their first three bands

How to use it in class

Hand it out with a bag of mixed resistors and ask each student to read five, then check them with a multimeter. The practice resistors make a quick starter, and the E12 table answers "why can't I buy a 50 Ω resistor?" before anyone asks. Laminate a copy for each bench so it lives next to the parts.

Free lesson

Now build it yourself

Each lesson comes in three short parts: see the idea, try it on a live board, then build it yourself, with quick checks as you go.

Try it yourself: free lesson

“Resistance: the squeeze” is lesson 4 of 6 in Copper Flats, Electronics World 1. Free with an account. Lessons unlock in order, so you’ll do the 3 before it first.

Or start from the very first lesson, no account needed

The charts online

Work it out

The ideas behind it

Questions teachers ask

How do you read a resistor colour code?

Turn the resistor so the bands crowd to the left and the gold or silver band is on the right. Read the first bands as digits, multiply by the next band, and the last band is the tolerance. Yellow, violet, red, gold is 47 × 100 = 4.7 kΩ ±5%.

Is the chart free to use in class?

Yes. Print as many copies as you like and share them with students or other teachers. Each sheet carries a link back to the free lessons, so please leave the footer on.

Should I print the A4 or the US Letter version?

Pick the paper in your printer: A4 for the UK, Europe, Australia and most of the world, US Letter for the USA and Canada. Both hold the same chart on one page, so print at 100% (actual size) rather than fit to page.

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