AC power plugs and sockets

AC power plugs and sockets allow electric equipment to be connected to the primary alternating current (AC) power supply in buildings and at other sites. Electrical plugs and sockets differ from one another in voltage and current rating, shape, size, and connector type. Different systems of plugs and sockets have been standardized, and different standards are used in different parts of the world.

15 Types in use today

There are currently 15 types of electrical outlet plugs in use today, each of which has been assigned a letter by the US Department of Commerce International Trade Administration (ITA), starting with A and moving through the alphabet. These letters are completely arbitrary: they don’t actually mandate anything.

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Type A

Type A plugs are mainly used in the USA, Canada, Mexico & Japan (for a full list, see here for list of standards by country)

Features:

• 2 pins
• not grounded
• 15 A
• almost always 100 – 127 V
• socket compatible with plug type A

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Type B

Type B plugs are mainly used in the USA, Canada, Mexico & Japan (for a full list, see here for list of standards by country)

Features:

• 3 pins
• grounded
• 15 A
• almost always 100 – 127 V
• socket compatible with plug types A & B

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Type C

Type C plugs are commonly used in Europe, South America & Asia (for a full list, see here for list of standards by country)

Features:

• 2 pins
• not grounded
• 2.5 A
• almost always 220 – 240 V
• socket compatible with plug type C

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Type D

Type D plugs are mainly used in India (for a full list, see here for list of standards by country)

Features:

• 3 pins
• grounded
• 5 A
• 220 – 240 V
• socket compatible with plug type D (partial and unsafe compatibility with C, E & F)

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Type E

Type E plugs are primarily used in France, Belgium, Poland, Slovakia & Czechia (for a full list, see here for list of standards by country)

Features:

• 2 pins
• grounded
• 16 A
• 220 – 240 V
• socket compatible with plug types C, E & F

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Type F

used almost everywhere in Europe & Russia, except for the UK & Ireland (for a full list, see here for list of standards by country)

Features:

• 2 pins
• grounded
• 16 A
• 220 – 240 V
• socket compatible with plug types C, E & F

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Type G

Type G plugs are mainly used in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Malta, Malaysia & Singapore (for a full list, see here for list of standards by country)

Features:

• 3 pins
• grounded
• 13 A
• 220 – 240 V
• socket compatible with plug type G

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Type H

Type H plugs are used exclusively in the West Bank & the Gaza Strip (for a full list, see here for list of standards by country)

Features:

• 3 pins
• grounded
• 16 A
• 220 – 240 V
• socket compatible with plug types C & H (unsafe compatibility with E & F)

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Type I

Type I plugs are mainly used in Australia, New Zealand, China & Argentina (for a full list, see here for list of standards by country)

Features:

• 2 or 3 pins
• 2 pins: not grounded / 3 pins: grounded
• 10 A
• 220 – 240 V
• socket compatible with plug type I

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Type J

Type J plugs are used almost exclusively in Switzerland, Liechtenstein & Rwanda (for a full list, see here for list of standards by country)

Features:

• 3 pins
• grounded
• 10 A
• 220 – 240 V
• socket compatible with plug types C & J

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Type K

Type K plugs are used almost exclusively in Denmark & Greenland (for a full list, see here for list of standards by country)

Features:

• 3 pins
• grounded
• 16 A
• 220 – 240 V
• socket compatible with plug types C & K (unsafe compatibility with E & F)

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Type L

Type L plugs are used almost exclusively in Italy & Chile (for a full list, see here for list of standards by country)

Features:

• 3 pins
• grounded
• 10 A & 16 A
• 220 – 240 V
• 10 A socket compatible with plug types C & L (10 A version) / 16 A socket compatible with plug type L (16 A version)

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Type M

Type M plugs are mainly used in South Africa (for a full list, see here for list of standards by country)

Features:

• 3 pins
• grounded
• 15 A
• 220 – 240 V
• socket compatible with plug type M

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Type N

Type N plugs are used almost exclusively in Brazil (for a full list, see here for list of standards by country)

Features:

• 3 pins
• grounded
• 10 A & 20 A
• 100 – 240 V
• socket compatible with plug types C & N

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Type O

Type O plugs are used exclusively in Thailand (for a full list, see here for list of standards by country)

Features:

• 3 pins
• grounded
• 16 A
• 220 – 240 V
• socket compatible with plug types C & O (unsafe compatibility with E & F)

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Earthing (grounding)

Note that not all standards have the 3rd Earth pin: electrical safety must be taken into account during installation.

A third contact for a connection to earth is intended to protect against insulation failure of the connected device. Some early unearthed plug and socket types were revised to include an earthing pin or phased out in favour of earthed types.

Different types of plug are used for different IEC appliance classes. The assigned class depends on whether the device is earthed and the degree of insulation it incorporates. Class I, for example, refers to earthed equipment that requires a third contact in the plug and socket, while Class II refers to unearthed equipment protected by double insulation.

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List of countries and mains voltage, frequency and plug types

Note: List is provided for information only and believed to be correct at time of publication. Regional variations and changes may occur. Please check locally to be sure.

Country / state / territory	Single-phase voltage (volts)	Frequency (hertz)	Plug type
Abu Dhabi (not a country, but capital of the United Arab Emirates)	230 V	50 Hz	G
Afghanistan	220 V	50 Hz	C / F
Albania	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Algeria	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
American Samoa	120 V	60 Hz	A / B / F / I
Andorra	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Angola	220 V	50 Hz	C
Anguilla	110 V	60 Hz	A / B
Antigua and Barbuda	230 V	60 Hz	A / B
Argentina	220 V	50 Hz	I
Armenia	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Aruba	120 V	60 Hz	A / B / F
Australia	230 V	50 Hz	I
Austria	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Azerbaijan	220 V	50 Hz	C / F
Azores	230 V	50 Hz	B / C / F
Bahamas	120 V	60 Hz	A / B
Bahrain	230 V	50 Hz	G
Balearic Islands	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Bangladesh	220 V	50 Hz	A / C / D / G / K
Barbados	115 V	50 Hz	A / B
Belarus	220 V	50 Hz	C / F
Belgium	230 V	50 Hz	C / E
Belize	110 V / 220 V	60 Hz	A / B / G
Benin	220 V	50 Hz	C / E
Bermuda	120 V	60 Hz	A / B
Bhutan	230 V	50 Hz	C / D / G
Bolivia	230 V	50 Hz	A / C
Bonaire	127 V	50 Hz	A / C
Bosnia & Herzegovina	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Botswana	230 V	50 Hz	D / G
Brazil	127 V / 220 V	60 Hz	C / N
British Virgin Islands	110 V	60 Hz	A / B
Brunei	240 V	50 Hz	G
Bulgaria	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Burkina Faso	220 V	50 Hz	C / E
Burma (officially Myanmar)	230 V	50 Hz	A / C / D / G / I
Burundi	220 V	50 Hz	C / E
Cambodia	230 V	50 Hz	A / C / G
Cameroon	220 V	50 Hz	C / E
Canada	120 V	60 Hz	A / B
Canary Islands	230 V	50 Hz	C / E / F
Cape Verde (in Portuguese: Cabo Verde)	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Cayman Islands	120 V	60 Hz	A / B
Central African Republic	220 V	50 Hz	C / E
Chad	220 V	50 Hz	C / D / E / F
Channel Islands (Guernsey & Jersey)	230 V	50 Hz	C / G
Chile	220 V	50 Hz	C / L
China, People’s Republic of	220 V	50 Hz	A / C / I
Christmas Island	230 V	50 Hz	I
Cocos (Keeling) Islands	230 V	50 Hz	I
Colombia	110 V	60 Hz	A / B
Comoros	220 V	50 Hz	C / E
Congo, Democratic Republic of the (Congo-Kinshasa)	220 V	50 Hz	C / D / E
Congo, Republic of the (Congo-Brazzaville)	230 V	50 Hz	C / E
Cook Islands	240 V	50 Hz	I
Costa Rica	120 V	60 Hz	A / B
Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast)	220 V	50 Hz	C / E
Croatia	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Cuba	110 V / 220 V	60 Hz	A / B / C / L
Curaçao	127 V	50 Hz	A / B
Cyprus	230 V	50 Hz	G
Cyprus, North (unrecognised, self-declared state)	230 V	50 Hz	G
Czechia (Czech Republic)	230 V	50 Hz	C / E
Denmark	230 V	50 Hz	C / E / F / K
Djibouti	220 V	50 Hz	C / E
Dominica	230 V	50 Hz	D / G
Dominican Republic	120 V	60 Hz	A / B / C
Dubai (not a country, but the largest city in the United Arab Emirates)	230 V	50 Hz	G
East Timor (Timor-Leste)	220 V	50 Hz	C / E / F / I
Ecuador	120 V	60 Hz	A / B
Egypt	220 V	50 Hz	C / F
El Salvador	120 V	60 Hz	A / B
England	230 V	50 Hz	G
Equatorial Guinea	220 V	50 Hz	C / E
Eritrea	230 V	50 Hz	C / L
Estonia	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Ethiopia	220 V	50 Hz	C / F / G
Faeroe Islands	230 V	50 Hz	C / E / F / K
Falkland Islands	240 V	50 Hz	G
Fiji	240 V	50 Hz	I
Finland	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
France	230 V	50 Hz	C / E
French Guiana	220 V	50 Hz	C / D / E
Gabon (Gabonese Republic)	220 V	50 Hz	C
Gambia	230 V	50 Hz	G
Gaza Strip (Gaza)	230 V	50 Hz	C / H
Georgia	220 V	50 Hz	C / F
Germany	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Ghana	230 V	50 Hz	D / G
Gibraltar	230 V	50 Hz	G
Great Britain (GB)	230 V	50 Hz	G
Greece	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Greenland	230 V	50 Hz	C / E / F / K
Grenada	230 V	50 Hz	G
Guadeloupe	230 V	50 Hz	C / E
Guam	110 V	60 Hz	A / B
Guatemala	120 V	60 Hz	A / B
Guinea	220 V	50 Hz	C / F / K
Guinea-Bissau	220 V	50 Hz	C
Guyana	120 V / 240 V	60 Hz	A / B / D / G
Haiti	110 V	60 Hz	A / B
Holland (officially the Netherlands)	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Honduras	120 V	60 Hz	A / B
Hong Kong	220 V	50 Hz	G
Hungary	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Iceland	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
India	230 V	50 Hz	C / D / M
Indonesia	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Iran	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Iraq	230 V	50 Hz	C / D / G
Ireland (Eire)	230 V	50 Hz	G
Ireland, Northern	230 V	50 Hz	G
Isle of Man	230 V	50 Hz	C / G
Israel	230 V	50 Hz	C / H
Italy	230 V	50 Hz	C / F / L
Jamaica	110 V	50 Hz	A / B
Japan	100 V	50 Hz / 60 Hz	A / B
Jordan	230 V	50 Hz	C / D / F / G / J
Kazakhstan	220 V	50 Hz	C / F
Kenya	240 V	50 Hz	G
Kiribati	240 V	50 Hz	I
Korea, North	220 V	50 Hz	C
Korea, South	220 V	60 Hz	F
Kosovo	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Kuwait	240 V	50 Hz	G
Kyrgyzstan	220 V	50 Hz	C / F
Laos	230 V	50 Hz	A / B / C / E / F
Latvia	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Lebanon	230 V	50 Hz	C / D / G
Lesotho	220 V	50 Hz	M
Liberia	120 V / 220 V	60 Hz	A / B / C / F
Libya	230 V	50 Hz	C / L
Liechtenstein	230 V	50 Hz	C / J
Lithuania	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Luxembourg	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Macau	220 V	50 Hz	G
Macedonia, Republic of (the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, FYROM)	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Madagascar	220 V	50 Hz	C / E
Madeira	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Malawi	230 V	50 Hz	G
Malaysia	240 V	50 Hz	G
Maldives	230 V	50 Hz	C / D / G / J / K / L
Mali	220 V	50 Hz	C / E
Malta	230 V	50 Hz	G
Marshall Islands	120 V	60 Hz	A / B
Martinique	220 V	50 Hz	C / D / E
Mauritania	220 V	50 Hz	C
Mauritius	230 V	50 Hz	C / G
Mayotte	230 V	50 Hz	C / E
Mexico	120 V	60 Hz	A / B
Micronesia, Federated States of	120 V	60 Hz	A / B
Moldova	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Monaco	230 V	50 Hz	C / E / F
Mongolia	230 V	50 Hz	C / E
Montenegro	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Montserrat	230 V	60 Hz	A / B
Morocco	220 V	50 Hz	C / E
Mozambique	220 V	50 Hz	C / F / M
Myanmar (formerly Burma)	230 V	50 Hz	A / C / D / G / I
Namibia	220 V	50 Hz	D / M
Nauru	240 V	50 Hz	I
Nepal	230 V	50 Hz	C / D / M
Netherlands	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
New Caledonia	220 V	50 Hz	C / F
New Zealand	230 V	50 Hz	I
Nicaragua	120 V	60 Hz	A / B
Niger	220 V	50 Hz	C / D / E / F
Nigeria	230 V	50 Hz	D / G
Niue	230 V	50 Hz	I
Norfolk Island	230 V	50 Hz	I
North Cyprus (unrecognised, self-declared state)	230 V	50 Hz	G
Northern Ireland	230 V	50 Hz	G
North Korea	220 V	50 Hz	C
Norway	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Oman	240 V	50 Hz	G
Pakistan	230 V	50 Hz	C / D
Palau	120 V	60 Hz	A / B
Palestine	230 V	50 Hz	C / H
Panama	120 V	60 Hz	A / B
Papua New Guinea	240 V	50 Hz	I
Paraguay	220 V	50 Hz	C
Peru	220 V	60 Hz	A / C
Philippines	220 V	60 Hz	A / B / C
Pitcairn Islands	230 V	50 Hz	I
Poland	230 V	50 Hz	C / E
Portugal	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Puerto Rico	120 V	60 Hz	A / B
Qatar	240 V	50 Hz	G
Réunion	230 V	50 Hz	C / E
Romania	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Russia (officially the Russian Federation)	220 V	50 Hz	C / F
Rwanda	230 V	50 Hz	C / J
Saba	110 V	60 Hz	A / B
Saint Barthélemy (informally also referred to as Saint Barth’s or Saint Barts)	230 V	60 Hz	C / E
Saint Kitts and Nevis (officially the Federation of Saint Christopher and Nevis)	230 V	60 Hz	D / G
Saint Lucia	230 V	50 Hz	G
Saint Martin	220 V	60 Hz	C / E
Saint Helena	230 V	50 Hz	G
Sint Eustatius	110 V / 220 V	60 Hz	A / B / C / F
Sint Maarten	110 V	60 Hz	A / B
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	110 V / 230 V	50 Hz	A / B / G
Samoa	230 V	50 Hz	I
San Marino	230 V	50 Hz	C / F / L
São Tomé and Príncipe	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Saudi Arabia	220 V	60 Hz	G
Scotland	230 V	50 Hz	G
Senegal	230 V	50 Hz	C / D / E / K
Serbia	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Seychelles	240 V	50 Hz	G
Sierra Leone	230 V	50 Hz	D / G
Singapore	230 V	50 Hz	G
Slovakia	230 V	50 Hz	C / E
Slovenia	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Solomon Islands	230 V	50 Hz	G / I
Somalia	220 V	50 Hz	C
Somaliland	220 V	50 Hz	G
South Africa	230 V	50 Hz	C / M / N (still rare)
South Korea	220 V	60 Hz	F
South Sudan	230 V	50 Hz	C / D
Spain	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Sri Lanka	230 V	50 Hz	D / G
Sudan	230 V	50 Hz	C / D
Suriname	127 V / 220 V	60 Hz	A / B / C / F
Swaziland	230 V	50 Hz	M
Sweden	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Switzerland	230 V	50 Hz	C / J
Syria	220 V	50 Hz	C / E / L
Tahiti	220 V	50 Hz / 60 Hz	C / E
Taiwan	110 V	60 Hz	A / B
Tajikistan	220 V	50 Hz	C / F
Tanzania	230 V	50 Hz	D / G
Thailand	230 V	50 Hz	A / B / C / O
Togo	220 V	50 Hz	C
Tokelau	230 V	50 Hz	I
Tonga	240 V	50 Hz	I
Trinidad & Tobago	115 V	60 Hz	A / B
Tunisia	230 V	50 Hz	C / E
Turkey	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Turkmenistan	220 V	50 Hz	C / F
Turks and Caicos Islands	120 V	60 Hz	A / B
Tuvalu	230 V	50 Hz	I
Uganda	240 V	50 Hz	G
Ukraine	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
United Arab Emirates (UAE)	230 V	50 Hz	G
United Kingdom (UK)	230 V	50 Hz	G
United States of America (USA)	120 V	60 Hz	A / B
United States Virgin Islands	110 V	60 Hz	A / B
Uruguay	220 V	50 Hz	C / F / L
Uzbekistan	220 V	50 Hz	C / F
Vanuatu	230 V	50 Hz	I
Vatican City	230 V	50 Hz	C / F / L
Venezuela	120 V	60 Hz	A / B
Vietnam	220 V	50 Hz	A / B / C
Virgin Islands (British)	110 V	60 Hz	A / B
Virgin Islands (USA)	110 V	60 Hz	A / B
Wales	230 V	50 Hz	G
Western Sahara	220 V	50 Hz	C / E
Yemen	230 V	50 Hz	A / D / G
Zambia	230 V	50 Hz	C / D / G
Zimbabwe	240 V	50 Hz	D / G

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