Worldwide Voltage (Electric) Guide

Main voltage throughout the world is not standardized. There is also no standard frequency of electric current, i.e. the number of times the current changes direction per second, is not everywhere the same. In addition to possible voltage and frequency differences, plug shapes, plug holes, plug sizes and sockets are also different in many countries. What may seem as unimportant differences, can have some very unpleasant consequences.

Many appliances bought overseas simply cannot be connected to the wall outlets when you get back home. There are only two ways to solve this problem: you just cut off the original plug and replace it with the one that is standard in your country, or you buy plug adapter.

Whilst you can buy a plug adapter or a new local plug for your foreign appliances, in many cases this only solves half the problem, because it doesn't help with the possible difference in voltage. A 120V electrical appliance designed for use in North America or Japan will provide a nice fireworks display - complete with sparks and smoke - if plugged into a European socket.

The lack of a single voltage, frequency and globally standardized plugs result in additional costs for manufacturers and increase the burden on the environment.

Single-Phase Voltage and Frequency

Europe and most other countries in the world use a voltage which is twice that of the US. On average, it is between 220V and 240V, whereas in Japan and in most of the Americas the voltage is between 100V and 127V.

The system of three-phase alternating current electrical generation and distribution was invented by a nineteenth century creative genius named Nicola Tesla. He made many careful calculations and measurements and found out that 60 Hz (Hertz, cycles per second) was the best frequency for alternating current (AC) power generating. He preferred 240V, which put him at odds with Thomas Edison, whose direct current (DC) systems were 110V. Perhaps Edison had a useful point in the safety factor of the lower voltage, but DC couldn't provide the power to the same distances that AC could.

When the German company AEG built the first European generating facility, its engineers decided to fix the frequency at 50 Hz, because the number 60 didn't fit the metric standard unit sequence. At that time, AEG had a virtual monopoly and their standard spread to the rest of the continent. In Britain, differing frequencies proliferated, and only after World War II was the 50-cycle standard was established. This, however, was a mistake.

Not only is 50 Hz 20% less effective in generation, it is 10-15% less efficient in transmission, it requires up to 30% larger windings and magnetic core materials in transformer construction. Electric motors are much less efficient at the lower frequency, and must also be made more robust to handle the electrical losses and the extra heat generated. Today, only a handful of countries (Antigua, Guyana, Peru, the Philippines, South Korea and the Leeward Islands) follow Tesla's advice and use the 60 Hz frequency together with a voltage of 220-240V.

Originally Europe was 120V also, just like Japan and the US today. It has been deemed necessary to increase voltage to get more power with less losses and voltage drop from the same copper wire diameter. At the time the US also wanted to change but because of the cost involved to replace all electric appliances, they decided not to. At the time (50s-60s) the average US household already had a fridge, a washing-machine, etc., but not in Europe.

The end result is that now, the US seems not to have evolved from the 50s and 60s, and still copes with problems as light bulbs that burn out rather quickly when they are close to the transformer (too high a voltage), or just the other way round: not enough voltage at the end of the line (105V to 127V spread!).

Note that currently all new American buildings get in fact 240V split in two 120V between neutral and hot wire. Major appliances, such as virtually all drying machines and ovens, are now connected to 240V outlet.

 

Look-up table (single-phase voltage, frequency and plug/sockets)

There are 214 countries listed below. 175 of the countries mentioned use 220-240 volts (50 or 60 Hz). The 39 other countries use 100-127 volts.

 

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

COUNTRY	SINGLE-PHASE VOLTAGE	FREQUENCY	SOCKET TYPE
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
Antigua	230 V	60 Hz	A / B
Argentina	220 V	50 Hz	C / I *
Armenia	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Aruba	120 V	60 Hz	A / B / F
Australia	240 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	C / D / G / K
Barbados	115 V	50 Hz	A / B
Belarus	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Belgium	230 V	50 Hz	E
Belize	110 V / 220 V	60 Hz	B / G
Benin	220 V	50 Hz	E
Bermuda	120 V	60 Hz	A / B
Bhutan	230 V	50 Hz	D / F / G
Bolivia	230 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	A / B / C / I
Brunei	240 V	50 Hz	G
Bulgaria	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Burkina Faso	220 V	50 Hz	C / E
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 / L
Cape 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	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 / I / G
Colombia	110 V	60 Hz	A / B
Comoros	220 V	50 Hz	C / E
Congo, People's Rep. of	230 V	50 Hz	C / E
Congo, Dem. Rep. of (formerly Zaire)	220 V	50 Hz	C / D
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
Cyprus	230 V	50 Hz	G / F **
Czech Republic	230 V	50 Hz	E
Denmark	230 V	50 Hz	C / E / K
Djibouti	220 V	50 Hz	C / E
Dominica	230 V	50 Hz	D / G
Dominican Republic	110 V	60 Hz	A / B
East Timor	220 V	50 Hz	C / E / F / I
Ecuador	110 V	60 Hz	A / B
Egypt	220 V	50 Hz	C / F
El Salvador	115 V	60 Hz	A / B / C / D / E / F / G / I / J / L
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
Faeroe Islands	230 V	50 Hz	C / 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	E
French Guyana	220 V	50 Hz	C / D / E
Gabon	220 V	50 Hz	C
Gambia	230 V	50 Hz	G
Gaza	230 V	50 Hz	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	C / G
Greece	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Greenland	230 V	50 Hz	C / K
Grenada (Windward Islands)	230 V	50 Hz	G
Guadeloupe	230 V	50 Hz	C / D / E
Guam	110 V	60 Hz	A / B
Guatemala	120 V	60 Hz	A / B / G / I
Guinea	220 V	50 Hz	C / F / K
Guinea-Bissau	220 V	50 Hz	C
Guyana	240 V	60 Hz	A / B / D / G
Haiti	110 V	60 Hz	A / B
Honduras	110 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
Isle of Man	230 V	50 Hz	C / G
Israel	230 V	50 Hz	H / C
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
Kenya	240 V	50 Hz	G
Kazakhstan	220 V	50 Hz	C / F
Kiribati	240 V	50 Hz	I
Korea, North	110 V / 220 V	60 Hz	A / C
Korea, South	110V / 220 V	60 Hz	A / B / C / F
Kuwait	240 V	50 Hz	C / 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	60 Hz	A / B
Libya	127 V / 230 V	50 Hz	D / F
Liechtenstein	230 V	50 Hz	J
Lithuania	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Luxembourg	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Macau	220 V	50 Hz	D / G
Macedonia	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Madagascar	127 V / 220 V	50 Hz	C / D / E / J / K
Madeira	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Malawi	230 V	50 Hz	G
Malaysia	240 V	50 Hz	G
Maldives	230 V	50 Hz	D / G / J / K / L
Mali	220 V	50 Hz	C / E
Malta	230 V	50 Hz	G
Martinique	220 V	50 Hz	C / D / E
Mauritania	220 V	50 Hz	C
Mauritius	230 V	50 Hz	C / G
Mexico	127 V	60 Hz	A
Micronesia, Federal States of	120 V	60 Hz	A / B
Moldova	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Monaco	230 V	50 Hz	C / D / E / F
Mongolia	230 V	50 Hz	C / E
Montenegro	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Montserrat (Leeward Islands)	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	C / D / F / G
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
Netherlands Antilles	127 V / 220 V	50 Hz	A / B / F
New Caledonia	220 V	50 Hz	F
New Zealand	240 V	50 Hz	I
Nicaragua	120 V	60 Hz	A
Niger	220 V	50 Hz	A / B / C / D / E / F
Nigeria	230 V	50 Hz	D / G
Norway	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Oman	240 V	50 Hz	C / G
Pakistan	230 V	50 Hz	C / D
Palau	120 V	60 Hz	A / B
Panama	110 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 / B / C
Philippines	220 V	60 Hz	A / B / C
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	D / G
Réunion Island	230 V	50 Hz	E
Romania	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Russian Federation	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Rwanda	230 V	50 Hz	C / J
St. Kitts and Nevis (Leeward Islands)	230 V	60 Hz	D / G
St. Lucia (Windward Islands)	230 V	50 Hz	G
St. Vincent (Windward Islands)	230 V	50 Hz	A / C / E / G / I / K
Samoa	230 V	50 Hz	I
San Marino	230 V	50 Hz	F / L
Saudi Arabia	110 V / 220 V ***	60 Hz	A / B / C / 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	E
Slovenia	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Somalia	220 V	50 Hz	C
South Africa	230 V	50 Hz	D / M ***
Spain	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Sri Lanka	230 V	50 Hz	D / G / M
Sudan	230 V	50 Hz	C / D
Suriname	127 V	60 Hz	C / F
Swaziland	230 V	50 Hz	M
Sweden	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
Switzerland	230 V	50 Hz	J
Syria	220 V	50 Hz	C / E / L
Tahiti	220 V	50 Hz / 60 Hz****	C / E
Tajikistan	220 V	50 Hz	C / F
Taiwan	110 V	60 Hz	A / B
Tanzania	230 V	50 Hz	D / G
Thailand	220 V	50 Hz	A / B / C
Togo	220 V	50 Hz	C
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
Uganda	240 V	50 Hz	G
Ukraine	230 V	50 Hz	C / F
United Arab Emirates	240 V	50 Hz	G
United Kingdom	230 V	50 Hz	G
United States of America	120 V	60 Hz	A / B
Uruguay	220 V	50 Hz	C / F / I / L
Uzbekistan	220 V	50 Hz	C / F
Venezuela	120 V	60 Hz	A / B
Vietnam	220 V	50 Hz	A / C / G
Virgin Islands	110 V	60 Hz	A / B
Yemen, Rep. of	230 V	50 Hz	A / D / G
Zambia	230 V	50 Hz	C / D / G
Zimbabwe	240 V	50 Hz	D / G

* In Brazil there is no standard voltage. Most states use 127V electricity (Acre, Amapá, Amazonas, Espírito Santo, Mato Grosso do Sul, Maranhão, Pará, Paraná, Rondônia, Roraima, Sergipe and Minas Gerais). Other - mainly northeastern - states are on 220V (Alagoas, Brasília, Ceará, Mato Grosso, Goiás, Paraíba, Rio Grande do Norte, Santa Catarina and Tocantins). Although in most parts of the states of Bahia, São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Rio Grande do Sul 127V is used, the cities of Santos, Jequié, Jundiaí, São Bernardo do Campo, Novo Friburgo, Bagé, Caxias do Sul and Pelotas run on 220V. The states of Pernambuco and Piauí use 220V, except for the cities of Paulista and Teresina (127V).

** Although the mains voltage in Japan is the same everywhere, the frequency differs from region to region. Eastern Japan uses predominantly 50 Hz (Tokyo, Kawasaki, Sapporo, Yokohoma, Sendai), whereas Western Japan prefers 60 Hz (Osaka, Kyoto, Nagoya, Hiroshima).

*** Saudi Arabia uses 110V in many parts of the country, such as the Dammam and al-Khobar area (situated in the eastern province of Ash Sharqiyah). 220V can be commonly found as well, especially in hotels.

**** In Tahiti the frequency is 60 Hz, except for the Marquesas archipelago where it is 50 Hz.

Voltage Superstore Voltage Converter Products
Diamond Series Converters   Type 2 Series Converters   Compare Above Converters	Plug Adapters   Travel Adapter Kits