E-Series Standard Values Table
Browse the IEC 60063 preferred-value series E6–E96, and check whether any value is standard.
What it does: Look up the standard resistor/capacitor preferred values for each E-series, and test whether a value is a real off-the-shelf number.
When to use it: When choosing a part value, rounding a calculated resistor/capacitor to something you can actually buy, or deciding between 5% and 1% tolerance.
The preferred values? below are one decade; multiply or divide by powers of ten for the rest.
Is it a standard value?
MEANS —
No history yet. Each calculation is automatically saved to this device.
How to use the E-series table
Pick a series → read the values → check a specific value.
- 01
Pick a series
Choose E6, E12, E24, E48, or E96. The page shows the full base-decade preferred-value list for that series, along with its tolerance class and how many values it has.
- 02
Read the values (any decade)
The listed numbers are one decade (e.g. 10–91 or 100–976). Every value also exists scaled by ×10, ×100, ×0.1, etc. — so a "47" in E24 means 4.7Ω, 47Ω, 470Ω, 4.7kΩ, and so on are all standard.
- 03
Check a specific value
In the "is it standard?" box, type a value and pick a series. The tool says whether it is a standard preferred value, and if not, gives the nearest standard value.
Coarse-series base values (one decade)
E6/E12/E24 base-decade preferred values. E48 and E96 are longer — view them via the selector above.
| Series | Tolerance | Base-decade values |
|---|---|---|
| E6 | ±20% | 10, 15, 22, 33, 47, 68 |
| E12 | ±10% | 10, 12, 15, 18, 22, 27, 33, 39, 47, 56, 68, 82 |
| E24 | ±5% | 10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, 27, 30, 33, 36, 39, 43, 47, 51, 56, 62, 68, 75, 82, 91 |
IEC 60063 preferred number series (E6/E12/E24 base decade).
Common questions, answered in 3 minutes
What are "preferred values"?
Preferred values are the standardized resistance and capacitance values that components are actually manufactured in. Instead of every possible number, the IEC 60063 standard defines a fixed set per decade (E6, E12, E24, …) so a handful of values cover any range with overlapping tolerance bands.
Why these specific numbers and not round ones?
They are spaced roughly evenly on a logarithmic scale so that, at the series tolerance, each value's band just meets its neighbours. E24 (±5%) uses 24 steps per decade; E96 (±1%) uses 96 finer steps. E6/E12/E24 are taken directly from the standard (a few entries deviate slightly from the pure formula), which is why this tool reuses the authoritative table rather than computing them.
When should I use E24 vs E96?
E24 (±5%) covers most hobby and general-purpose work and is cheap and widely stocked. Use E96 (±1%) when you need precision — voltage dividers, references, filter corner frequencies, gain-setting resistors — where a 5% step is too coarse.
How does decade scaling work?
The listed values are just one decade. Multiply or divide any of them by powers of ten to get the rest. So if 47 is in E24, then 4.7Ω, 47Ω, 470Ω, 4.7kΩ, 47kΩ … are all standard E24 values. The checker below handles any decade automatically.
Standards and sources referenced by this tool
| Item | Value / Formula | Source |
|---|---|---|
| E6 / E12 / E24 | IEC 60063 | Preferred number series (hard-coded from the standard) |
| E48 / E96 | IEC 60063 / EIA-96 | Preferred number series (E96 = EIA-96 SMD codes) |
Values are the IEC 60063 preferred-value tables (E96 also corresponds to EIA-96 SMD resistor codes); E6/E12/E24 are taken verbatim from the standard.