All Kinds of Electrical

Receptacle Outlet

A Guide to International Electrical Outlets

Type A

The Type A plug has two flat, parallel pins (also known as blades). It's commonly found in North America on smaller appliances that do not require a ground connection. The Type A plug works in both Type A and Type B sockets. Type A blades used to be identical, allowing the plug to be inserted either way. These days, it's more common to find the neutral blade wider than the live blade, so that the plug can only be inserted one way. Countries that use the Type A plug and outlet include the US, Canada, Mexico, Thailand, Costa Rica, and Japan, among many others.

Type B

The Type B plug is much like the Type A, but with a semi-circular grounding prong below the two flat blades. The grounding pin is longer than the blades, meaning the device will be grounded before the power is connected. While a Type A plug can fit in a Type B outlet, a Type B plug cannot fit into a Type A outlet.

Type C

The Type C two-prong plug is commonly known as the Europlug. It is found throughout continental Europe, as well as in the Middle East, most of Africa, South America, Asia, and the former Soviet republics. The Europlug is recognized by its two round 4 mm pins. It is intended for use with devices requiring 2.5 amps or less. The Europlug works in most Type C, E, F, H, J, K, and L outlets. A variation on the Type C is the CEE 7/17, which has larger-diameter pins (4.8 mm). This variation is affixed to larger appliances, and only fits into Type E and F outlets.

Type D

The Type D electrical plug is known as the Old British Plug. While originally found in countries that were colonized by the British, The Type D has mostly been phased out. In South Africa, for instance, the Type M is most common today, while other former British colonies (and the UK itself) use Type G. The Type D has three large, round pins in a triangular formation, and was the UK standard until the 1940s.

Type E

The Type E plug is also known as the French 2-pin. It has two round pins and a female hole for the socket's male grounding pin. Type E outlets accept Type C plugs, and Type E plugs will work in Type F outlets. However, the Type E outlet cannot accept the Type F plug due to male pin.

Type F

The Type F plug is similar to the Type E, but uses side earth clips rather than female earth contacts. It is sometimes referred to as the "Schuko" plug, abbreviated from "Schukostecker" or "Schukokontakt," which is German for protective (grounded) contact.

Type G

The Type G is also called the British 3-pin. Its rectangular blade plug contains a protective fuse inside to protect cords from high-current switches. The rectangular blade also serves to open the live and neutral shutters in the Type G outlet.

Type H

The Type H outlet is known as the Israeli 3-pin. It has three pins in triangular formation. The thin flat pins of the original Type H often caused the plug to overheat when connecting larger appliances. In 1989, the plug was revised from using flat pins to 4 mm round pins. Sockets made since 1989 accept both the old and new plugs, and also Type C Europlugs. Today, the older Type H sockets that only accept the standard Type H plugs are very rare in Israel.

Type I

The Type I or Australian plug has two flat oblique blades that form an inverted V and a grounding blade. It is the standard is Australia and New Zealand, with several variants. The Type I may also be found in countries such as Fiji, Panama, Tonga, Uruguay, and Papua New Guinea.

Type M

The Type M plug is also known as the South African plug. It is essentially a larger version of the Type D, with three circular pins. In addition to South Africa, the Type M may be found in Hong Kong, Mozambique, and Swaziland.

About the Author

Erica OBrien is the webmaster of ElectricalOutlet.org.

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