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Welcome. This guide explains how to use the Component Marking Decoder, a free tool from TheMakersWorkbench.com that reads the colors, numbers, and letters printed on electronic parts.
You can try the tool right now in the Virtual Workbench.
Electronic parts are small, and the people who make them did not leave much room to write on them. So they use short codes. A tiny rectangle that says 103 might be a 10 kΩ resistor or a 10 nF capacitor, depending on what kind of part it is. A resistor with five colored stripes needs a chart to read. A diode with L4 stamped on it could be one of several things.
This tool does the lookup for you, shows you a labeled picture of the part, and walks through how it read the code, so you learn the pattern as you go.
- New here? Read Getting Started. It takes two minutes.
- Know what part you have? Jump to its guide below.
- Wondering how much to trust the numbers? Read Accuracy and Sources.
Resistors
- Resistor Bands: 3, 4, 5, and 6 band color codes, and value to bands
-
SMD Resistor:
472,1002,01C,4R7,000 -
Pot and Trimmer:
B103,A504 - Resistor Networks: SIP, DIP, and SMD arrays
Capacitors, inductors, and ferrites
- Capacitor: ceramic, film, SMD, tantalum, and electrolytic
-
Trimmer Capacitor:
5-30style ranges - Inductor: number codes, color bands, and marking dots
-
Ferrite Bead:
601,BLM18AG601SN1
Semiconductors and timing
- Semiconductors: diodes, transistors, MOSFETs, regulators, and ICs
- Crystals and Resonators: frequency markings, oscillators, and ceramic filters
Protection and sensing
-
Varistor:
14D471K -
Thermistor:
103,NTC 10K B3950 -
Fuse:
T2AL250V,MF-R110
More
The About tab shows how to use the tool, the license, and the maintainer and project links.
Developed and maintained by TheMakersWorkbench.com. The source code is on GitHub, and contributions and corrections are welcome.