Ohm’s Law Calculator

Use Ohm’s law to calculate the voltage, current, resistance, or power in an electrical circuit. Enter any two known values to find the other two. For example, enter voltage and wattage to find the current and resistance.

What is Ohm’s Law?

Ohm’s law defines the relationship between electric current, resistance, and voltage. More specifically, it states that the current through a circuit element is directly proportional to the potential difference applied to it and inversely proportional to the resistance.^[1]

Ohm’s law allows you to find voltage, current, power, and resistance if at least two of the values are known.

For example, if voltage and resistance are known, the calculator will find power and current. Alternatively, the calculator can solve power and resistance if the voltage and current are known.

Ohm’s Law Formula

The Ohm’s law formula is I = E/R, where I is the current through a conductor measured in amperes, E is the potential difference across the conductor measured in volts, and R is the resistance of a conductor measured in ohms.^[2]

I = ER

Thus, the formula states that the current I is equal to the voltage E divided by the resistance R.

Ohm’s Law Triangle

The Ohm’s law triangle illustrates how to find volts, amps, or ohms. To use it, cover the unit you want to calculate to reveal the formula to solve it.

For instance, to solve for volts, cover the E with your thumb, which reveals that voltage is equal to I × R.

What do the Letters in the Ohm’s Law Formula Mean?

In the Ohm’s law formula, E represents electromotive force, or voltage, I represents intensity, or current, and R represents resistance.

Georg Simon Ohm created Ohm’s law in a paper published in 1827,^[3] well before voltage, current, and resistance units were defined.

It wasn’t until 1881 that the Volt, Ampere, and Ohm were defined, over 50 years after Ohm’s law was published. This explains why the letters are not related to modern-day units used in the formula.

Watt’s Law and the Power Formula

Watt’s law states that electric power measured in watts is equal to the circuit’s current times the voltage. This formula is very similar to Ohm’s law and can help solve for power or wattage.

We often use the power formula is in conjunction with Ohm’s law to solve electrical properties when the power of the circuit is known.

P = I × E

Thus, the power formula states that power P is equal to the current I times the voltage E.^[4]

Power Triangle

The power triangle illustrates the formula to find watts, volts, or amps. Just like the other triangle, cover the unit you want to solve to reveal the formula to solve it.

For instance, to solve for amps, cover the I with your thumb, which reveals that the current is equal to P/E.

Our watts to amps calculator uses this formula to convert between power and current in electrical circuits, for example.

Ohm’s Law Wheel

We can use Ohm’s law to calculate the volts, watts, amps, or ohms, given that at least two measurements are known. The formula allows us to derive the equations for calculating any measurement given two other known values.

The Ohm’s law wheel shows all the formulas you can use to find volts, watts, amps, or ohms. See all of the derived formulas below.

Volt Formulas

Solve for voltage using these formulas:

Voltage = Current × Resistance

Voltage = Power ÷ Current

Voltage = Power × Resistance

Watt Formulas

Solve for power using these formulas:

Power = Voltage × Current

Power = Voltage² ÷ Resistance

Power = Current² × Resistance

Amp Formulas

Solve for current using these formulas:

Current = Voltage ÷ Resistance

Current = Power ÷ Voltage

Current = Power ÷ Resistance

Ohm Formulas

Solve for resistance using these formulas:

Resistance = Voltage ÷ Current

Resistance = Voltage² ÷ Power

Resistance = Power ÷ Current²

We use Ohm’s law for many things, such as determining the maximum microwave size or the maximum number of light fixtures a circuit can safely handle without creating a fire hazard.

Our lighting cost calculator can help find lighting energy usage, and our electricity cost calculator can help find the costs of powering electric devices.

Use Ohm’s law to help size an electrical circuit or find out how large of a heater can be safely used on a regular outlet. You might also find our voltage drop calculator to determine voltage drop, the minimum wire size needed, and the maximum wire length for your next electrical project.