Enter the resistivity, length of the wire, and the diameter of the wire into the calculator to determine the nichrome resistance.

Nichrome Resistance Formula

The following formula is used to calculate the resistance of a nichrome wire. 

R = p*L / A
  • Where R is the resistance (ohms)
  • p is the resistivity of nichrome (150*10^-8 (ohm-meters))
  • L is the length of the wire (m)
  • A is the cross-sectional area of the wire (m^2)

To calculate the resistance of a nichrome wire, multiply the resistivity by the length, then divide by the cross-sectional area of the wire.

What is the resistance of nichrome?

Definition:

Nichrome material has a resistivity of 150*10^-8 ohm-meters, so the total resistance will be determined by the diameter and the length of the wire.

How to calculate nichrome resistance?

Example Problem:

The following example outlines how to calculate the resistance of a nichrome wire.

First, determine the resistivity of nichrome. This is a known value of 150 * 10^-8 ohm-meters.

Next, determine the length of the wire. This wire is 100m long.

Next, determine the cross-sectional area of the wire. Given a diameter of the wire of .025m, the cross-sectional area can be calculated with the formula:

pi*D^2/4 = 3.14159*.025^2/4 = .00049 m^2

Finally, calculate the total resistance using the formula above:

R = p*L / A

R = (150*10^-8)*100 / .00049

R = .306 ohms