You might get a nasty surprise if you want to charge your smartphone, tablet etc., on your travels: The plug does not fit into the socket. In Europe alone there are nine different, partly incompatible standards for mains plugs and sockets. We unravel the power socket tangle!
Where can you use German plugs in Europe?
In Germany there are two types of plugs: The round Schuko three-pin plug (CEE 7/4) with earthed connection and the flat Euro plug (CEE 7/16) without earthed connection. The Euro plug lives up to its name because it fits in power sockets in most European countries. You can use Schuko plugs to get connected almost anywhere in Europe, including Russia, Turkey and Greece. Switzerland is an exception.The Euro plug should be used there.
The UK is another exception. Commonwealth plugs (BS 1363) with three flat prongs are used in the UK. Euro plugs and Schuko plugs are useless.
Before setting off on a trip outside Europe, you really should find out what kind of power sockets there are in the country you are travelling to. Before setting off on your travels, equip yourself with suitable travel adapters, especially if you’re setting off on a long journey through several countries or even continents.
There are even USB charging devices that can be configured to various power sockets. In an emergency, you can usually buy adapters in shops at the airport. Good hotels will provide guests with the appropriate adapter at their destination as part of the service.
The Euro plug also fits power sockets in many countries outside of Europe
The Euro plug can also be used in many non-European countries.
In these South American countries:
- Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Peru, Uruguay
In Asia, Euro plugs can be used in:
- Israel, Iran, India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Pakistan, South Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand
Euro plugs can also be used in many African countries.
Even if the Euro plug fits into the power socket, you should still make sure that the relevant device suits the supply voltage. This is not really an issue with newer devices because modern electronic adapters cope with almost all common supply voltages.
Non-European standards for mains plugs
Australia and New Zealand use very different types of plugs to Europe. They use special three-prong plugs. The USA and Canada are an exception: Local plugs have rectangular rather than round contacts. Sockets in keeping with the North American NEMA-15 standard are common in these countries outside of the USA and Canada:
- Mexico
- Panama
- Colombia
- Ecuador
- Venezuela
- Japan (with its own JIS C 8303 standard)
- Taiwan
- Philippines
- Saudi Arabia
- Caribbean
- Brazil (used in some areas)
Image: Fotolia, 29518599, djama
