Type A
The American Two-Prong
"Wobbly, falls out of the wall if you look at it funny, beloved anyway."
Type A is the plug that started it all. Harvey Hubbell patented a separable plug in 1904, and after a few years of tinkering the world got two flat, parallel blades and a socket to match.
Things to know
- No ground. Type A is a two-wire plug. Fine for phone chargers, lamps and anything with a plastic case.
- Polarised (sometimes). On many US plugs one blade is slightly wider than the other so it only goes in one way. Japanese Type A plugs usually have two identical blades, so a polarised US plug may not fit an older Japanese socket.
- Falls out. Type A plugs are notorious for sagging out of worn sockets, especially when a heavy charger is attached. Plugbert calls this "the droop."
Fits into
Type A plugs go into Type A and Type B sockets. Many sockets in Thailand, China, Cambodia, Vietnam and Peru also accept them.
Plugbert's verdict
Simple, cheap, a little wobbly. The plug equivalent of a golden retriever.
Where you'll find Type A (57)
🇦🇸 American Samoa🇦🇮 Anguilla🇦🇬 Antigua and Barbuda🇦🇼 Aruba🇧🇸 Bahamas🇧🇧 Barbados🇧🇿 Belize🇧🇲 Bermuda🇧🇴 Bolivia🇻🇬 British Virgin Islands🇰🇭 Cambodia🇨🇦 Canada🇰🇾 Cayman Islands🇨🇳 China🇨🇴 Colombia🇨🇷 Costa Rica🇨🇺 Cuba🇨🇼 Curaçao🇩🇴 Dominican Republic🇪🇨 Ecuador🇸🇻 El Salvador🇵🇫 French Polynesia🇬🇺 Guam🇬🇹 Guatemala🇬🇾 Guyana🇭🇹 Haiti🇭🇳 Honduras🇯🇲 Jamaica🇯🇵 Japan🇱🇦 Laos🇱🇧 Lebanon🇱🇷 Liberia🇲🇭 Marshall Islands🇲🇽 Mexico🇫🇲 Micronesia🇲🇸 Montserrat🇲🇲 Myanmar🇳🇮 Nicaragua🇳🇪 Niger🇰🇵 North Korea🇲🇵 Northern Mariana Islands🇵🇼 Palau🇵🇦 Panama🇵🇪 Peru🇵🇭 Philippines🇵🇷 Puerto Rico🇻🇨 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines🇸🇽 Sint Maarten🇹🇼 Taiwan🇹🇭 Thailand🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago🇹🇨 Turks and Caicos🇻🇮 U.S. Virgin Islands🇺🇸 United States🇻🇪 Venezuela🇻🇳 Vietnam🇾🇪 Yemen