{
 "version": "2026-10-20",
 "license": "Dimension sheets: CC BY 4.0. Standard and published-size files: CC BY 4.0. Xem Studio's own designs (files_license = Xem Studio Design License): free to use and sell things from, not to redistribute as files — https://xemstudio.com/license/. Other publishers' files: their own license, linked beside them.",
 "slug": "nema-locking-plugs-l5-l6-l14-l21",
 "name": "NEMA locking (twist-lock) plugs L5-15 to L23-30: voltage, poles, wires and amp rating by family (L5-20, L6-20, L6-30, L14-30, L21-30)",
 "kind": "standard",
 "category": "Electronic components",
 "group": "Connectors",
 "year": null,
 "question": "What is the difference between NEMA L5-20, L6-20, L6-30, L14-30 and L21-30 locking plugs?",
 "tags": [
  "nema l5-20",
  "nema l6-30",
  "nema l14-30",
  "nema l21-30",
  "twist lock",
  "locking plug",
  "nema locking",
  "l5-30",
  "l6-20",
  "l14-20",
  "wd 6",
  "generator inlet"
 ],
 "aliases": [
  "nema l5-20p vs l6-20p",
  "what is a nema l6-30 plug",
  "l14-30 vs l6-30",
  "nema l21-30 voltage",
  "nema locking plug chart",
  "l5-20 amps volts",
  "l6-20 locking plug 250v 20a",
  "twist lock plug configurations",
  "nema l14-30 4 wire",
  "nema l5-30 vs l14-30",
  "l15-30 three phase locking",
  "nema l22-30 480v"
 ],
 "overall_mm": {
  "length": null,
  "width": null,
  "height": null
 },
 "official_cad": false,
 "xem_status": "not-scanned",
 "les": false,
 "free_files": 0,
 "url": "https://xemstudio.com/objects/nema-locking-plugs-l5-l6-l14-l21/",
 "sheet_txt": "https://xemstudio.com/objects/nema-locking-plugs-l5-l6-l14-l21/sheet.txt",
 "sheet": {
  "basis": "Elliott Electric's NEMA twist-lock chart, AutomationDirect's wiring-devices catalog and Wikipedia's NEMA connector article; configuration table only, no blade dimensions and no files",
  "overall_mm": {
   "length": null,
   "width": null,
   "height": null
  },
  "notes": [
   "Reading a name: L = locking (twist-lock, curved blades), the number after it is the family (voltage, poles and wires), the number after the hyphen is the amp rating, and a trailing P / R / C is plug, receptacle or corded connector (flanged inlet FI and outlet FO also exist). So L5-20P is a 20 A, 125 V, 2-pole 3-wire grounded locking plug; L6-30R is a 30 A, 250 V receptacle; L14-30P is 30 A, 125/250 V, 3-pole 4-wire grounded; L21-30P is 30 A, three-phase wye 120/208 V, 4-pole 5-wire grounded.",
   "Sources: Elliott's chart gives voltage, poles / wires and the amp ratings for each family; AutomationDirect's catalog tables list the individual configurations with amps, volts, poles and wires for L5 to L9, L14 to L17, L21 and L22; Wikipedia adds L10 to L13 and L19 to L21 wording. Where they differ both are shown: Elliott calls L10 '3-pole, 3-wire ungrounded' and Wikipedia '2-pole + neutral, non-grounding'; Elliott calls L19 and L20 '4-pole, 4-wire' and Wikipedia '3-pole, four-wire'. L17 appears only in AutomationDirect's tables.",
   "Not given: blade and pin dimensions of the locking configurations. They are in ANSI/NEMA WD 6, which is sold, and Wikipedia states no locking dimensions. The blade numbers for L5-30 and L14-30 that public summaries print are on nema-plug-receptacle-configurations; this page adds the other families.",
   "Elliott's page has visible linking slips (for example the L11 plug row links to an L10-20P page and L23 receptacles link to L22 pages); only the printed chart text is used. A 15 A rating is shown only where the chart lists it (L5, L6, L7; Wikipedia also names L11-15).",
   "No file: a plug drawn from the voltage and amp rating would not be the part you can buy. Maker CAD: McMaster-Carr lists twist-lock devices with per-part STEP; not linked here."
  ],
  "table": {
   "columns": [
    "family",
    "voltage as published",
    "poles / wires",
    "amp ratings (A)",
    "notes"
   ],
   "rows": [
    [
     "L5",
     "125 V",
     "2-pole, 3-wire, grounded",
     "15, 20, 30",
     "AD lists L5-15, L5-20, L5-30"
    ],
    [
     "L6",
     "250 V",
     "2-pole, 3-wire, grounded",
     "15, 20, 30",
     "AD lists L6-15, L6-20, L6-30"
    ],
    [
     "L7",
     "277 V AC",
     "2-pole, 3-wire, grounded",
     "15, 20, 30",
     "AD lists L7-15, L7-20, L7-30"
    ],
    [
     "L8",
     "480 V AC",
     "2-pole, 3-wire, grounded",
     "20, 30",
     "AD lists L8-20, L8-30"
    ],
    [
     "L9",
     "600 V AC",
     "2-pole, 3-wire, grounded",
     "20, 30",
     "AD lists L9-20, L9-30"
    ],
    [
     "L10",
     "125/250 V",
     "3-pole, 3-wire, ungrounded",
     "20, 30",
     "Wikipedia words it '2-pole + neutral, non-grounding'"
    ],
    [
     "L11",
     "3-phase 250 V",
     "3-pole, 3-wire, ungrounded",
     "20, 30",
     "Wikipedia also names L11-15"
    ],
    [
     "L12",
     "3-phase 480 V",
     "3-pole, 3-wire, ungrounded",
     "20, 30",
     ""
    ],
    [
     "L13",
     "3-phase 600 V",
     "3-pole, 3-wire, ungrounded",
     "30",
     ""
    ],
    [
     "L14",
     "125/250 V",
     "3-pole, 4-wire, grounded",
     "20, 30",
     "AD lists L14-20, L14-30"
    ],
    [
     "L15",
     "3-phase 250 V",
     "3-pole, 4-wire, grounded",
     "20, 30",
     "AD lists L15-20, L15-30"
    ],
    [
     "L16",
     "3-phase 480 V",
     "3-pole, 4-wire, grounded",
     "20, 30",
     "AD lists L16-20, L16-30"
    ],
    [
     "L17",
     "3-phase 600 V",
     "3-pole, 4-wire, grounded (AD)",
     "30",
     "AD lists L17-30; not on Elliott's chart"
    ],
    [
     "L18",
     "3-phase wye 120/208 V",
     "4-pole, 4-wire, ungrounded",
     "20, 30",
     "Wikipedia: '4-pole, no ground'"
    ],
    [
     "L19",
     "3-phase wye 277/480 V",
     "4-pole, 4-wire, ungrounded (Elliott)",
     "20, 30",
     "Wikipedia words it '3-pole, four-wire, non-grounding': poles disagree"
    ],
    [
     "L20",
     "3-phase wye 347/600 V",
     "4-pole, 4-wire, ungrounded (Elliott)",
     "20, 30",
     "Wikipedia words it '3-pole, four-wire, non-grounding': poles disagree"
    ],
    [
     "L21",
     "3-phase wye 120/208 V",
     "4-pole, 5-wire, grounded",
     "20, 30",
     "AD lists L21-20, L21-30"
    ],
    [
     "L22",
     "3-phase wye 277/480 V",
     "4-pole, 5-wire, grounded",
     "20, 30",
     "AD lists L22-20, L22-30"
    ],
    [
     "L23",
     "3-phase wye 347/600 V",
     "4-pole, 5-wire, grounded",
     "20, 30",
     "AD shows L23-20R and L23-30R in its wiring diagrams only"
    ]
   ]
  }
 },
 "sheet_text": "NEMA locking (twist-lock) plugs L5-15 to L23-30: voltage, poles, wires and amp rating by family (L5-20, L6-20, L6-30, L14-30, L21-30) — dimension sheet\nSource: Xem Studio, https://xemstudio.com/objects/nema-locking-plugs-l5-l6-l14-l21/  (sheet CC BY 4.0)\nBasis: Elliott Electric's NEMA twist-lock chart, AutomationDirect's wiring-devices catalog and Wikipedia's NEMA connector article; configuration table only, no blade dimensions and no files\nCatalog version: 2026-10-20\n\nSizes: see table below\n- Reading a name: L = locking (twist-lock, curved blades), the number after it is the family (voltage, poles and wires), the number after the hyphen is the amp rating, and a trailing P / R / C is plug, receptacle or corded connector (flanged inlet FI and outlet FO also exist). So L5-20P is a 20 A, 125 V, 2-pole 3-wire grounded locking plug; L6-30R is a 30 A, 250 V receptacle; L14-30P is 30 A, 125/250 V, 3-pole 4-wire grounded; L21-30P is 30 A, three-phase wye 120/208 V, 4-pole 5-wire grounded.\n- Sources: Elliott's chart gives voltage, poles / wires and the amp ratings for each family; AutomationDirect's catalog tables list the individual configurations with amps, volts, poles and wires for L5 to L9, L14 to L17, L21 and L22; Wikipedia adds L10 to L13 and L19 to L21 wording. Where they differ both are shown: Elliott calls L10 '3-pole, 3-wire ungrounded' and Wikipedia '2-pole + neutral, non-grounding'; Elliott calls L19 and L20 '4-pole, 4-wire' and Wikipedia '3-pole, four-wire'. L17 appears only in AutomationDirect's tables.\n- Not given: blade and pin dimensions of the locking configurations. They are in ANSI/NEMA WD 6, which is sold, and Wikipedia states no locking dimensions. The blade numbers for L5-30 and L14-30 that public summaries print are on nema-plug-receptacle-configurations; this page adds the other families.\n- Elliott's page has visible linking slips (for example the L11 plug row links to an L10-20P page and L23 receptacles link to L22 pages); only the printed chart text is used. A 15 A rating is shown only where the chart lists it (L5, L6, L7; Wikipedia also names L11-15).\n- No file: a plug drawn from the voltage and amp rating would not be the part you can buy. Maker CAD: McMaster-Carr lists twist-lock devices with per-part STEP; not linked here.\n\nfamily  voltage as published  poles / wires  amp ratings (A)  notes\nL5  125 V  2-pole, 3-wire, grounded  15, 20, 30  AD lists L5-15, L5-20, L5-30\nL6  250 V  2-pole, 3-wire, grounded  15, 20, 30  AD lists L6-15, L6-20, L6-30\nL7  277 V AC  2-pole, 3-wire, grounded  15, 20, 30  AD lists L7-15, L7-20, L7-30\nL8  480 V AC  2-pole, 3-wire, grounded  20, 30  AD lists L8-20, L8-30\nL9  600 V AC  2-pole, 3-wire, grounded  20, 30  AD lists L9-20, L9-30\nL10  125/250 V  3-pole, 3-wire, ungrounded  20, 30  Wikipedia words it '2-pole + neutral, non-grounding'\nL11  3-phase 250 V  3-pole, 3-wire, ungrounded  20, 30  Wikipedia also names L11-15\nL12  3-phase 480 V  3-pole, 3-wire, ungrounded  20, 30  \nL13  3-phase 600 V  3-pole, 3-wire, ungrounded  30  \nL14  125/250 V  3-pole, 4-wire, grounded  20, 30  AD lists L14-20, L14-30\nL15  3-phase 250 V  3-pole, 4-wire, grounded  20, 30  AD lists L15-20, L15-30\nL16  3-phase 480 V  3-pole, 4-wire, grounded  20, 30  AD lists L16-20, L16-30\nL17  3-phase 600 V  3-pole, 4-wire, grounded (AD)  30  AD lists L17-30; not on Elliott's chart\nL18  3-phase wye 120/208 V  4-pole, 4-wire, ungrounded  20, 30  Wikipedia: '4-pole, no ground'\nL19  3-phase wye 277/480 V  4-pole, 4-wire, ungrounded (Elliott)  20, 30  Wikipedia words it '3-pole, four-wire, non-grounding': poles disagree\nL20  3-phase wye 347/600 V  4-pole, 4-wire, ungrounded (Elliott)  20, 30  Wikipedia words it '3-pole, four-wire, non-grounding': poles disagree\nL21  3-phase wye 120/208 V  4-pole, 5-wire, grounded  20, 30  AD lists L21-20, L21-30\nL22  3-phase wye 277/480 V  4-pole, 5-wire, grounded  20, 30  AD lists L22-20, L22-30\nL23  3-phase wye 347/600 V  4-pole, 5-wire, grounded  20, 30  AD shows L23-20R and L23-30R in its wiring diagrams only\n\nFiles elsewhere (not hosted by Xem Studio; license as stated by the publisher):\n- Elliott Electric: NEMA twist lock plug, receptacle and connector configuration chart (L5 to L23; voltage, poles, wires, 15 / 20 / 30 A) — web — Publisher's page; dimensions are facts — https://elliottelectric.com/nema-twist-lock-plug-receptacle-connector-chart.aspx\n- AutomationDirect: Wiring devices: plugs, connectors and receptacles catalog (locking L5 to L22: amps, volts, poles, wires) — web — Publisher's page; dimensions are facts — https://cdn.automationdirect.com/static/specs/wiringdevicesplugsconnsreceps.pdf\n- Wikipedia: NEMA connector (locking L-series: voltage, poles, wiring; curved-blade twist-locking) — web — CC BY-SA 4.0 (text); ratings are facts — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NEMA_connector\n\nNo true-size file yet: the published figures do not fix the whole shape; a measured scan is planned.\nAPI: https://xemstudio.com/api/geometry?object=nema-locking-plugs-l5-l6-l14-l21\n",
 "sources": [
  {
   "publisher": "Elliott Electric",
   "title": "NEMA twist lock plug, receptacle and connector configuration chart (L5 to L23; voltage, poles, wires, 15 / 20 / 30 A)",
   "url": "https://elliottelectric.com/nema-twist-lock-plug-receptacle-connector-chart.aspx",
   "formats": [
    "web"
   ],
   "license": "Publisher's page; dimensions are facts",
   "license_verified": true,
   "hosted": false
  },
  {
   "publisher": "AutomationDirect",
   "title": "Wiring devices: plugs, connectors and receptacles catalog (locking L5 to L22: amps, volts, poles, wires)",
   "url": "https://cdn.automationdirect.com/static/specs/wiringdevicesplugsconnsreceps.pdf",
   "formats": [
    "web"
   ],
   "license": "Publisher's page; dimensions are facts",
   "license_verified": true,
   "hosted": false
  },
  {
   "publisher": "Wikipedia",
   "title": "NEMA connector (locking L-series: voltage, poles, wiring; curved-blade twist-locking)",
   "url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NEMA_connector",
   "formats": [
    "web"
   ],
   "license": "CC BY-SA 4.0 (text); ratings are facts",
   "license_verified": true,
   "hosted": false
  }
 ],
 "xem": {
  "status": "not-scanned",
  "sheet_free": true,
  "mesh_price_usd": null,
  "step_price_usd": null,
  "tolerance_mm": null
 },
 "related": [
  "nema-plug-receptacle-configurations",
  "iec-60320-appliance-couplers-c13-c14-c19-c20",
  "wall-plate-duplex-us",
  "device-boxes-us",
  "metal-boxes-us",
  "terminal-blocks"
 ],
 "fits": [],
 "dimensions": "exact (nominal, no tolerance added)",
 "dimension_rule": "All geometry on Xem Studio is exact (nominal, true size) with no tolerance added. Where a part meets another part, the object lists its mating features (feature, exact size, what it mates with, fit class: press, slide, run, socket, clamp or designed). Apply your process's allowance to those features only; 'designed' gaps are part of the design and stay as drawn. Typical accuracy by process and ISO 286 fits: https://xemstudio.com/tolerances/",
 "mating": [],
 "faq": [
  {
   "q": "What is a NEMA L5-20 plug?",
   "a": "A 20 A, 125 V, 2-pole 3-wire grounded locking (twist-lock) plug (Elliott chart, AutomationDirect)."
  },
  {
   "q": "What is the difference between L6-30 and L14-30?",
   "a": "L6-30 is 30 A, 250 V, 2-pole 3-wire grounded; L14-30 is 30 A, 125/250 V, 3-pole 4-wire grounded (two hots, neutral, ground)."
  },
  {
   "q": "What voltage is a NEMA L21-30?",
   "a": "Three-phase wye 120/208 V, 30 A, 4-pole 5-wire grounded (Elliott chart and AutomationDirect)."
  }
 ],
 "files_license": null,
 "offers": [],
 "markdown": "https://xemstudio.com/objects/nema-locking-plugs-l5-l6-l14-l21/index.md"
}