How to use electricity in the USA with European plugs
AUTHOR SANEL HUSKANOVIC / ELECTRICITY CATEGORY / PUBLISHED: MAY-04-2019
If you travel to the United States, you will need to use a different power grid. I have summarized for you what differences there are and what you need if you want to use your electrical devices during your New York trip.
adapter
The power grid in the United States has a different voltage (volts) than the European power grid. In Europe, 230 to 240 volts are common, American sockets have 110 to 120 volts. The plugs and sockets are also different.
Today, electrical devices are mostly produced jointly for the European and American markets and are only equipped with different plugs, e.g. mobile phones (iPhone and Samsung), laptops, hair straighteners , etc.
In this case, a simple adapter like the one in the picture above is sufficient. You can get the adapter in drugstores such as CVS, Duane Reade and Wallgreens , in most cases these stores are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week . The adapter usually costs between 5 and 10 US dollars .
ATTENTION: If your device cannot be adapted to the North American network, you will need a suitable adapter for the socket as well as a suitable voltage converter, called a “converter” and “transformer.”
Such devices have a sticker indicating the operating voltage (e.g. 110-240V~/50-60Hz).
Use devices purchased in the USA in Europe
As written above, most devices are now built for both markets, so you can, for example, use an iPhone from the USA in Germany without any problems.
For less common devices or tools such as soldering machines, make sure that they are also suitable for 240 volts. If this is not the case, you can only use the device at home with a voltage converter.