Charging · 2012
USB Power Delivery (60 W, 100 W, 240 W)
The charger and device agree a voltage; the cable decides whether 3 A or 5 A is safe.
- power: 60 W / 100 W / 240 W
Spec card
- Fixed voltages (SPR)
- 5, 9, 15, 20 V
- Any USB-C to USB-C cable
- 3 A → up to 60 W
- 5 A e-marked cable
- up to 100 W (20 V × 5 A)
- EPR voltages (PD 3.1)
- 28, 36, 48 V at 5 A → 140, 180, 240 W
- EPR cable
- e-marked 50 V / 5 A ("240W")
- PPS (programmable)
- 3.3–21 V in 20 mV steps (phones)
Also sold as USB PDPD 3.0PD 3.1EPRSPRPPSUSB-C fast charging
The cable you need
Up to 60 W: any USB-C to USB-C cable. 61–100 W: a 5 A (100 W) e-marked cable. Over 100 W: a 240 W EPR cable.
Watch out for
- "Fast charging" cables with USB-A on one end are not USB PD and cap far lower.
- 100 W cables do not carry 140 W or more. The charger falls back to 100 W.
- Thunderbolt 4 cables are 100 W cables.
USB-C charging is a negotiation. A USB PD charger advertises what voltages and currents it can give, the device picks one, and the cable sets a hard limit on current. Every USB-C to USB-C cable must handle 3 A, so at 20 V any cable carries 60 W. Above 3 A the cable must carry a small chip, the e-marker, that tells the charger it can take 5 A. Without one, the charger stays at 3 A and a 100 W laptop charges at 60 W.
Power Delivery 3.1 (2021) added Extended Power Range (EPR): 28, 36 and 48 V, still at 5 A, for up to 240 W. Those voltages need a cable whose e-marker declares 50 V and EPR support, usually sold as "240W". A 100 W cable on a 140 W charger simply caps at 100 W. It doesn't fail or overheat, because the charger never offers EPR to a cable that does not identify as EPR-capable.
Watts printed on a cable are a maximum. A phone that draws 25 W draws 25 W on a 240 W cable too.
Power levels and the cable each needs
| Power | Voltage × current | Cable | Typical devices |
|---|---|---|---|
| Up to 15 W | 5 V × 3 A | Any USB-C cable | Phones, earbuds |
| Up to 27 W | 9 V × 3 A | Any USB-C cable | Phones, tablets |
| Up to 45 W | 15 V × 3 A | Any USB-C cable | Large phones, tablets, small laptops |
| Up to 60 W | 20 V × 3 A | Any USB-C cable (3 A) | 13–14 inch laptops |
| 61–100 W | 20 V × 5 A | 5 A e-marked cable | 15–16 inch laptops |
| 140 W | 28 V × 5 A (EPR) | 240 W EPR cable | 16-inch MacBook Pro |
| 180 W | 36 V × 5 A (EPR) | 240 W EPR cable | Gaming and workstation laptops |
| 240 W | 48 V × 5 A (EPR) | 240 W EPR cable | Gaming laptops, some monitors |