Over 100 feet one-way, 1/0 AWG copper drops 1.6% at 80A on 120V and 1.5% at 150A on 240V: loads up to 125A stay under 3% at 120V, and every load here up to 150A stays under 3% at 240V.
Single phase, copper conductor, one-way distance. ✅ = under 3%, ⚠️ = 3-5%, ❌ = over 5%
| Load | V-Drop | @ 120V | @ 240V |
|---|---|---|---|
| 80A | 2.0V | ✅ 1.6% | ✅ 0.8% |
| 100A | 2.4V | ✅ 2.0% | ✅ 1.0% |
| 125A | 3.0V | ✅ 2.5% | ✅ 1.3% |
| 150A | 3.7V | ⚠️ 3.1% | ✅ 1.5% |
Longest one-way distance that keeps single-phase copper within 3%.
| Load | @ 120V | @ 240V |
|---|---|---|
| 80A | 185 ft | 370 ft |
| 100A | 150 ft | 295 ft |
| 125A | 120 ft | 235 ft |
| 150A | 100 ft | 195 ft |
Voltage drop for single-phase circuits: Vdrop = 2 × I × R × L
Where I = current in amps, R = resistance per foot (0.000122 Ω/ft for 1/0 AWG copper, from NEC Chapter 9 Table 8 at 75°C), and L = one-way distance (100 ft).
The factor of 2 accounts for both the supply and return conductors. NEC recommends a maximum 3% voltage drop for branch circuits and 5% for the total circuit (feeder + branch).
If voltage drop is too high: Use the next larger wire size. Each single AWG step up in size cuts voltage drop by about 21% — it takes three steps to roughly halve it, since each step increases the conductor area by a factor of 1.26. Alternatively, for 120V loads, consider rewiring for 240V — same absolute drop but half the percentage.
It depends on the load and voltage. With NEC Table 8 resistance (0.122 Ω per 1000 ft at 75°C), a 100-foot run of 1/0 AWG copper drops 1.6% at 80A, 2.0% at 100A, 2.5% at 125A, 3.1% at 150A on 120V, and half those percentages on 240V. All of these meet the 3% branch-circuit guideline at 240V.
To stay within 3% voltage drop, 1/0 AWG copper can run about 185 ft at 80A on 120V, or 195 ft at 150A on 240V (one-way). Its maximum load is 150A at 75°C; lighter loads can run proportionally farther.
Upsize when your load pushes drop above 3%. At 150A on 240V over 100 feet, 1/0 AWG drops 1.5%; stepping up to 2/0 AWG cuts that to 1.2%. For motors, well pumps or sensitive electronics, aim for 2% or less.