Over 50 feet one-way, 4/0 AWG copper drops 0.6% at 125A on 120V and 0.5% at 200A on 240V: every load here up to 200A stays under 3% at 120V, and every load here up to 200A stays under 3% at 240V.
Single phase, copper conductor, one-way distance. ✅ = under 3%, ⚠️ = 3-5%, ❌ = over 5%
| Load | V-Drop | @ 120V | @ 240V |
|---|---|---|---|
| 125A | 0.8V | ✅ 0.6% | ✅ 0.3% |
| 150A | 0.9V | ✅ 0.8% | ✅ 0.4% |
| 175A | 1.1V | ✅ 0.9% | ✅ 0.4% |
| 200A | 1.2V | ✅ 1.0% | ✅ 0.5% |
Longest one-way distance that keeps single-phase copper within 3%.
| Load | @ 120V | @ 240V |
|---|---|---|
| 125A | 235 ft | 475 ft |
| 150A | 195 ft | 395 ft |
| 175A | 170 ft | 340 ft |
| 200A | 150 ft | 295 ft |
Voltage drop for single-phase circuits: Vdrop = 2 × I × R × L
Where I = current in amps, R = resistance per foot (6.08e-05 Ω/ft for 4/0 AWG copper, from NEC Chapter 9 Table 8 at 75°C), and L = one-way distance (50 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 (0.0608 Ω per 1000 ft at 75°C), a 50-foot run of 4/0 AWG copper drops 0.6% at 125A, 0.8% at 150A, 0.9% at 175A, 1.0% at 200A 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, 4/0 AWG copper can run about 235 ft at 125A on 120V, or 295 ft at 200A on 240V (one-way). Its maximum load is 230A at 75°C; lighter loads can run proportionally farther.
Upsize when your load pushes drop above 3%. At 200A on 240V over 50 feet, 4/0 AWG drops 0.5%; stepping up to 250 kcmil cuts that to 0.4%. For motors, well pumps or sensitive electronics, aim for 2% or less.