Capacitors in Series Calculator

About this calculator

When capacitors are connected in series, their combined (total) capacitance is always smaller than the smallest individual capacitor, following the reciprocal formula 1/Cₜ = 1/C₁ + 1/C₂ + 1/C₃ + ... — the mirror image of resistors in series, where series capacitance behaves like parallel resistance. Each capacitor in the chain ends up storing the same charge, but the applied voltage divides unevenly across them in inverse proportion to their capacitance.

Electronics hobbyists and engineers connect capacitors in series to achieve a higher effective voltage rating than any single capacitor could handle alone (since the voltage splits across the series chain), or simply to reach a capacitance value that isn't available as a single off-the-shelf component. Enter two or three capacitor values to find the total series capacitance.