Electrical Outlet and Voltage Information for Mexico
Posted by 
March 13, 2012 •
Before traveling to Mexico, tourists should be familiar with the electrical outlet and plugs, electrical frequency and voltage available in the country. Knowing these things will make their trip easier especially if the trip requires them to bring electrical devices and appliances.
The voltage available in Mexico is 127 volts with an electrical frequency of 60 Hertz. This is the same with the United States and Canada, even though most other areas use 220-240 volts. This is very important because plugging your device into the wrong electrical outlet would damage your appliances. That being said, it is advised that tourists should bring voltage converters in order for their electrical device to work properly. There are multi-voltage appliances like laptops that don’t need a voltage converter, however. If your device is like this, then you wouldn’t have any problems. For 220-240V appliances, it is required to use an electrical plug adapter plus a step-down transformer.
Electrical Outlet and Plug Types in Mexico
NEMA 1-15 Electrical Outlet and Plug
Most of the residential and business centers in Mexico use only one type of electrical outlet and plug. The type of plug they use is the Type A electrical plug or commonly known as the NEMA 1-15. The NEMA 1-15 electrical plug has two flat parallel pins or blades. It is commonly used in North America and in the east coast of South America on devices that do not require ground connection such as lamps and double-insulated appliances. This type of electrical plug is used in an electrical outlet that is rated 125 V up to 15 A (ungrounded). Also, NEMA 1-15 electrical plugs are compatible with the Type B or NEMA 5-15 electrical outlet, although the NEMA 5-15 plug is not compatible with the Type A electrical outlet because of its third round pin or what is called as the “grounding blade.”
Traveling to Mexico with a different electrical plug will require you to use an adapter. It is advisable to buy a universal adapter, especially for those who travel a lot.
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