Kitchen Countertop Receptacles (NEC 210.52(C))
How many receptacle outlets a kitchen's wall countertops need under NEC 210.52(C).
Example
You enter
- Spaces length (in) 18; length (in) 30; length (in) 48; length (in) 96; length (in) 100; length (in) 11
- Islands area (ft²) 24
- NEC edition 2023
You get
- Wall receptacles 8
- Total required 8
- Narrow count 1
Checked against published worked examples from: NFPA.
Details, formula, and sources
ScopeHow many receptacle outlets a kitchen's wall countertops need under NEC 210.52(C), and what the edition you are on says about islands and peninsulas. Every wall countertop space 12 in or wider gets an outlet, and no point along the wall line may be more than 24 in from one, so outlets sit at most 48 in apart and within 24 in of each end, and a space of L in needs ceil(L / 48). A sink, range, cooktop or refrigerator splits the counter into separate spaces, each counted alone. Six spaces of 18, 30, 48, 96, 100 and 11 in need 1 + 1 + 1 + 2 + 3 + 0 = 8: the 100 in run is 4 in longer than two outlets reach, and the 11 in return needs none. Under NEC 2023 an island or peninsula needs no outlet but must have provisions for one, and any installed outlet goes on or above the counter, not more than 20 in up; under NEC 2020 an island or peninsula needs one outlet for its first 9 sq ft of counter and one more per further 18 sq ft, so a 24 sq ft island needs two. Small-appliance circuits, GFCI and the wall outlets elsewhere in the room are separate; the adopted NEC edition and the inspector govern.
Formula or tableper wall countertop space of L in: receptacles = ceil(L / 48) when L >= 12 in, else 0; slack = 48 x receptacles - L. Islands and peninsulas: NEC 2020 1 + ceil(max(0, A - 9) / 18) per island or peninsula of A sq ft; NEC 2023 none required, provisions for one required if none installed. Total = sum of the wall spaces plus any required island outlets.
Source and editionNEC 2023 (NFPA 70).
Free accessFree read-only access at nfpa.org/freeaccess.
What governsEstimate. AHJ and licensed electrician govern. Verify against the NEC edition adopted in your jurisdiction.
API field namesspaces, islands, nec_edition, wall_receptacles, total_required, narrow_count
- Spaces entered already divided the reader splits the counter at each sink, range, cooktop and refrigeratorNEC 210.52(C)
- Island and peninsula areas entered per countertop space an island split by a sink or range is entered as separate spaces; the peninsula-end outlet is stated, not placedNEC 2020 210.52(C)(2)