Two different problems get bundled into "travel adapter": plug shape, and voltage. Getting the shape wrong means it does not fit; getting the voltage wrong can destroy the device or the socket.

Plug types by region

  • Type A/B — USA, Canada, Mexico, Japan
  • Type C/F — most of Europe
  • Type G — UK, Ireland, UAE, Singapore, Hong Kong
  • Type I — Australia, New Zealand, China, Argentina

Japan and the USA share a plug shape but not always a voltage.

Voltage is the real risk

Phones, laptops, camera chargers and most modern electronics are dual-voltage (100–240 V) — a plug adapter is all you need. Hair dryers, straighteners and kettles are often single-voltage, and plugging a 120 V appliance into 230 V destroys it. Buy a dual-voltage travel dryer instead of a converter.

What to look for

  • GaN USB-C charger, 45–65 W — runs a laptop plus two phones from one brick.
  • Folding or retractable pins so the adapter does not tear your bag lining.
  • Grounding on Type G — cheap UK adapters often skip the earth pin.
  • Surge protection for destinations with unstable mains.
  • A 100–240 V rating printed on the device itself, not just in the listing.

Power banks and cabin rules

Lithium batteries must travel in the cabin, not checked luggage. Most airlines cap power banks at 100 Wh (about 27,000 mAh at 3.7 V) without approval; anything larger needs carrier permission and often a label.

Cable discipline

One USB-C to USB-C, one USB-C to Lightning or micro-USB, plus a short multi-tip cable covers most trips. Keep them in a flat pouch so they do not knot around your toiletry bag.

The maths you actually need

Watts = volts × amps, and airlines care about watt-hours on batteries. For a power bank rated in mAh, multiply by the cell voltage (usually 3.7 V) and divide by 1000: a 20,000 mAh bank is about 74 Wh, comfortably under the 100 Wh cabin limit. A 30,000 mAh bank is about 111 Wh and needs airline approval in most cases.

For chargers, add up what you carry: a laptop (45–65 W), a phone (18–30 W) and a camera (10–20 W). A single 65 W GaN charger covers all three, which replaces three bricks and roughly 400 g of bag weight.

What to leave at home

Travel irons, single-voltage hair dryers, multi-plug cubes with no surge protection, and any adapter that does not state its voltage range. Buy one good GaN charger at home rather than three cheap ones at the airport.

How this page is built

Titles, images and prices come from our partner product feed, refreshed daily and stamped with the date. We never mark prices up, and we are not the seller — the live price, shipping and returns sit on their page. See the adapter guide for the voltage maths with worked examples.