To distinguish left from right there is a gap between the C and bands. band A is first significant figure of component value (left side) band B is the second significant figure band C is the decimal multiplier

band D if present, indicates tolerance of value in percent (no band means 20%)

For example, a resistor with bands of yellow, violet, red, and gold will have first digit 4 (yellow in table below), second digit 7 (violet), followed by 2 (red) zeros: 4,700 ohms. Gold signifies that the tolerance is ±5%, so the real resistance could lie anywhere between 4,465 and 4,935 ohms.

Resistors manufactured for military use may also include a fifth band which indicates component failure rate (reliability); refer to MIL-HDBK-199 for further details.

Tight tolerance resistors may have three bands for significant figures rather than two, or an additional band indicating temperature coefficient, in units of ppm/K.