Lug Nut Sizes and Types (w/ Chart For All Car Manufacturers)

Last Updated on January 25, 2022

Lug nuts are an interesting beast and may very well be the most important pieces of hardware on your vehicle. Their job is to secure each wheel of a vehicle to its axle to allow your car to drive and keep you safe.

Understanding how different lug nut sizes and types can vary from vehicle to vehicle is paramount to being able to replace one when it’s lost or damaged.

Related: How to Remove a Stuck Lug Nut

Types of Lug Nuts

There are actually a variety of different lug nuts and lug bolts out there. Each of the eight different types have their own distinguishing features. Many of these you’ll rarely encounter outside of a busy commercial garage.

#1 – Conical Seat

Conical lug nuts (aka: acorn lug nuts) are by far the most common lug nut type. The seat tapers inward at (usually) a 60 degree angle.

These cone shaped lug nuts are designed to fit a cone shaped hole. They are in most cases very easy to work with and center.

#2 – Ball Seat

Instead of being cone shaped, the seat on a ball lug nut is rounded or spherical. While not quite as common as conical lugs, ball seat lug nuts can be found on certain Honda, Audi, and Volkswagen vehicles.

The heads look almost identical to conical lug nuts so it may be hard to see which is which if they are installed.

#3 – Flat Seat

As the name suggests, the seat is flat and resembles a washer. Out of all the different types of lug nuts, flat seated ones are probably the most frustrating and difficult to work with. The problem is that centering them can be very tricky since they have a small barrel that goes into the lughole.

If not centered perfectly, the stem can catch so it seems like the lug nut is tightened when it actually isn’t. Since the flat surface has more surface area than others, they are more prone to getting stuck and can be much harder to remove.

#4 – Extended Thread

Similar to a standard conical lug nut, an extended thread (ET) lug nut add the benefit of a longer thread. This is helpful in cases where the length of wheel studs and mounting surface of wheels simply doesn’t allow enough thread engagement when using regular lug nuts.

The longer thread length allows for better engagement to keep the wheels more securely attached.

#5 – Mag Seat

This is another type of extended thread lug, this time with a washer seat. It’s used in similar situations where a longer thread is necessary but instead of a conical, tapered bottom, they have a flat seat (sometimes with a washer, sometimes without).

They are called mag seat lug nuts because at one time, they were made out of magnesium.

#6 – Tuner Style

Many types of aftermarket wheels, especially for Hondas, Acuras, and other Asian tuner cars, are designed with smaller diameter holes for lug nuts. Standard acorn lugs will not fit so narrower tuner style lug nuts are needed.

To tighten or loosen these conical seat tuner lugs, a special tuning key is also needed which fits right over the lug. A normal socket then goes on top of the tuning key just like any other lug nut. This key is included when you purchase a set of tuner lug nuts but can also be purchased separately if the key is lost or your car didn’t come with one.

Because tuner style lug nuts are open in the center (to accept the tuning key), air and moisture can get to the studs and threads and cause corrosion. Because of this, tuner style lug nuts aren’t commonly used anymore and the spline drive style (below) is a much better alternative.

#7 – Spline Drive

Like tuner style lug nuts, this unique, small diameter lug has a conical seat and uses a special key. The difference is that instead of an opening in the middle, spline drive lug nuts have narrow grooves on the top and sides of the lug nut to accept the low profile key. They don’t have the same problem with possible corrosion.

Keep in mind that the pattern on spline drive (and tuner style) lug nuts is not unique so don’t assume you can use either as a theft deterrent. Respective replacement keys can easily be purchased by anyone form a local auto parts store or online.

#8 – Lug Bolt

Used mainly on German vehicles such as BMW, Mercedes, Audi, and Volkswagen, these are lug nuts with a stud/bolt attached. They are threaded directly through the brake rotor hat and into the hub.

Nobody really knows why Germans use bolts instead of lugs but it may be that it’s cheaper than having to press studs into a rotor assembly during manufacturing or simply that it’s easier to replace broken lug bolt rather than a stud.

Whatever the reason, it makes installing wheels harder since you simply can’t hang the wheel on the studs while you put on lug nuts. You instead have to first make sure the rotor plate holes line up with the holes on the hub, then lift the wheel assembly and hold it in place while you install the first couple lug bolts. There are techniques you can use to make the job easier but no matter what, the process is more frustrating than using lug nuts.

See Also: Are Wheel Spike Lug Nut Covers Dangerous?

Lug Nut Size Chart

To make life easier (in the event you’ve lost your manual and don’t have a good repair manual handy), here’s an exhaustive list of car manufacturers and the lug nut sizes they require.

Please Note: While we’ve made every effort to ensure this list is as accurate as possible, we cannot guarantee the list to be complete or that a manufacturer hasn’t altered their lug requirements for a particular model since publishing. Do not use this chart as your only source and instead check your owner’s manual or contact your local dealer before using this data as more than a reference to avoid potentially damaging your wheels.

Lug Nut FAQs

Are Lug Nuts Universal?

The short answer is no. A common mistake a car owner can make is to assume all lug nuts are the same.

As with any other type of fastener, lug nuts (or lug bolts) have some variation which are often preferred by one manufacturer or another. Thus, the vehicle you own plays a role in which lug nuts you have installed.

Are Lug Nuts all the Same Size?

This is perhaps the biggest misconception outside of all lug nuts having the same shape. In fact, there are several different sizes and thread pitches. Getting these wrong can damage the wheel, as will using the wrong type of seat.

What About This Pitch Thing?

Thread pitch is the measurement of either how many threads appear per inch (in SAE) or distance between the threads in millimeters (metric). For example, a 12mm x 1.25 lug nut size will have tighter threads than a 12mm x 1.75 size.

What Are the Most Common Lug Nut Sizes?

Here are the most common lug nut sizes in use today. The first number is the thread size (diameter) and the second number is the pitch (amount of threads).

• 10mm x 1.25
• 12mm x 1.25
• 12mm x 1.50
• 12mm x 1.75
• 14mm x 1.25
• 14mm x 1.50
• 14mm x 2.0
• 7/16″ x 20
• 1/2″ x 20
• 9/16″ x 20

NOTE: Most lugs use a right-handed thread, but there are exceptions, denoted by a “L” or “LHT” stamped on the side of the nut. Be very careful not to mix these up into your regular lug nuts.

You can find the thread size (AKA thread diameter) by following one of a few methods:

• Checking your owner’s manual
• Measuring across the outside diameter of a wheel stud thread
• Taking a lug to a hardware store and testing it on bolts
• Using a thread pitch gauge found at almost any hardware store

What Are Common Lug Nut Socket Sizes?

Socket sizes are another common issue you’ll encounter, and the required socket size can be just as manufacturer-specific as the nuts themselves. Regardless of whether you’re using a torque wrench, lug wrench, impact wrench, or standard ratchet, picking the right size of socket is important.

Thankfully, you’re most likely to only need to use one of a small range, including: 17mm, 19mm (or 3/4″), 21mm (or 13/16”), 22mm (or 7/8”), or 23mm.