{"id":176,"date":"2025-07-30T16:58:51","date_gmt":"2025-07-30T16:58:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kommvia.com\/resources\/?p=176"},"modified":"2026-03-05T19:53:24","modified_gmt":"2026-03-05T19:53:24","slug":"whats-the-difference-between-568a-and-568b","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kommvia.com\/resources\/structured-cabling\/whats-the-difference-between-568a-and-568b\/","title":{"rendered":"What\u2019s the Difference Between 568A and 568B?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You probably don\u2019t think much about the cables behind your walls\u2014until your network starts acting up. But when it comes to structured cabling, one overlooked detail can cause major problems:&nbsp;<strong>the difference between 568A and 568B wiring standards<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">At&nbsp;<strong>Kommvia<\/strong>, we\u2019ve been wiring offices across&nbsp;<strong>Indiana, Chicago, and Southern Michigan<\/strong>&nbsp;for years. We know that when it comes to network reliability, details matter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Let\u2019s break it down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>What\u2019s the Difference Between 568A and 568B?<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Both standards define how the&nbsp;<strong>eight wires in an Ethernet cable<\/strong>&nbsp;connect to an RJ45 jack. The only difference? The position of the green and orange wire pairs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>568A<\/strong>: Green pair goes to pins 1 &amp; 2; orange to pins 3 &amp; 6.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>568B<\/strong>: Orange pair goes to pins 1 &amp; 2; green to pins 3 &amp; 6.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Functionally, both work the same. But mixing them up\u2014or switching mid-install\u2014can lead to serious connectivity issues. Choose one and&nbsp;<strong>stick with it across your entire network<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>A Quick History<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Back in the early \u201990s, the&nbsp;<strong>Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA)<\/strong>&nbsp;created these standards to eliminate messy, inconsistent wiring practices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>568A<\/strong>&nbsp;(1991): Became the federal\/government go-to due to its alignment with global cabling standards.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>568B<\/strong>&nbsp;(1995): Took off in the U.S. because it mirrored how most networks were already being wired.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Today, they both remain valid\u2014but the choice depends on your project scope.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Which Standard Should You Use?<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Commercial Buildings &amp; U.S. Installations<\/strong>: 568B is the dominant choice.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Government Projects or International Builds<\/strong>: 568A is often required.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Crossover Cables<\/strong>: Use&nbsp;<strong>both<\/strong>\u2014568A on one end, 568B on the other.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Bottom line<\/strong>: There\u2019s no \u201cbetter\u201d standard\u2014only the right one for your job. What matters most is&nbsp;<strong>consistency<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Why It Matters<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Mismatched terminations, messy patch panels, and disorganized cable closets can cause downtime and confusion. That\u2019s where Kommvia comes in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We design and install structured cabling systems that are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2714\ufe0f Clean<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2714\ufe0f Code-compliant<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2714\ufe0f Fully documented<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2714\ufe0f Consistently terminated<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">From small business offices to multi-site installations, we make sure your infrastructure is built to perform.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Trust Kommvia to Wire It Right<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Whether you\u2019re building out a new location, upgrading your cabling, or just cleaning up the last guy\u2019s mess\u2014we\u2019ve got you covered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\ud83d\udee0&nbsp;<strong>Structured Cabling<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\ud83d\udcde&nbsp;<strong>Business Phone Systems<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\ud83d\udd27&nbsp;<strong>PBX Troubleshooting &amp; Installation<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\ud83c\udf10&nbsp;<strong>Commercial Network Solutions<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Serving&nbsp;<strong>Northern Indiana<\/strong>,&nbsp;<strong>Chicago<\/strong>, and&nbsp;<strong>Southern Michigan<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Let\u2019s get your network done right\u2014start to finish.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\ud83d\udcde Call&nbsp;<strong>844-KOMMVIA<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\ud83d\udce9 Email&nbsp;<a href=\"mailto:go@kommvia.com\">go@kommvia.com<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/kommvia.com\/resources\/schedule-service\/\" data-type=\"page\" data-id=\"40\">Schedule Service<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>You probably don\u2019t think much about the cables behind your walls\u2014until your network starts acting up. But when it comes to structured cabling, one overlooked&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":179,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-176","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-structured-cabling"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kommvia.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/176","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kommvia.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kommvia.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kommvia.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kommvia.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=176"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/kommvia.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/176\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":180,"href":"https:\/\/kommvia.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/176\/revisions\/180"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kommvia.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/179"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kommvia.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=176"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kommvia.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=176"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kommvia.com\/resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=176"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}