Why does the same phone have two different SAR values?

Question

Why does my phone show one SAR value in the U.S. and a different one in Europe?

Answer

The two figures come from different averaging masses and different limits, not from different hardware. The U.S. FCC limit is 1.6 W/kg averaged over 1 g of tissue, while ICNIRP and the EU use 2 W/kg averaged over 10 g; spreading the same absorbed power over ten times the mass lowers the number, so a European value is typically smaller and cannot be compared with a U.S. one or read as a safety ranking. Body-worn values add a second variable: each is declared at a stated separation distance, commonly 5 mm, and does not describe the phone flat against skin.

Related records

• FCC SAR limit for phones and portable devices

  1.6 W/kg averaged over any 1 gram of tissue — the number quoted on U.S. phone SAR sheets — plus 0.08 W/kg whole-body.

  Exposure limits

• ICNIRP 2020 local SAR basic restriction (head and torso)

  2 W/kg averaged over 10 grams of tissue for the general public — a different averaging mass than the FCC's 1 g, which is why SAR numbers are not directly comparable between regions.

  Exposure limits

• Looking up a phone's SAR from the primary record

  How to get the tested SAR for a specific handset from the FCC equipment authorization database using the device's FCC ID, instead of relying on third-party lists.

  Measurement protocols

• SAR (specific absorption rate)

  Watts absorbed per kilogram of tissue, the dosimetric basis of phone compliance testing — 1.6 W/kg over 1 g in the U.S., 2 W/kg over 10 g under ICNIRP.

  Glossary

Sources

1. fcc-2-1093 47 CFR § 2.1093 — Radiofrequency radiation exposure evaluation: portable devices — U.S. Government Publishing Office (eCFR). regulation, link checked 2026-08-12.
2. icnirp-2020 Guidelines for Limiting Exposure to Electromagnetic Fields (100 kHz to 300 GHz) — International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection, 2020. guideline, link checked 2026-08-12.
3. bfs-sar-mobile Specific absorption rate (SAR) of mobile phones — measurement procedure and interpretation — Bundesamt für Strahlenschutz (German Federal Office for Radiation Protection). government, link checked 2026-08-12.