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4-Way Switches Background

4-Way Switches

Electrical Switches

4-Way Switches

4-Way Toggle Switches

4-Way Toggle Switches  4  or More Switches

4-Way Decora Switches

4-Way Switch Wiring

4-Way Switch Wiring Option

4-way switches are used to control lights using 3 or more switches. A 4-way switch circuit uses two 3-way switches and one or more 4-way switches. These switches do not have an on/off position like single pole switches. It is important to understand how these are wired before attempting to troubleshoot or replace.

4-Way Toggle vs 4-Way Decora Switches

The two types of basic 4-way switches are toggle and decora. They each have 2 pairs of traveler terminals. However, the terminal locations on each type of switch are different.

4-way switches have 5 terminals, 2 travelers (brass color) 2 travelers (black color) and ground.

With conventional 3-way wiring, the common wire from one 3-way switch connects to the line, and the common wire from the other 3-way switch connects to the load (lights). The pair of travelers on each 3-way switch connect to travelers on the 4-way switches.

3 and 4-way toggle switches 3 and 4-way decora switches
3 and 4-way toggle switches 3 and 4-way decora switches