Copper wires find their most common application in electrical applications. Due to its low resistance to the flow of current, copper is a better conductor of electricity. In most of the electric applications, especially for household electricity, it is the copper metal wiring which is desirable due to its ability to conduct electricity. Lower resistance means that it will not heat up as much as would other metals of higher resistance and hence, there would be lesser chances of damage to insulating wires or catching fire. If one is looking for even better conductors for electricity, then gold and silver do have better conductivity but are obviously an expensive proposition. Aluminium is a cheaper alternative to copper but has higher resistance and is not considered suitable for electric wiring at home, offices or for industrial applications.

Copper wires generally come in three basic forms. These can be solid, stranded or cable wires.  A solid wire is the one which comprises of only one strand of wire. This is only a single wire which could be of varying thickness. You would have seen this type of wire being used in winding of motors or being used in magnetism generating applications. These find most common usage in those applications which do not require frequent handling. It is not easy to bend these wires.

Another common type is the stranded wire. In this type of wire, there are different strands of copper wire which are covered by an insulated wire. The number of strands and thickness of each strand defines the thickness of the wire in general. These are most commonly seen in household and office applications. These are twisted around and then fitted in the electric components. Sometimes, the braids of these wires can also be wound together and used as an alternative to a single wire as a temporary measure in some home applications. These braided and twisted copper wires have the same conductivity and resistance properties but are more flexible to use.

The copper wires can also be in the form of cables. When two or more copper wires run parallel to one another and are bonded or twisted together to form to form a single assembly then these are called cables. These cable wires are generally plated. Plating is done with tin in order to reduce the oxidation which helps in improving its usable lifespan. Further, it makes soldering a lot easier. Two forms of these copper wires cables, twisted or coaxial, are helpful in preventing radiation of signals and electromagnetic interference. For this reason, these find good usage in laying of the transmission lines and telecommunication cables. When used as communication cables for telephone lines, cable TV operation and Ethernet services, the costs are lower as compared to optical fibre and coaxial ones.  For telephone lines, security cameras and computer networking applications, unshielded twist pair (UTP) cables are most commonly used.

Thus, copper wires of varied diameters, dimensions, forms and make are used for varied applications which require transmission of current or signals.