A series[edit]

Paper in the A series format has an aspect ratio of √2 (≈ 1.414, when rounded). A0 is defined so
that it has an area of 1 square metre before rounding to the nearest millimeter. Successive paper
sizes in the series (A1, A2, A3, etc.) are defined by halving the area of the preceding paper size
and rounding down, so that the long side of A(n+1) is the same length as the short side of An.
Hence, each next size is roughly half of the prior size. So, an A1 page can fit 2 A2 pages inside
the same area.
The most used of this series is the size A4, which is 210 mm × 297 mm (8.27 in × 11.7 in) and
thus almost exactly 0.0625 square metres (96.9 sq in) in area. For comparison, the letter paper
size commonly used in North America (8 1⁄2 in × 11 in, 216 mm × 279 mm) is about 6 mm
(0.24 in) wider and 18 mm (0.71 in) shorter than A4. Then, the size of A5 paper is half of A4, as
148 x 210 mm (5.8 x 8.3 in).[4] [5]
The geometric rationale for using the square root of 2 is to maintain the aspect ratio of each
subsequent rectangle after cutting or folding an A-series sheet in half, perpendicular to the larger
side. Given a rectangle with a longer side, x, and a shorter side, y, ensuring that its aspect
ratio, x/y, will be the same as that of a rectangle half its size, y/x/2, which means that x/y = y/x/2,
which reduces to x/y = √2 ; in other words, an aspect ratio of 1:√2.
The formula that gives the larger border of the paper size An in metres and without rounding off
is the geometric sequence:

The paper size An thus has the dimension

and area (before rounding)

The measurement in millimetres of the long side of An can be calculated as

(brackets represent the floor function).

B series[edit]
The B series is defined in the standard as follows: "A subsidiary series of sizes
is obtained by placing the geometrical means between adjacent sizes of the A
series in sequence." The use of the geometric mean makes each step in size:
B0, A0, B1, A1, B2 … smaller than the previous one by the same factor. As with
the A series, the lengths of the B series have the ratio √2, and folding one in half
(and rounding down to the nearest millimeter) gives the next in the series. The
shorter side of B0 is exactly 1 metre.
The measurement in millimetres of the long side of Bn can be calculated as

There is also an incompatible Japanese B series which the JIS defines to

have 1.5 times the area of the corresponding JIS A series (which is identical
to the ISO A series).[6] Thus, the lengths of JIS B series paper are √1.5 ≈
1.22 times those of A-series paper. By comparison, the lengths of ISO B
series paper are 4√2 ≈ 1.19 times those of A-series paper.
C series[edit]
The C series formats are geometric means between the B series and A
series formats with the same number (e.g., C2 is the geometric mean
between B2 and A2). The width to height ratio is √2 as in the A and B
series. The C series formats are used mainly for envelopes. An unfolded A4
page will fit into a C4 envelope. C series envelopes follow the same ratio
principle as the A series pages. For example, if an A4 page is folded in half
so that it is A5 in size, it will fit into a C5 envelope (which will be the same
size as a C4 envelope folded in half). The lengths of ISO C series paper are
therefore 8√2 ≈ 1.09 times those of A-series paper.
A, B, and C paper fit together as part of a geometric progression, with ratio
of successive side lengths of 8√2, though there is no size half-way between
Bn and A(n − 1): A4, C4, B4, "D4", A3, …; there is such a D-series in
the Swedish extensions to the system.
The measurement in millimetres of the long side of Cn can be calculated as

Tolerances[edit]
The tolerances specified in the standard are:

 ±1.5 mm for dimensions up to 150 mm,

 ±2.0 mm for dimensions in the range 150 to 600 mm, and
 ±3.0 mm for dimensions above 600 mm.
These are related to comparison between series A, B and C.

Application[edit]
The ISO 216 formats are organized around the ratio 1:√2; two sheets
next to each other together have the same ratio, sideways. In scaled
photocopying, for example, two A4 sheets reduced to A5 size fit exactly
onto one A4 sheet, and an A4 sheet in magnified size onto an A3 sheet;
in each case, there is neither waste nor want.
The principal countries not generally using the ISO paper sizes are the
United States and Canada, which use North American paper sizes.
Although they have also officially adopted the ISO 216 paper format,
Mexico, Panama, Venezuela, Colombia, the Philippines, and Chile also
use mostly U.S. paper sizes.
Rectangular sheets of paper with the ratio 1:√2 are popular in paper
folding, such as origami, where they are sometimes called "A4
rectangles" or "silver rectangles".[7] In other contexts, the term "silver
rectangle" can also refer to a rectangle in the proportion 1:(1 + √2),
known as the silver ratio.