Camera-to-Tripod Mount Finder (1/4" vs 3/8")

The standard camera tripod mount thread size is 1/4″-20 UNC; ISO 1222 also allows a larger 3/8″-16 UNC thread, used on some professional cameras and lenses. Every camera in our manual-checked list uses 1/4″-20. Pick your camera and tripod stud below to confirm the socket and see whether you need an adapter.

1. Choose your camera. The list only contains models whose maker’s manual or spec page states the tripod socket thread. If yours is missing, pick “My camera isn’t listed” and check your manual.
2. Pick the stud size on your tripod head or plate: 1/4″-20, 3/8″-16 or “Not sure”. If you are not sure, the tool still shows your camera’s socket so you can compare it with the stud later.
3. Pick what you are mounting with: straight to the head, a quick release plate, an Arca-Swiss style plate or an L-bracket.
4. Press “Find my thread”. You get the socket thread, an adapter verdict and the manual the answer comes from.

ISO 1222:2010, “Photography — Tripod connections”, specifies two camera threads. In each label the first number is the nominal screw diameter in inches and the second is the number of threads per inch. “UNC” means Unified National Coarse, the thread series both sizes belong to. The socket is the threaded hole in the bottom of the camera; the stud (or screw) is on the tripod head, plate or bracket.

The tool compares the camera socket with the stud you chose. There are three possible outcomes:

• Same size: no adapter needed. The stud screws straight into the camera.
• 1/4″-20 stud, 3/8″-16 socket: a reducer bushing (3/8″-16 outside, 1/4″-20 inside) goes into the camera socket so the smaller stud can grip.
• 3/8″-16 stud, 1/4″-20 socket: you need an adapter with a 3/8″-16 female thread on one end and a 1/4″-20 male thread on the other.

For Sony bodies, also watch screw length. Sony’s Help Guides say to use a tripod screw less than 5.5 mm (7/32 inches) long; a longer screw cannot firmly secure the camera and may damage it.

A quick release plate, an Arca-Swiss style plate and an L-bracket all attach to the camera with their own screw, which goes into the camera’s tripod socket. That is why the socket thread is the number that matters. The plate then clamps into the head, so the head’s stud no longer touches the camera. The tool checks thread size only. It does not tell you whether a plate or bracket fits your body’s shape or what load it can carry; check the maker’s rated payload.

We entered each camera’s tripod socket thread by hand from the maker’s own manual or spec page. Sony Help Guides state “Supports 1/4-20 UNC screws”. Nikon spec pages state “1/4 in.”, and Nikon’s Z Reference Guides add “ISO 1222”, which defines 1/4 in. as 1/4-20 UNC. A camera is listed only if its manual states the thread. That is why some popular models, and brands whose spec pages we could not verify, are not listed yet. We do not infer a thread from brand, body type or forum posts.

• ISO 1222:2010 Photography — Tripod connections: the two thread sizes.
• Wikipedia: Tripod (photography): summary of ISO 1222 and typical use of each thread.
• Sony Help Guides and Nikon spec pages / Reference Guides: one source per camera, linked in the camera list above.

Last updated: October 2026

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