Finding the Right Filter Size for Your Canon Lens

Filter Size Finder: Which Filter Size Does Your Canon Lens Take?

These charts show the lens diameters and corresponding filter sizes for common Canon lenses. They’re updated with the latest Canon lenses.

If you’re looking for lens hood model numbers, I also have Canon lens hood compatibility charts.

My focus here is on lenses that accept screw-in filters on the front. Some lenses, such as very wide-angle or fisheye lenses, don’t have a filter thread on the front and can’t accept this style of filter. And some very long telephoto lenses use a system of drop-in filters at the rear of the lens. There are also, of course, filter holder systems, but that’s a different kettle of fish.

Two recent additions to Canon’s RF lineup fall into this category: the RF 14mm f/1.4 L VCM and the RF 7-14mm f/2.8-3.5 L Fisheye STM both use a rear drop-in filter slot instead of front threads, so you won’t find a filter size listed for them here.

Some focal lengths have multiple lens models, so matching the other parts of the name is important. For example, Canon has a couple of versions of the 16-35mm focal length, and each takes filters of a different diameter.

This is an ongoing list and clearly doesn’t cover every lens Canon has ever made. I’m starting with their current range and adding older lenses to it as the opportunity arises. And I haven’t included the more specialized Cinema and Broadcast series lenses here. Please feel free to send through any additions, requests, or corrections.

If your lens isn’t listed here and you want to find out the filter size, it’s often marked on the lens itself. For a more detailed guide, see my post on finding the lens diameter.

Canon RF Mount Lens Filter Sizes Chart

Canon RF mount lenses are designed specifically for EOS R series mirrorless cameras. They’re designed to be lighter and smaller to more appropriately pair with the smaller form factor of the R series mirrorless cameras, and the lenses also feature a control ring that can be customized.

Canon EF-M Mount Lens Filter Sizes Chart

Canon’s EF-M lenses are designed specifically for Canon’s compact mirrorless EOS M cameras. The lenses are designed to match those cameras’ small profile to be small, light, and quiet.

Canon EF Mount Lens Filter Sizes Chart

Canon’s EF Lenses are designed to work with Canon’s full-frame and APS-C cropped sensor DSLRs.

Canon EF-S Mount Lens Filter Sizes Chart

Canon’s EF-S lenses are designed for Canon’s APS-C sensor DSLRs.

Things Worth Knowing About These Canon Lens Filter Size Charts

Lens filters have become somewhat less crucial with digital photography than they were for film photography. With film, there were all sorts of filters required for color balancing and effects. Many of those effects can now be handled quite effectively with digital post-processing.

But there’s still an important place for lens filters. Some of it is for creative reasons. Some of it is for protection of the lens. And some of it is because, as impressive as digital editing software is these days, there are still some things it really can’t mimic very well (eg. a true polarizing effect of a circular polarizer filter or cutting through haze).

Stacking filters is possible but comes with the risk of lens vignetting. Specially designed slim filters (and they’ll be marketed as that) can help reduce that risk.

Canon Lens Codes

Like most lens manufacturers, Canon uses a number of codes and numbers in naming their lenses.

I’ve posted a more detailed and comprehensive explanation of Canon lens codes separately, but here are some of the most common ones that you might come across.

• RF – designed for Canon’s R-series mirrorless cameras.
• RF-S – designed for Canon’s R-series APS-C mirrorless cameras.
• EF – designed for all of Canon’s EOS cameras, including full-frame digital, APS-C digital, and 35mm film. The EF stands for electro-focus. It was introduced back in 1987.
• EF-S – designed specifically for EOS cameras with APS-C sensors. EF-S lenses are physically designed not to mount on full-frame or film EOS bodies, precisely because the lens protrudes far enough to hit the mirror and cause damage if it were forced on.
• EF-M – designed for Canon’s M-series compact mirrorless cameras. They cannot be used on other EF-mount cameras.
• FD – This was Canon’s old manual-focus lens mount. It was replaced by the EOS EF mount.
• IS – Stands for Image Stabilizer, which is optical image stabilization in the lens (as distinct from in-camera stabilization).
• L – Stands for Luxury. It designates Canon’s highest-grade lenses designed for pro use. Identifiable with a red ring.
• USM – Stands for UltraSonic Motor, which is Canon’s main (and best) focusing motor. Fast and quiet, and it allows for full-time manual override.
• Micro USM – This is a variation of USM that’s used on some of the smaller and lighter lenses (because it’s a smaller motor).
• AFD – Stands for Arc-Form Drive, a predecessor to USM.
• SSC – Stands for Super Spectral Coating. Since most modern lenses have some form of optical coating to reduce glare, reflections, and improve contrast, this code has been dropped from most recent lenses.
• STM – Stands for Stepper Motor and is designed for cine lenses and lenses designed for video use to keep autofocus smoother and noise-free when recording.

What to Look for When Buying a Polarizing Filter

There are two classes of polarizing lenses: circular and linear. If you’re using a Canon autofocus camera, or any camera that meters through the lens, you’ll almost certainly want a circular polarizer. In general, you’ll only want a linear polarizer for manual focus or video cameras.

As with any other type of screw-on filter, you’ll need to get the size that matches the thread diameter of your lens. If your lens has a 77mm diameter (usually marked on the lens itself in the form of ∅77), you’ll want a 77mm polarizer. (An exception is if you’re using an external lens mount system like Lee or Cokin, but that’s a different approach that’s beyond the scope here.)

Unfortunately, that means that there’s not a one-size-fits-all screw-on filter, so depending on the lenses you have, you might need to choose which lenses you want to be able to use with a polarizer or buy multiple filters. In some cases, you can use step-up or step-down adapters.

With very wide-angle lenses, adding what amount to extensions onto the end of the lens risks vignetting in the corners of the frame. Buying polarizing filters designated as slim filters reduces that risk, although they are often more expensive.

Step-Up & Step-Down Rings (The Money-Saving Trick)

You don’t necessarily need to buy a separate filter for every single diameter listed above. In fact, a common money-saving strategy used by pros is to buy filters for their largest lens and adapt them to the smaller ones. (NB: This only makes sense for creative filters like polarizers and ND filters, not for protection filters (UV/Haze, etc).)

For example, high-quality filters are expensive. A pro-grade Circular Polarizer might cost $150. Rather than buying a 52mm version, a 62mm version, and a 77mm version (costing you $450 total), you can simply buy the 77mm filter and use inexpensive rings to fit it onto the smaller lenses.

These rings come in two varieties:

• Step-Up Rings (Recommended): These allow you to attach a larger filter to a smaller lens thread.
  • Example: If you have a lens with a 52mm thread but want to use your 77mm filter, you would use a 52-77mm Step-Up Ring.
  • Why use them: This is the safest method. Because the filter glass is physically larger than the lens requires, there is zero risk of vignetting (dark corners).
• Step-Down Rings (Use Caution): These allow you to attach a smaller filter to a larger lens thread.
  • Example: If you have a lens with a 77mm thread and try to attach an old 67mm filter using a 77-67mm Step-Down Ring.
  • Why use them: Generally, you shouldn’t. Because the filter is smaller than the front of the lens, you will likely see the black edges of the filter in your image (vignetting), especially on wide-angle lenses. An exception might be if you are switching a full-frame camera into APS-C mode.

I have more information on how to use step-up and step-down filter adapters separately, but the general rule of thumb is: Buy Big, Step Up. It is the most economical way to build a versatile filter kit.

Updates

• August 1, 2026 / Added new Canon RF Mount Lenses RF 20-50mm f/4 L IS USM PZ
• July 24, 2026 / Added 16 new lenses.
• February 5, 2026 / Added new Canon RF 14mm f/1.4 L VCM and Canon RF 7-14mm f/2.8-3.5 L Fisheye STM
• November 6, 2025 / Added new Canon RF 45mm f/1.2 STM
• April 30, 2025 / Added new Canon RF 75-300mm f4-5.6
• March 26, 2025 / Added new Canon RF 20mm f1.4 L VCM
• January 27, 2025 / Added new Canon RF 16-28mm f2.8 IS STM