Compare Magnetic, Electric and Gravitational Fields

Magnetic, electric and gravitational fields are important concepts with similarities and differences. A good understanding of these differences and similarities will deepen the understanding of the three concepts.

Gravitational Field

A gravitational field is due to any object that has a mass because if you place another object nearby, it will be attracted according to the Newton's law of universal gravitation.

Electric Field

Similarly, any charged object creates an electric field because if you place another charge nearby it will be either attracted or repelled.

Magnetic Field

A magnetic field is due to magnetic material or to moving charges. If you place a magnet nearby in a magnetic field (near a magnet for example), it will either be attracted or repelled. Moving charges may also be attracted or repelled by magnets.


The gravitational, electric and magnetic field are vector quantities with both magnitude and direction.
magnetic field lines north and south poles
Like electric charges, magnet also attract and repel each other: like poles, north and north or south and south repel each other and unlike poles south and north attract each other.

Unit of Electric Charges

The SI unit of electric charge is the coulomb (C). Electric charges comes in small units called the elementary charge, e, approximately equal to 1.6×10-19 coulombs. The proton has a charge of e, and the electron has a charge of -e.