Over the last century, over one hundred crack width formulas have been developed to calculate the width and spacing of cracks in reinforced and prestressed concrete elements. It is unclear which formulas are the most accurate. An extensive comparison study is required to determine which formulas accurately describe the crack patterns, consisting of the crack width and spacing. To make such a study possible, this paper proposes categorizing formulas. The categorization of the formulas is based on their applicability, crack pattern representation, and background. The categorization presents an overview of the different assumptions and application areas for describing crack patterns.