Every copper grade priced in USD per , updated daily from exchange settlements and this market's own level.
Copper scrap in United States is worth $1.74 to $6.22 per lb today, depending on grade. Bare Bright Copper sits at the top of the board and communication wire at the bottom, a spread of about 3.6 times. Prices are quoted in USD per lb and move daily with the exchange settlement.
Yards grade copper by cleanliness, coating and gauge. The spread from the top grade to the bottom runs 25 to 35 percent, so identifying what you hold matters more than the day you sell.
Converted from the exchange settlement at this market's rate and level. Indicative reference prices, not offers. Aluminium, brass and steel prices in United States.
Yards quote non-ferrous scrap in US dollars per pound and ferrous scrap per net ton of 2,000 pounds (some mills use gross tons of 2,240 pounds). Grades follow the Recycled Materials Association (ReMA, formerly ISRI) specifications such as bare bright, number 1 and number 2 copper, or HMS 1 and 2 for heavy melting steel.
Against the global reference: The US board is the global reference on this site, so US prices are shown without a country factor.
Grade names travel less well than the metal does. Whatever a local merchant calls it, the specification behind each grade is the same one used on export contracts, which is why the ReMA code appears on every card above.
The board above is the national indicative level. City yards trade around it rather than exactly on it, because local competition, freight to the nearest consumer and export demand all move the spread. Two quotes in the same city can differ by several percent on the same morning.
Houston scrap prices track the US board closely and often beat inland cities on ferrous grades, because yards can sell into Ship Channel export cargoes as well as to Texas mills. Copper, brass and aluminum follow COMEX-linked quotes; bring photo ID, and expect payment rules on regulated metals.
Copper that moves here: Number 1 copper and stripped bare bright from electrical and demolition work.
Chicago scrap prices are set by mill demand: the steelworks of northwest Indiana and the Midwest melt shops buy the ferrous, while copper, brass and aluminum track the COMEX-linked national board. Prices firm up in late winter when scrap is scarce; bring photo ID and expect full record-keeping.
Copper that moves here: Number 1 copper and insulated wire from electrical work.
Los Angeles scrap prices lean on Asia: container exporters at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach compete with domestic consumers, which keeps non-ferrous bids close to the national board. California law is the strictest in the country, with photo ID, a thumbprint and delayed or check payment for many sellers.
Copper that moves here: Clean copper and aluminum export grades in volume; Insulated wire, which the port-side granulators buy aggressively.
New York scrap prices follow the national board, with dense demolition and renovation supply meeting export demand through the New Jersey docks. Copper and brass from the trades are the city's strength; logistics are the cost. Bring photo ID, and expect full records at every licensed yard.
Copper that moves here: Renovation copper pipe cut to number 1, and brass plumbing fixtures; Electrical wire and cable from the trades, sorted by recovery.
Dallas scrap prices are mill-driven: Texas electric arc furnaces south and north of the metroplex buy the ferrous, and construction keeps supply heavy. Copper, brass and aluminum track the national COMEX-linked board. Texas rules apply: photo ID, records, and payment restrictions on regulated metals.
Copper that moves here: HVAC copper, aluminum-copper coils and compressors from the trades.
Miami scrap prices are export prices: yards feed containers to Latin America and the Caribbean as well as domestic consumers, which keeps non-ferrous close to the national board. AC coils, copper and aluminum dominate supply. Florida law requires photo ID, a fingerprint and traceable payment for many items.
Copper that moves here: Aluminum-copper AC coils and compressors, graded rather than lumped; Copper pipe and wire from renovation work.
Phoenix scrap prices track the national board, lifted by one of the busiest construction markets in the country. Arizona has some of the strictest selling rules in the United States: a fingerprint at the counter, photo and video of the seller and the material, your vehicle recorded, and payment by cheque posted to the address on your ID rather than cash at the window.
Copper that moves here: Construction copper wire and conduit from the building boom.
Scrap sales are regulated state by state. Most states require licensed dealers to record photo ID, a description of the material and often a photo or thumbprint, and many restrict cash or delay payment for items linked to theft such as catalytic converters, copper wire and manhole covers. Bring ID and, for vehicles, the title.
Copper attracts more scrutiny than any other scrap metal because it is the most stolen. A yard that asks for identification is following the law; one that does not is the greater risk to you, since a load with no paper trail is the load a buyer can dispute later.
The United States is the largest scrap exporter in the world and one of the deepest domestic markets, with thousands of yards feeding electric arc furnaces, secondary smelters and export docks. Non-ferrous prices follow COMEX and LME quotes closely; ferrous prices are set regionally by mill buying programs and by export demand from Turkey, Mexico, India and Bangladesh.
Regional spreads are wide. Gulf Coast and East Coast yards track export bids, the Midwest follows mill demand around Chicago, Detroit and Ohio, and West Coast yards price to Asian container demand out of Los Angeles and Long Beach. The same grade of copper can differ by ten cents a pound between Houston and Seattle on the same day.
Copper sits differently in that picture from the ferrous grades. It is worth enough per kilogram to travel, so a merchant a long way from a refinery can still pay close to the reference by shipping to one. That is why the spread between the best and worst copper quote in a country is usually narrower than the spread on steel, where freight eats the margin.
Grade decides more of your payment than timing does. Four checks settle almost every load.
Sorting into separate piles before you weigh is the highest-paid work in this trade. A mixed load is graded at the lowest grade present, so one soldered joint in a clean pile can regrade the lot.
| Currency | US dollar (USD) |
|---|---|
| Price units | Per lb for non-ferrous, per ton for ferrous |
| Benchmarks | COMEX copper, LME aluminum, regional mill ferrous prices |
| Main hubs | Houston, Chicago, Los Angeles and Long Beach, Newark, Detroit |
| Trade position | Net exporter of ferrous and non-ferrous scrap |
Between $1.74 and $6.22 per lb depending on grade, quoted in USD. The board above shows every grade, updated daily.
Because they have different outlets. A merchant who can sell straight to a refinery pays closer to the reference than one who has to ship material onward, and both build their freight into the quote. Local competition does the rest, which is why calling two or three merchants is worth more than picking the day.
Bare Bright Copper, at $6.22 per lb today. It is the strictest grade on the board: clean, uncoated, unalloyed wire of heavier gauge, with no oxidation and no attachments.
Above roughly 48 percent copper recovery, usually yes. Below it, usually not. Thick building cable strips quickly and pays; thin communication cable does not. Burning insulation is never the answer: it is unlawful in most jurisdictions and it downgrades the copper rather than improving it.
Yes, though less than most sellers expect. The board on this page is the national indicative level and city yards trade around it. What moves a local quote is how many buyers can economically reach you, how far the material has to travel to a consumer, and whether there is an export outlet nearby.
Daily. Copper settles on the exchange every business day and every scrap grade moves with it, because each grade is priced as a share of the refined metal price rather than set independently.
C$8.34 / lb
£9.74 / kg
A$18.08 / kg
€12.04 / kg
€11.81 / kg
€12.16 / kg
€11.81 / kg
€11.81 / kg
€11.93 / kg
CN¥90.30 / kg
¥2,077 / kg
₩18,096 / kg
₹1,193 / kg
৳1,483 / kg
Rs 3,274 / kg
AED 47.84 / kg
SAR 47.82 / kg
₺691.10 / kg
R 186.00 / kg