Scrap metal prices per kg in Mexico
| Scrap type | Price (MXN) | Change | Global reference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Non-ferrous (per kg) | |||
| Copper Scrap | MX$217 / kg | ▲ +1.77% | $5.75 / lb |
| Aluminum Scrap | MX$31 / kg | ▲ +1.25% | $0.81 / lb |
| Brass Scrap | MX$132 / kg | ▲ +1.45% | $3.50 / lb |
| Stainless Steel Scrap | MX$21 / kg | ▲ +0.00% | $0.57 / lb |
| Lead Scrap | MX$22 / kg | ▲ +0.00% | $0.59 / lb |
| Zinc Scrap | MX$34 / kg | ▲ +0.00% | $0.90 / lb |
| Battery Scrap | MX$9 / kg | ▲ +0.00% | $0.23 / lb |
| Radiator Scrap | MX$125 / kg | ▲ +1.85% | $3.31 / lb |
| Wire Scrap | MX$105 / kg | ▲ +1.83% | $2.78 / lb |
| Cable Scrap | MX$70 / kg | ▲ +1.65% | $1.85 / lb |
| Electronic Scrap | MX$30 / kg | ▲ +1.28% | $0.79 / lb |
| Ferrous and bulk (per tonne) | |||
| Steel Scrap | MX$5,656 / tonne | ▲ +0.00% | $300 / ton |
| Iron Scrap | MX$4,977 / tonne | ▲ +0.00% | $264 / ton |
| Car Scrap | MX$6,787 / tonne | ▲ +0.00% | $360 / ton |
| Cast Iron | MX$5,429 / tonne | ▲ +0.00% | $288 / ton |
Indicative dealer prices for clean, sorted scrap. Global reference is the US board in US dollars; the Mexico figure applies the exchange rate (1 USD = 18.19 MXN) and a local market factor of 0.94.
Yards quote in pesos per kilogram. Prices here are derived from the exchange settlement, converted to pesos, and adjusted by a market factor of 0.94, our assessment of a market with real domestic mill demand, deep buyer competition in the industrial north, and the closest large scrap export market in the world immediately across the border. That factor is published on the editorial policy page and is open to challenge. The northern border states behave differently from the centre and south for a reason that has nothing to do with local supply: a buyer near the frontier has options a buyer in the interior does not.
Mexico scrap price chart (MXN)
Daily open, high, low and close for the most traded scrap metals in MXN per kg or per tonne. Scroll to zoom and drag to move along the timeline.
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Copper scrap prices by grade in Mexico
Copper is not one price. Yards grade it by cleanliness, coating and gauge, and the spread from the top grade to the bottom runs 25 to 35 percent. These are the same grades used on export contracts, converted to MXN.
The scrap market in Mexico
Mexico has no scrap dealer licence. What it has instead is one of the most complete electronic invoicing regimes in the world, and that is what governs the chatarra trade in practice. The CFDI, the Comprobante Fiscal Digital por Internet, has been mandatory since 2011 and applies to every taxpayer and every transaction with no turnover threshold at all. A yard buying from you is expected to document the purchase; a yard selling on must invoice it. The register that a British or Kenyan seller checks does not exist here, and the equivalent question is whether the buyer issues a proper invoice.
The second control is the one that catches people out, because it applies to the load rather than the deal. Under the Complemento Carta Porte, moving goods by road inside Mexico without a CFDI carrying the vehicle, route, driver and cargo details can be treated as illegal transport. A truck of scrap on a highway is exactly the kind of movement that provision was written for. Alongside this, a comprehensive Customs Law reform published in November 2025 and in force from January 2026 tightened documentation and digital traceability across imports and exports, and the 2026 tax reform gave SAT stronger enforcement powers, including the right to demand supporting evidence for an invoice within five business days.
- Currency
- Mexican peso (MXN)
- Units
- Kilogram
- Market factor
- 0.94 (our assessment, published on the editorial policy page)
- Tax authority
- SAT, Servicio de Administracion Tributaria
- Local term
- Chatarra for scrap, chatarrera for the yard
The most valuable scrap by weight in Mexico today: Copper at MX$217 per kg, Brass at MX$132 per kg, Radiator at MX$125 per kg, Wire at MX$105 per kg, Cable at MX$70 per kg.
What scrap metal pays per kg in Mexico
Buyers in Mexico work in MXN and price by the kilogram. Typical ranges are Copper: MX$ 190 to MX$ 245 per kg; Brass: MX$ 115 to MX$ 150 per kg; Aluminium: MX$ 27 to MX$ 35 per kg; Zinc: MX$ 30 to MX$ 38 per kg; Lead: MX$ 19 to MX$ 25 per kg; Stainless steel: MX$ 18 to MX$ 24 per kg. Across common non-ferrous grades that puts most material between MX$ 18 and MX$ 245 per kg, with copper at the top of the range and stainless steel near the bottom.
These are ranges rather than quotes. The band reflects day-to-day movement in the metal market and the spread between one yard and another, which our own research has found can reach 40 percent or more for the same metal in the same city. The midpoint is derived from the international exchange settlement converted to MXN and adjusted by our published market factor of 0.94. Expect a local buyer to sit toward the lower end, because they carry collection, sorting, processing and their own margin. Always confirm the rate per kilo for your specific grade before anything is weighed.
- Copper: MX$ 190 to MX$ 245 per kg
- Brass: MX$ 115 to MX$ 150 per kg
- Aluminium: MX$ 27 to MX$ 35 per kg
- Zinc: MX$ 30 to MX$ 38 per kg
- Lead: MX$ 19 to MX$ 25 per kg
- Stainless steel: MX$ 18 to MX$ 24 per kg
Why chatarreras are being raided
Cable theft from the Metro, the Comision Federal de Electricidad and Telmex rose 306 percent over five years according to figures from the Secretariado de Seguridad Publica, and the authorities attribute much of it to organised crime rather than opportunists.
The scale is documented by the victims. Telmex reported that around 5 million metres of copper cable, equivalent to 2,481 tonnes of metal, was taken from public roads over a two-year period, and stated plainly that the metal is melted down in chatarreras and then sold on, including abroad. The company filed 30,456 complaints in that period. The CFE reported 1,208 kilometres of copper cable stolen across its 16 divisions between 2015 and 2020, an economic loss of 273.8 million pesos, with 2,668 complaints filed.
That is why the scrap trade is in the frame. In August 2026, searches of chatarreras in Veracruz led to seven arrests, with investigators looking specifically for copper and cabling stolen from the CFE and Telmex. If you operate or sell into a Mexican yard, this is the context you are operating in.
Where the complaints concentrate
Investigation files are not spread evenly. In 2022 the states opening the most were Puebla with 771, Jalisco with 263, Quintana Roo with 262 and Chihuahua with 140. In 2021 the order was different: Quintana Roo with 715, Puebla with 487, Jalisco with 324, San Luis Potosi with 175 and Chihuahua with 85.
If you are selling in those states, expect more questions about provenance than you would elsewhere, and treat that as reasonable rather than as suspicion of you personally.
The sign that tells you how bad it got
Telmex technicians began labelling fibre optic cable with the words no contiene cobre, it does not contain copper, and es fibra optica, no cobre. The labels exist because thieves were cutting fibre in the belief that it was copper, finding no metal, and leaving the cable severed anyway.
On one occasion that took down the network across three states. A cut made in error costs exactly as much to repair as a cut made for profit.
- Keep a record of where copper cable came from, particularly if it arrived in quantity.
- Be cautious with telecommunications or signalling cable offered without a clear source. Metro signalling cable contains 28 pairs of small copper conductors and is recognisable.
- Understand that a yard buying stolen infrastructure cable is not just committing an offence, it is the reason the whole trade is being searched.
Selling scrap metal in Mexico: rules, ID and payment
For a household seller a small transaction is straightforward, but the further up the chain you go the more the paperwork matters. Expect a legitimate yard to want your details in order to invoice properly, and treat a buyer who wants no record at all as a compliance risk rather than a convenience, because the exposure under the current enforcement regime is real and it does not stay only with them. If you are moving any quantity by road, the Carta Porte complement is not optional and the driver carries the consequence. If you are trading across the border, the position has changed twice recently: Mexico's customs reform took effect in January 2026 with heavier documentation requirements, and the Electronic Value Manifest through the VUCEM window became mandatory from June 2026. Anyone importing or exporting should confirm the current position with a customs broker rather than relying on any summary, including this one.
Before you sell
- Ask whether the buyer will issue a CFDI. There is no dealer register in Mexico, so the invoice is the thing that makes a transaction traceable and legitimate.
- For any load moving by road, make sure the Carta Porte complement is in place with vehicle, route, driver and cargo detail. Transport without it can be treated as illegal.
- Separate copper, brass, aluminium and steel before selling. Mixed loads are paid at the lower rate here as everywhere.
- In the border states, get a second quote. Proximity to the United States gives buyers there alternatives that interior buyers do not have, and the spread shows.
- For cross-border movement, use a customs broker and confirm the current requirements; the rules changed in January 2026 and again in June 2026.
Scrap prices by city in Mexico
City pages carry local yard prices and directories for the main scrap markets. Pages that are not live yet are shown without a link.
Scrap yards in Mexico
Find a yard by region or city, or use your location to see the nearest. Every listing shows where its details came from and when they were checked.
Yard listings for Mexico are being added from official dealer registers and trade directories. Nothing is published until it has been verified against a named source, which is why this section is not yet populated.
Mexico scrap price FAQ
Do scrap yards in Mexico need a special licence?
No. Mexico has no scrap dealer licence comparable to those in Britain or Kenya. A chatarrera operates under ordinary business and tax registration, and the control that actually applies is fiscal: the obligation to issue a CFDI for the transaction.
What is a CFDI and why does it matter when selling scrap?
The Comprobante Fiscal Digital por Internet, Mexico's mandatory electronic invoice. It has applied to every taxpayer and every transaction since 2011 with no turnover threshold. Since there is no dealer register to check, whether a buyer issues a proper CFDI is the practical test of whether you are dealing with a legitimate operation.
What is the Carta Porte and does it apply to scrap?
It is a complement to the CFDI covering the movement of goods by road, naming the vehicle, route, driver and cargo. Transporting goods domestically without it can be treated as illegal transport, and a truckload of scrap is exactly the kind of movement it covers.
Are scrap prices better near the US border?
Buyers there have options interior buyers do not, because the largest scrap-exporting market in the world is immediately across the frontier. That competition shows in the quotes, which is why the north-to-centre spread within Mexico can be wider than the gap between Mexico and the international reference.
Has anything changed recently for cross-border scrap trade?
Twice. A comprehensive Customs Law reform was published in November 2025 and took effect in January 2026, tightening documentation and digital traceability. The Electronic Value Manifest through the VUCEM window became mandatory from June 2026. Confirm the current position with a customs broker rather than relying on a summary.
Can I sell scrap without any paperwork?
A small household sale is straightforward in practice, but a buyer who wants no record at all is a compliance risk rather than a convenience. SAT's enforcement powers were strengthened in 2026, including the right to demand supporting evidence for an invoice within five business days.
What are scrap and scrap yards called in Mexico?
Chatarra is the scrap; a chatarrera is the yard that buys it. Fierro viejo is also heard for old iron, particularly at the household end of the trade.
Why is the Mexican price close to the international reference?
Because there is genuine domestic mill demand, deep buyer competition in the industrial north, and an export alternative directly across the border. Few markets on this site have all three at once, which is what keeps the discount narrow.
Sources and methodology
Prices on this page start from the global reference board (US dollars per pound or per ton), are multiplied by a Mexico market factor of 0.94 that reflects local demand, freight and trade rules, and are converted to MXN at 1 USD = 18.19 and to metric units (kilograms and tonnes). The board refreshes daily, with the time of the latest update shown at the top of the page.
Reference sources
- CFDI electronic invoicing framework and Anexo 20 version 4.0, Servicio de Administracion Tributaria
- Complemento Carta Porte requirements for domestic transport of goods
- Customs Law reform published in the Diario Oficial de la Federacion, November 2025, in force January 2026
- Electronic Value Manifest requirement through VUCEM, mandatory from June 2026
Prices are indicative and for information only; they are not offers to buy or sell. Actual yard prices depend on grade, quantity, location and the buyer. Spotted an error? Tell us and we will check it against our sources.