Metal Properties Finder & Compare

Pick up to three metals to compare density, melting range and weight. Weigh a bar, plate or tube in each one, or measure a part to find out what it is made of. Data from the Metal Density and Melting Point Chart.

1. Metals to compare

Or use the Compare buttons in the metal list below.

2. Quick weight

3. What is this metal?

Lists every metal within ±2% of the density you measured.
Metal comparison

Comparison

Weight compared with 6061 aluminium

Nominal densities at room temperature. ≈ marks a typical or estimated melting range. Imperial weights use the exact conversion of the kg/m³ value, so they can differ from the Weight Calculator (which uses rounded lb/in³ figures) by up to about 0.5%.

What is this metal?

Enter the mass and the volume (or the size) of your part in section 3.

Find a metal

lb/in³ °F vs 6061

How the Metal Properties Finder Works

The finder holds the nominal density and melting point (or melting range) of 60 metals and alloys, the same data as the Metal Density and Melting Point Chart. It compares up to three of them, weighs a piece of stock in each, and matches a density you measured to the metals it could be.

Everything runs in your browser. Your last inputs are remembered on this device.

The Method

1. Density units
g/cm³ = kg/m³ ÷ 1,000
lb/in³ = g/cm³ × 0.0361273
lb/ft³ = g/cm³ × 62.428
Every density is stored once, in kg/m³, and the other units are worked out from it with the exact definitions 1 in = 25.4 mm and 1 lb = 0.45359237 kg.
2. Relative weight
ratio = density of metal ÷ 2,700 kg/m³
6061 aluminium is the reference, because it is the most common light machining alloy. A ratio of 2.91 means a part of the same size weighs 2.91 times as much as it would in 6061.
3. Stock volume
round bar: V = π ÷ 4 × D² × L
flat bar, plate: V = W × T × L
tube: V = π ÷ 4 × (OD² − ID²) × L
For tube, ID = OD − 2 × wall. The volume is multiplied by the quantity.
4. Weight
kg = V (mm³) ÷ 1,000,000,000 × density (kg/m³)
lb = V (in³) × density (lb/in³)
The same volume × density method as the Weight Calculator.
5. What is this metal?
measured density = mass ÷ volume
match if |listed − measured| ÷ measured ≤ 2%
Measure the volume by water displacement, or from the size of a bar or block. Matches are listed closest first; if none is within 2%, the three closest are shown.
6. Melting range
°F = °C × 9 ÷ 5 + 32
Pure metals and eutectic solders show one temperature. Alloys show the solidus (melting starts) and liquidus (fully liquid). Tool-steel makers rarely publish one, so those rows say n/p.

Worked Example

A 2 in round bar, 12 in long, in 6061, 1018 steel and 304 stainless (the default settings)
  • Volume = π ÷ 4 × 2² × 12 = 37.70 in³.
  • 6061: 2,700 kg/m³ = 0.0975 lb/in³, so 37.70 × 0.0975 = 3.68 lb.
  • 1018: 7,850 kg/m³ = 0.2836 lb/in³, so 37.70 × 0.2836 = 10.69 lb, 2.91 times the aluminium bar.
  • 304: 8,000 kg/m³ = 0.2890 lb/in³, so 37.70 × 0.2890 = 10.90 lb, 2.96 times the aluminium bar.
  • In metric, a 50 mm bar 300 mm long is 589,049 mm³: 1.59 kg in 6061, 4.62 kg in 1018 and 4.71 kg in 304.

Identify example: a part weighs 412 g and displaces 52.5 cm³ of water, so its density is 7.85 g/cm³. The finder lists the 7,850 kg/m³ carbon and alloy steels first, then the tool steels, pure iron, 17-4PH and 410 stainless, and finally 303, 304 and 316 stainless at +1.9%.

Tips

  • Measuring volume by displacement: fill a container to the brim, lower the part in on a thread, and weigh or measure the water that overflows. 1 g of water is 1 cm³. Small air bubbles and wet threads give small errors, so expect ±1 to 2%.
  • Use a magnet and a spark test as well. Steel and annealed 304 stainless are only 2% apart, but steel is strongly magnetic and 304 barely is. Aluminium alloys are all within a few percent of each other, so density alone will not tell 6061 from 6082.
  • Plated or hollow parts will not match: the finder assumes a solid part made of one metal.
  • For quotes, add the saw kerf and facing allowance before weighing; the Raw Material Sizer and Stock Waste calculator help with that.
  • Need other properties? Convert hardness readings with the Hardness Converter, size change with temperature with Thermal Expansion, and grade names with the Steel and Metal Grade Cross Reference.

Frequently Asked Questions

Carbon steel at 7,850 kg/m³ is 2.91 times as heavy as 6061 aluminium at 2,700 kg/m³. Stainless steel at 8,000 kg/m³ is 2.96 times as heavy, and brass at 8,500 kg/m³ is 3.15 times as heavy.

Weigh it, measure its volume (by water displacement or from its size), and divide mass by volume to get the density. The finder lists every metal within 2% of that density. Then narrow it down with a magnet, the colour, a spark test or a file test, because several alloys can share almost the same density.

Both tools use the same densities in kg/m³. The finder converts them exactly (steel 7,850 kg/m³ = 0.2836 lb/in³), while the Weight Calculator uses rounded figures such as 0.284 lb/in³. The difference is under 0.5%.

An alloy starts to melt at its solidus and is completely liquid only at its liquidus. Between the two it is part solid, part liquid. Pure metals and eutectic alloys such as 63/37 solder melt at a single temperature.

They are nominal room-temperature values from standard references and makers' datasheets. Real material varies by about 1 to 2% with composition and condition, and cast iron by more. That is close enough for weights and quotes; for critical work, use the figure on the maker's datasheet.

Values are nominal and for guidance only. Check critical values against the material standard, the mill certificate or the maker's datasheet.