About the Scrap Metal Value Calculator
This scrap metal value calculator totals a mixed load before you drive to the yard. Enter the weight of each metal you have sorted — bare bright and #2 copper, yellow brass, insulated wire, aluminum, stainless and plain steel — along with the price per pound (or per kilogram) your local yard is posting, and it adds up the payout and shows which metal makes up most of the money.
It suits DIY renovators clearing out old plumbing, electricians with wire offcuts, contractors and anyone deciding whether it is worth stripping wire or separating brass fittings from copper pipe. Because copper pays many times more than steel per pound, a small bag of clean copper often outweighs a whole truck bed of iron in value.
Scrap prices move daily with commodity markets and differ by yard and grade, so the defaults are only placeholders: always use the prices your yard quotes. An optional deduction covers dirty material, attachments or a yard fee.
With the default inputs, the estimated payout is $145.50. Change any value above to recalculate instantly.
How to use the scrap metal value calculator
- 1Sort your scrap: clean copper, #2 copper, brass, wire, aluminum, stainless and steel.
- 2Choose pounds or kilograms and weigh each pile.
- 3Enter your local yard’s posted price for each grade in the same unit.
- 4Add a deduction if the material is dirty or the yard charges a fee.
- 5Review the payout and the pie chart to see which metals carry the value.
Formula and method
Each metal is valued separately as its weight multiplied by the yard’s price for that grade, in the same unit (price per pound with pounds, price per kilogram with kilograms). The line values are added for the gross total, and an optional percentage deduction is applied for contamination, attachments or a handling fee.
The average price per unit is the gross value divided by the combined weight; it shows how much the cheap, heavy metals dilute the load. The wire note compares the insulated-wire price with the #2 copper price: stripping is only worthwhile if the copper share of the wire’s weight exceeds that ratio — and if your time is worth it.
- Weightᵢ
- Weight of metal i in lb or kg
- Priceᵢ
- Yard price per lb or kg for metal i
- Deduction%
- Percent taken off for dirt, attachments or fees
Worked examples
Garage clean-out mixed load (pounds)
10 lb of bare bright at $4.00 is $40, 15 lb of brass at $2.40 is $36, 20 lb of wire at $1.40 is $28, 30 lb of aluminum at $0.55 is $16.50 and 250 lb of steel at $0.10 is $25 — $145.50 in total. The steel is 77% of the weight but only about 17% of the money.
Metric load with a 10% contamination deduction
5 kg of copper at 8.80 = 44, 20 kg of aluminum at 1.20 = 24 and 100 kg of steel at 0.25 = 25, for 93 gross. Taking 10% off for dirty material leaves 83.70.
Electrician’s copper offcuts
50 lb of #2 copper at $3.60 brings $180 and 40 lb of insulated wire at $1.40 brings $56, for $236. Stripping the wire would only help if more than about 39% of its weight is copper ($1.40 ÷ $3.60).
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between #1 and #2 copper?+
#1 (including bare bright) is clean, unalloyed, uncoated copper wire or pipe with no solder, paint or fittings. #2 copper has some solder, paint, light corrosion or fittings attached, so yards pay less for it.
Should I strip insulated copper wire before selling?+
Compare the wire price with the #2 or bare bright copper price. If the insulated price divided by the copper price is lower than the copper share of the wire weight, stripping earns more — but thin wire is slow to strip and often not worth the time.
Why does my yard pay less than the copper price on the news?+
News prices are commodity exchange quotes for refined metal. Yards pay a discount that covers sorting, transport, processing and their margin, and that discount is larger for lower and dirtier grades.
How can I tell brass from copper?+
Copper is reddish-orange, while yellow brass is a bright gold-yellow. Neither is magnetic. Keep them separate, because mixed loads are usually paid at the lower brass or #2 price.
Do scrap yards pay by the pound or by the ton?+
Non-ferrous metals such as copper, brass and aluminum are usually priced per pound (or per kilogram), while steel and iron are often quoted per ton or hundredweight. Convert to a per-pound price before entering it here.
Will a magnet help me sort scrap?+
Yes. Steel and iron stick to a magnet and are low value. Copper, brass, aluminum and most stainless steel do not stick, so a magnet quickly separates the cheap ferrous metal from the valuable non-ferrous metal.