Estimate copper value
No price is supplied or fetched. Copy a dated US-dollar price per pound from a source you trust and enter it below.
This is a planning model, not a scrap-yard quote or assay. Copper grade names do not guarantee a fixed copper percentage. Do not use this simple model for hazardous equipment, sealed components or material requiring specialist sampling.
Copper value formula
The calculator first converts the entered weight to grams. Because the reference price is per avoirdupois pound, it divides that price by 453.59237 to obtain a price per gram.
Copper grams = gross grams × (copper percentage ÷ 100) Benchmark value = copper grams × (price per lb ÷ 453.59237) Modeled offer = benchmark value × (payout percentage ÷ 100)The first percentage estimates material composition. The payout percentage is a separate transaction assumption. Keeping them separate makes it easier to see whether a difference comes from non-copper weight or from commercial deductions.
How to use the calculator
- Find a dated copper reference price stated in US dollars per avoirdupois pound.
- Record its source, timestamp, quote type and product or contract.
- Weigh the material and choose the matching unit.
- Enter a defensible copper percentage. Use a specification, recovery report or assay when available.
- Leave payout at 100% to see a theoretical benchmark value, then model a lower percentage separately if useful.
- Compare the result with written buyer quotes that show grade, accepted weight, rate and deductions.
Hypothetical example
Assume 10 lb of material is estimated to contain 95% copper, the entered reference is $4.00 per lb, and the modeled payout is 85%. These figures are illustrative, not current market data.
- estimated copper: 10 lb × 95% = 9.5 lb;
- benchmark value: 9.5 lb × $4.00 = $38.00;
- modeled offer: $38.00 × 85% = $32.30.
An actual buyer may grade, weigh and price the lot differently. Insulated wire in particular should not be assigned a recovery percentage without knowing its construction or processing yield.
Copper percentage is not the same as scrap grade
Scrap grades are purchasing specifications. They may consider dimensions, coatings, solder, attachments and contamination as well as copper content. Two objects with similar copper fractions can have different processing costs and therefore different buying prices. Conversely, a buyer may offer a direct per-pound grade price without separately stating a copper percentage.
If a buyer quotes a direct price per gross pound for your exact accepted grade, the simplest comparison is often gross accepted weight multiplied by that grade price. Do not apply the calculator's copper percentage a second time to a quote that already incorporates recovery.
How to improve an estimate
- Separate grades before weighing and do not mix clean copper with lower-recovery material.
- Remove attachments only when lawful, safe, allowed by the buyer and worth the time.
- Use a calibrated scale suitable for the lot size.
- Get at least two itemized quotes using the same net weight and grade.
- Ask how moisture, insulation, plugs or foreign metals are deducted.
- Keep a note of the benchmark timestamp because copper prices change.
Calculator questions
Can this calculate insulated copper wire value?
It can model a documented recovery percentage, but it cannot identify the copper fraction from a cable name or photo. Construction, conductor size, insulation and connectors all affect yield.
Should I use pounds or kilograms?
Use the unit in which you actually weighed the material. The calculator converts it internally. The entered market reference must still be a price per pound.
Why is the calculator's value higher than a buyer's offer?
The benchmark model may not include grade discounts, contamination, recovery losses, freight, processing, price risk and margin. It may also use a quote for standardized refined copper that is not directly deliverable by a retail seller.
Does the tool store my values?
No. The standard calculation is performed in your browser and is not submitted to a pricing service.