Aluminum price per pound today
Aluminum (sheet)
$1.10/ lb
-1.27%
Updated 11:17:33 UTC
Aluminum's per-pound price is much lower than copper's, but the volume and accessibility of aluminum scrap make it a workhorse of consistent scrapping income.
Why aluminum prices are lower than copper
Per pound, aluminum trades at roughly 15–25% of copper's price. The reasons:
- Aluminum is more abundant — bauxite reserves are plentiful relative to copper ore
- Recycling is energy-cheap — secondary aluminum costs ~5% of primary; this caps secondary pricing
- Most uses don't require pure metal — auto and packaging applications tolerate alloys, increasing supply
But aluminum compensates with:
- Higher volume per source — a single scrap car has more aluminum than copper
- Easier sorting — aluminum is non-magnetic and visually distinctive
- More consistent demand — packaging and auto applications drive steady volumes
Per-pound by grade
| Grade | Typical % of clean sheet |
|---|---|
| Sheet (mill grade, clean) | 100% |
| Extrusion | 90–100% |
| Cast (wheels, blocks) | 70–85% |
| UBC (used beverage cans) | 60–75% |
| Mixed / unsorted | 40–60% |
Daily price drivers
- Energy prices (especially natural gas)
- Auto sector demand
- Aluminum can recycling rates
- Bauxite supply disruptions (Guinea, Australia)