What you should actually expect to be offered
Yards quote per pound against COMEX minus their spread. Bare bright at a big regional yard gets the best percentage; small yards and dirty grades widen the spread. Prices move daily with COMEX — call ahead for today's board price.
Grades decide the price, so sort before you go
The same 50 lb of copper can differ by $50+ depending on presentation. Strip obvious steel and brass out, separate bare bright from painted or soldered pieces, and keep insulated wire apart — mixed loads get priced at the WORST grade in the bucket. Ten minutes of sorting is the best hourly rate in scrapping.
Should you strip insulated wire?
Only sometimes. High-grade insulated wire pays ~75% of clean copper by recovered weight without labor; stripping earns the difference only if the wire is thick (low insulation share) and you have volume. Thin cords are usually better sold as-is at the insulated rate.
Know the board price before the scale
Yards post or quote a daily board price keyed to COMEX. Check COMEX, apply the grade discount above, and you know a fair board price before you arrive. If the quote is far below the range, the next yard is usually worth the drive at anything over ~50 lb.
Frequently asked questions
where to scrap copper
Scrap copper at a licensed local yard, a larger regional recycler, or a direct processor for qualifying bulk loads. Sort it by grade first, then compare each yard's daily board price and scale terms.
what are scrap copper prices today
Today's scrap copper prices equal the copper benchmark minus the grade discount and the yard's spread. Use this calculator with the editable benchmark and scrap grade to estimate a fair range before calling yards.
can you scrap copper pennies
Generally, you cannot scrap US one-cent coins for their copper value. 31 CFR § 82.1 prohibits melting or processing them for metal recovery and generally prohibits exporting them; only narrow § 82.2 exceptions apply.
how to scrap copper wire
Sort copper wire by insulation and recovery grade, remove obvious steel attachments, and compare the yard's insulated-wire price with the value of your stripping labor. Thick wire may justify stripping; thin cords usually do not.
are scrap copper prices going up
No calculator can reliably predict whether scrap copper prices are going up. Compare recent COMEX settlements and local yard board prices, then use the editable benchmark here instead of treating a forecast as a quote.
how to identify different types of scrap copper
Bare bright is clean, uncoated shiny wire; #1 is clean tube or wire without solder; #2 has paint, solder, heavy oxidation, or contamination. Keep insulated wire separate because yards price it by expected copper recovery.
Other metals
Gold calculator · Silver calculator · Platinum calculator · Palladium calculator · Nickel calculator · Brass calculator