Melting points of metals: iron, aluminium, copper, stainless steel and solder, with boiling points, highest and lowest, and the solidus and liquidus of alloys

The melting point is the temperature at which a solid turns into a liquid.

Metals cover a huge range. Mercury is liquid at room temperature, while tungsten melts above 3,000 °C.

The key point: a pure metal melts at one fixed temperature, but an alloy melts over a range, from where it starts melting to where it is fully liquid.

In this article:

• A quick table of common metals and alloys, and a bar chart to compare them
• Melting and boiling points of pure metals at 1 atm
• Rankings from highest and lowest, and the metals that melt near room temperature
• The solidus to liquidus range of solders, aluminium alloys and stainless steel
• How the melting point relates to use: soldering, casting and heat resistance
• How the melting point differs from the boiling point, and how pressure affects each

Pure-metal values were checked against PubChem (the US National Library of Medicine) table of the elements. Alloys come from solder, aluminium and titanium producers and their industry associations.

In short: what are the melting points of common metals?

Iron melts at about 1,540 °C, copper at about 1,085 °C, aluminium at about 660 °C and tin at about 230 °C.

Source (5)

• PubChem, "Periodic Table of Elements" (US National Library of Medicine; melting and boiling points of the elements at 1 atm, converted from kelvin)
• Nippon Steel, "Titanium" catalog (T001, technical data: comparison with other metals, melting point; table from the Japan Titanium Society)
• Japan Aluminium Association, "Material database 3: physical properties" (Table 2, melting range of aluminium alloys)
• Senju Metal Industry, "Soldering materials catalogue" (2025), alloy list: solidus and liquidus
• NIST, "Database for Solder Properties with Emphasis on New Lead-free Solders", Table 1.18 (melting point of Sn-37Pb eutectic)

The table runs from highest to lowest. Each row is taken from the pure-metal and alloy tables further down.

Stainless steel, aluminium alloys and solder are alloys, so they are shown as a range from the start to the end of melting.

Most metals melt somewhere between a few hundred and a couple of thousand degrees Celsius. Only gallium and mercury are liquid near everyday temperatures.

What is a melting point, in simple terms?

The melting point is the temperature at which a solid turns into a liquid at a pressure of 1 atm.

Just as ice turns into water at 0 °C, every metal has a temperature at which it melts.

When a pure metal reaches its melting point, its temperature pauses for a while. The heat goes into turning solid into liquid instead of warming it further.

That pause is steady enough to calibrate thermometers. Tin and aluminium are among the metals chosen as reference temperatures.

How is the melting point different from the freezing point?

The melting point is where a solid melts and the freezing point is where a liquid solidifies; for a pure substance they are the same temperature.

Only the direction is different. Some references therefore list a metal's freezing point instead.

What does a high or low melting point mean?

A high melting point means a metal is hard to melt with heat. A low one means a little heat is enough.

Metals with high melting points go into furnaces and lamp filaments. Metals with low melting points suit joining by melting, as in solder.

What are the melting and boiling points of metals?

Here are the melting and boiling points of pure metals at 1 atm, from highest melting point to lowest.

Source: PubChem, "Periodic Table of Elements" (US National Library of Medicine; melting and boiling points of the elements at 1 atm, converted from kelvin)

The values come from PubChem's table of the elements, which lists them in kelvin. The °C columns subtract 273.15 and round.

Different references can disagree by a degree or a few degrees for the same metal. They were measured at different times and on slightly different temperature scales.

Copper, for example, is 1,085 °C in this table and 1,083 °C in data from the Japan Copper Development Association.

How is the melting point different from the boiling point?

The melting point is where a solid becomes a liquid; the boiling point is where a liquid becomes a gas.

Metals boil far above their melting points. For every metal in the table, the gap is several hundred degrees or more.

Zinc has a low boiling point and turns to gas at about 900 °C. That is well below the temperature at which iron melts.

Which metals have the highest melting points?

From the top, tungsten, rhenium, osmium and tantalum have the highest melting points.

Source: PubChem, "Periodic Table of Elements" (US National Library of Medicine; melting and boiling points of the elements at 1 atm, converted from kelvin)

All four melt above 3,000 °C, more than 1,400 °C hotter than iron.

Which metal has the highest melting point?

Tungsten has the highest melting point of any metal, at about 3,420 °C.

It has long been used for lamp filaments and welding electrodes because it resists melting at very high temperatures.

Rhenium, though, has the highest boiling point. The ranking by melting point is not always the same as the ranking by boiling point.

Tungsten is also nearly as dense as gold. You can compare weights in the density of metals chart.

Which metals have the lowest melting points?

From the bottom, mercury, caesium, gallium and rubidium have the lowest melting points.

Source: PubChem, "Periodic Table of Elements" (US National Library of Medicine; melting and boiling points of the elements at 1 atm, converted from kelvin)

The first six all melt below 100 °C. Of these, mercury and gallium are about the only ones you are likely to handle.

Caesium, rubidium, potassium and sodium react violently with air and water, so they are not normally used as materials.

Which metal is liquid at room temperature?

Mercury is the only metal that is liquid at room temperature; it melts at about minus 39 °C.

Gallium melts at about 30 °C. That is below body temperature, so a piece left on your palm will melt.

Which metals melt below 100 °C?

Mercury, caesium, gallium, rubidium, potassium and sodium all melt below 100 °C.

Sodium melts at about 98 °C, just below the temperature of boiling water.

Why do alloys melt over a range?

The elements in an alloy melt at different temperatures, so an alloy starts melting at one temperature and finishes at another.

Source (4)

• Senju Metal Industry, "Soldering materials catalogue" (2025), alloy list: solidus and liquidus
• NIST, "Database for Solder Properties with Emphasis on New Lead-free Solders", Table 1.18 (melting point of Sn-37Pb eutectic)
• Japan Aluminium Association, "Material database 3: physical properties" (Table 2, melting range of aluminium alloys)
• Nippon Steel, "Titanium" catalog (T001, technical data: comparison with other metals, melting point; table from the Japan Titanium Society)

The temperature where melting starts is the solidus, and the temperature where it is fully liquid is the liquidus. The "solidus to liquidus" column shows that range.

Between the two, solid and liquid are mixed, a little like slush. In soldering and casting, the width of this range affects how the work goes.

Alloys often melt lower than the pure metals they are made from. Every aluminium alloy in the table starts melting below pure aluminium.

What is the melting point of solder?

Lead-free solder melts at 217 to 220 °C, and leaded eutectic solder at 183 °C.

Source: Senju Metal Industry, "Soldering materials catalogue" (2025), alloy list: solidus and liquidus / NIST, "Database for Solder Properties with Emphasis on New Lead-free Solders", Table 1.18 (melting point of Sn-37Pb eutectic)

Solder is tin mixed with other metals. Most solders melt below pure tin, at about 232 °C.

Some, such as tin-antimony high-temperature solder, are made to melt above tin on purpose.

Low-temperature solder with a lot of bismuth melts at about 140 °C. It is used to join parts that cannot take much heat.

How does eutectic solder differ from lead-free solder?

Eutectic tin-lead solder melts at a single temperature, 183 °C. Lead-free solder melts about 35 °C higher.

"Eutectic" means a particular composition at which an alloy melts at one temperature. Solder with 63% tin and 37% lead is the classic example.

Switching to lead-free solder means setting the soldering iron a little hotter as well.

Names such as M705 in the table are Senju Metal Industry product names. Other makers sell solders with the same compositions.

What is the melting point of stainless steel?

Stainless steel 304 melts at 1,400 to 1,420 °C.

That is more than 100 °C below pure iron, at about 1,540 °C. It is an alloy with chromium and nickel, so it melts over a range.

Other stainless grades, carbon steel and cast iron are not in the table. Their ranges could not be confirmed in primary sources.

What is the melting point of aluminium?

Pure aluminium melts at about 660 °C, and aluminium alloys at roughly 480 to 660 °C depending on the alloy.

Alloys 7075 and 2024 start melting low, around 500 °C. The 1000 series, which is nearly pure, melts close to pure aluminium.

Aluminium melts about 900 °C lower than iron. That is one reason aluminium is so widely cast and die-cast.

What is the melting point of brass?

The melting point of brass is not in the table, because it could not be confirmed in a primary source.

Brass is copper with zinc, and its melting range shifts with the zinc content. Check the producer's data for the grade you use, such as C26000 or C36000.

How does the melting point relate to how a metal is used?

Metals with low melting points are used for joining and pouring; metals with high melting points are used where heat must be resisted.

A high melting point does not mean a metal can be used at high temperatures. Metals soften at temperatures well below their melting points.

For parts that run hot, choose by the maximum service temperature the producer gives, not by the melting point.

Does pressure change the melting point?

Pressure barely changes the melting point of a metal: one extra atmosphere moves it by only a few thousandths of a degree.

Source: BIPM, "Guide to the Realization of the ITS-90: Metal Fixed Points" (2018), Table 1 (assigned temperatures and their change with pressure)

These values come from the international reference that defines the temperature scale. Aluminium's melting point rises by 0.007 °C for each extra atmosphere.

Gallium is the exception: its melting point falls as pressure rises. It is one of the few metals whose liquid takes up less space than its solid.

Does pressure change the boiling point?

Pressure changes the boiling point a lot. Water boils about 19 °C lower at half an atmosphere.

Source: NIST Chemistry WebBook, "Thermophysical Properties of Fluid Systems" (saturation data for water)

All boiling points in the tables are at 1 atm. Where the pressure is low, as in a vacuum furnace, metals also turn to gas below the listed temperatures.

How is a melting point measured?

A metal is heated slowly, and the temperature where the curve stops rising and goes flat is read as the melting point.

A pure metal stays at almost the same temperature while it melts and while it freezes. That flat part is the melting point.

The International Temperature Scale (ITS-90) uses the melting and freezing points of metals such as tin, zinc, aluminium and silver as references.

An alloy does not give a flat line; the curve bends gradually. Where the bend starts and ends correspond to the solidus and liquidus.

FAQ about the melting points of metals

What are the melting points of iron and stainless steel?

Pure iron melts at about 1,540 °C, and stainless steel 304 at 1,400 to 1,420 °C.

Stainless steel starts melting more than 100 °C below iron.

What are the melting points of gold and silver?

Gold melts at about 1,064 °C and silver at about 962 °C.

Silver is one of the reference temperatures that define the temperature scale. It is in the table in the pressure section.

What is the melting point of copper?

Copper melts at about 1,085 °C, a little above gold.

The Japan Copper Development Association gives 1,083 °C. A difference of a degree or two reflects the age of the reference.

Which metal has the lowest melting point?

Mercury has the lowest melting point, at about minus 39 °C.

It is the only metal that is liquid at everyday temperatures.

How do you convert a melting point to kelvin?

Add 273.15 to the value in °C to get kelvin.

The pure-metal table also has a kelvin column. Iron, for example, is 1,811 K.

Can I also compare how well metals conduct heat?

Yes. See the thermal conductivity chart for how well each metal conducts heat.

It uses the same table layout, with pure metals and alloys.

Sources

• Periodic Table of Elements (PubChem, US National Library of Medicine; melting and boiling points of the elements)
• Guide to the Realization of the ITS-90: Metal Fixed Points (BIPM, 2018, Table 1)
• Material database 3: physical properties (Japan Aluminium Association, Table 2; in Japanese)
• Soldering materials catalogue (Senju Metal Industry, 2025, alloy list; in Japanese)
• Database for Solder Properties with Emphasis on New Lead-free Solders (NIST, Table 1.18)
• Titanium catalog T001 (Nippon Steel, comparison with other metals; table from the Japan Titanium Society; in Japanese)
• Physical and mechanical properties of copper (Japan Copper Development Association; in Japanese)
• Thermophysical Properties of Fluid Systems (NIST Chemistry WebBook, saturation data for water)