Metal density table: kg/m³, g/cm³, lb/in³ and sheet weight

Steel has a density of 7850 kg/m³ (7.85 g/cm³): a cubic metre weighs 7.85 t and 1 mm sheet weighs 7.85 kg/m². Stainless 304 is 7900 kg/m³, 316 is 8000, aluminium 2700, copper 8960, brass 8500, cast iron 7200 and titanium 4510. Below, every metal is given in kg/m³, g/cm³ (the same number as kg/dm³), kg per m² of 1 mm sheet, kN/m³ and lb/in³, with stainless grades, aluminium alloys and copper alloys listed separately. These are the same figures the weight calculators on this site use.

Short answer

Mass = volume × density. A 1 mm sheet weighs as many kilograms per square metre as the density in g/cm³: steel 7.85 kg/m², aluminium 2.70, stainless 304 7.90. So a 2000×1000×3 mm sheet weighs 47.1 kg in steel and 16.2 kg in aluminium. In inch units steel is 0.284 lb/in³ (490 lb/ft³) and aluminium 0.098 lb/in³. Specific weight is a different quantity: for steel it is 77.0 kN/m³ — see density and specific weight.

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Density of metals: summary table

The columns repeat one number in different units. g/cm³, kg/dm³ and t/m³ are numerically identical, so steel is 7.85 in all three; kg/m³ is a thousand times larger. The mass of 1 m² of 1 mm sheet in kilograms is the same number again — that is why the sheet column matches the g/cm³ column. kN/m³ is the specific weight ρ·g (g = 9.81 m/s²), the load a cubic metre exerts.

The calculators on this site use the values for carbon steel (7.85), stainless by grade (7.90 and 8.00), aluminium (2.70), copper (8.96), brass (8.50), titanium (4.51) and cast iron (7.20). Steel at 7850 kg/m³ is the design value of EN 1993-1-1. Bronze, zinc and lead are not in any calculator here, so their sources are named: CuSn8 8.80 from the EN 12167 composition table and producer data sheets (8.79–8.8); titanium zinc 7.20 from the EN 988 sheet data of a zinc producer; lead 11.34 from the EN 12588 code table, where Code 4 is 1.80 mm and 20.41 kg/m².

Stainless steel density by grade (EN 10088-1)

The 304 family (1.4301, 1.4307, 1.4541) is 7.90 g/cm³, the molybdenum grades 316, 316L and 316Ti are 8.00, ferritic 430 is 7.70 and duplex 2205 is 7.80. The values come from the reference physical properties of EN 10088-1, checked against two supplier tables.

The reason is the alloying elements. Nickel (8.9 g/cm³) and molybdenum (10.2) are heavier than iron (7.87), chromium (7.2) is lighter. An austenitic 316 with 10–13 % Ni and 2–2.5 % Mo is therefore the heaviest, and a ferritic 430 with 16–18 % Cr and no nickel is lighter than carbon steel. In practice: a 316L sheet weighs 1.3 % more than the same 304 sheet, and 1.9 % more than carbon steel. The stainless weight calculator switches density with the grade.

Aluminium alloy density

Pure aluminium and the common 6060/6082 extrusion alloys are 2.70 g/cm³. Magnesium lowers the density (5083, 5754), manganese, copper and zinc raise it (3003, 7075). The designations follow EN 573-3; the densities are typical alloy data-sheet values, and two independent tables agree within 0.01 g/cm³.

All aluminium calculators on this site use 2.70. For a 1500×3000×3 mm sheet (13.5 dm³) that gives 36.5 kg; in 5083 the same sheet weighs 35.9 kg, in 7075 it weighs 37.9 kg. For a quote, 2.70 is close enough; for the mass of a large 7075 structure, use the alloy’s own value. Sheet sizes and weights — in the aluminium sheet calculator.

Copper, brass and bronze

The calculators take 8.96 g/cm³ for copper — the value for pure copper — and 8.50 for brass. Commercial grades are slightly lighter:

For Cu-ETP sheet the calculator is 0.3 % high, for CuZn40 brass up to 1.2 %. EN 1057 plumbing tube is calculated at 8.90, the density behind the standard’s own mass table: 15×1 tube weighs 0.391 kg/m. Grade densities are from Bikar, Aalco, Kipp and Diehl data sheets; CuSn8 is from EN 12167 and Kemper and Bikar sheets. Sizes and weights: copper weight calculator, brass weight calculator.

Worked example: a 2000×1000×3 mm sheet in steel and aluminium

Volume: 2 m × 1 m × 0.003 m = 0.006 m³ (6 dm³). Steel: 0.006 × 7850 = 47.1 kg. Aluminium: 0.006 × 2700 = 16.2 kg, 2.9 times lighter. Stainless 304 weighs 47.4 kg, 316L 48.0 kg, copper 53.8 kg.

The shop-floor shortcut gives the same answer without cubic metres: kg/m² = thickness in mm × density in g/cm³. For 3 mm steel that is 3 × 7.85 = 23.55 kg/m², times 2 m² = 47.1 kg. For sections the rule is kg/m = cross-section in mm² × density / 1000. Other formats and a whole batch — in the sheet weight calculator.

Density, specific weight and kN/m³

Density ρ is mass per unit volume, in kg/m³. Specific weight γ = ρ·g is the weight of that volume, in N/m³: 7850 × 9.81 = 77.0 kN/m³ for steel. EN 1991-1-1 (Annex A) lists metals in kN/m³ for load calculations: steel 77.0–78.5, aluminium 27.0, copper 87–89, brass and bronze 83–85, cast iron 71.0–72.5, zinc 71–72, lead 112–114. The 78.5 for steel is simply 7850 × 10, with g rounded up.

Older tables give specific weight in kgf/m³ (kilogram-force). That number is identical to density in kg/m³ — 7850 — which is why “specific weight” and “density” are so often confused. Relative density (specific gravity) is density divided by that of water, 1000 kg/m³, and has no unit: steel 7.85.

• 1 g/cm³ = 1 kg/dm³ = 1 t/m³ = 1000 kg/m³
• lb/in³ = g/cm³ × 0.0361; lb/ft³ = kg/m³ × 0.0624 (steel 490 lb/ft³)
• kN/m³ = kg/m³ × 0.00981

Where these densities are used: weight calculators

Each calculator below uses exactly the density from the tables above, so a figure from this page and a calculator result always agree:

• Steel, 7.85 g/cm³: Steel weight calculator, Sheet metal weight, Steel flat bar, Steel round and square bar, Tube and hollow section, Steel beam weight, Steel channel weight, Steel angle weight, Rebar, Tread plate weight
• Stainless, 7.90 or 8.00 g/cm³ by grade: Stainless steel weight, Stainless steel sheet, Stainless steel tube, Stainless round bar
• Aluminium, 2.70 g/cm³: Aluminium weight, Aluminium sheet, Aluminium box section, Aluminium tube, Aluminium angle, Aluminium flat bar, Aluminium round bar
• Copper 8.96 and brass 8.50 g/cm³: Copper weight, Brass weight
• Filler wire on a spool: steel 7.85, aluminium 2.70, copper and bronze 8.80: Wire length on a spool

Author: Dmitry Frolov, welder and metal fabricator Updated: 9 November 2026