What are current scrap metal prices in Chicago?

They change with the markets, often week to week, and differ by grade and by buyer. Any number printed here would be stale. Buyers post their own current rates, and for a scrap car we quote the specific car.

What's the highest paying scrap metal?

Per pound, nonferrous metals such as copper and brass generally pay more than steel, and clean, sorted material pays more than mixed. Steel wins on volume, not price per pound.

Will scrap prices go up next year?

Nobody can promise that. Scrap follows steel and metal markets, which respond to construction, manufacturing and the wider economy. Be wary of anyone who says they know.

What moves scrap metal prices in Chicago

Scrap metal prices in Chicago move because scrap is priced off metal markets: steel scrap follows what mills will pay, copper and aluminum follow their own markets, and grade and cleanliness decide where a load lands. This note from Smart Scrap Metal Buyers, a Chicago scrap car buyer and metal seller, explains each driver without pretending to be a price list.

By Smart Scrap Metal Buyers. Published September 30, 2026 .

Why do scrap metal prices in Chicago change?

Scrap metal prices in Chicago change because scrap is priced off live markets. Steel scrap follows what mills will pay, and Chicago even has a traded steel scrap benchmark. Copper and aluminum follow their own metal markets. On top of that, the grade, cleanliness and quantity of a load decide where it lands in the going range.

So a price you saw last month isn’t a price you’ll get today. And the same pound of metal can fetch different amounts depending on how it’s sorted and how much of it there is.

Steel scrap: the Chicago benchmark

Most scrap by weight is steel, and steel scrap in this city has a price you can actually watch. In December 2024, CME Group launched a futures contract on Chicago No.1 Busheling Ferrous Scrap, settled against a Fastmarkets price assessment and traded under the code BCH.

Busheling isn’t what comes out of a scrapped car. The industry specification describes No. 1 busheling as clean steel no more than 12 inches in any dimension, and it excludes old auto body and fender stock. It’s factory offcuts: clippings and stampings. But it’s a Chicago steel scrap price that updates in public, which makes it a handy signal of where the local steel scrap market is heading.

Behind that is steel mill demand. The Recycled Materials Association reports that U.S. steel mills consumed more than 60 million metric tons of recycled material in 2019 to produce 87 million metric tons of steel. When mills are busy, they want more scrap. When they slow down, scrap prices soften.

Copper, aluminum and brass

Nonferrous metals don’t follow the steel mills. Copper and aluminum trade as commodities in their own right, so scrap prices for them rise and fall with those markets. That’s why copper can climb in a week when steel scrap is flat.

A quick way to tell the two families apart is the one the Recycled Materials Association gives: hold a magnet to it. If it sticks, it’s iron or steel. If it doesn’t, it’s nonferrous, and it’s probably worth more per pound.

Grade, cleanliness and quantity

Two loads of the same metal can be priced very differently:

Grade. Scrap is sold in named grades with written specifications. Clean, sorted grades command more than mixed ones.
Cleanliness. Copper wire with its insulation still on, aluminum with steel bolts attached, steel mixed with plastic: all of it takes work to clean up, and the price reflects that.
Quantity. A truckload is easier to sell on than a bucket. Volume tends to earn a better rate.

What that means for a scrap car

A scrap car isn’t one grade of anything. It’s a steel shell with aluminum, copper, a lead battery and a catalytic converter attached, which is why we price each car individually. Our page on scrap car prices in Chicago lists the factors, and how much steel, aluminum and copper is in a car shows where each metal sits.

Illinois rules when you sell scrap metal

Illinois puts real paperwork around scrap sales. Two rules matter most if you’re selling loose metal:

ID for sales of $100 or more. Under 625 ILCS 5/5-401.3, a licensed scrap processor buying recyclable metal worth $100 or more has to record the seller’s identity from a valid driver’s license or State ID card and keep a color copy or scan. Without one, the processor can’t complete the transaction.
No loose catalytic converters. Under 815 ILCS 325/4.1, it’s a violation to sell a catalytic converter that isn’t attached to a vehicle unless the seller is a licensed automotive parts recycler or scrap processor. Our catalytic converter note covers the rest.

For whole cars, the same section requires the processor to record the vehicle’s VIN and a proof of ownership. That’s the side we deal with.

Why there’s no price list on this site

We don’t buy loose scrap metal from the public, so a per-pound list for copper or aluminum would be a list of prices we don’t pay. What we do: buy whole scrap cars, priced one car at a time, and sell processed scrap metal. If you’re buying metal, start at scrap metal for sale in Chicago.