How to read the table
- It is a reference purchase price. It applies to clean, well sorted material, in Mexican pesos and before VAT.
- Per kilo and per tonne. Both columns say the same thing at two scales, so you can compare without doing the maths.
- It is dated. Each price holds for the date shown in the table. Metals trade every day, so an old reference may have moved.
- It is not the offer. The firm offer comes after the lot is assessed, in writing and with the price itemized.
What moves scrap prices
| Factor | How it weighs |
|---|---|
| Grade | Each grade in the standard classification has its own market. In copper, No. 2 has a nominal 96% copper content, while No. 1 is clean, unalloyed copper1. |
| Cleanliness | Dirt, oil, plastic and other metals are deducted as loss or drop the material a grade2. |
| Volume | A large lot spreads the cost of freight and loading over more kilos. |
| Distance and access | Freight comes out of the material's value, and a site a trailer can drive into costs less to load than one that needs manoeuvring. |
| International reference | Copper and aluminum trade on exchanges in US dollars, on the LME and COMEX34. |
| Exchange rate | Those prices are in dollars and payment here is in pesos5. |
LME and COMEX: the references for copper and aluminum
Copper and aluminum have a public price every business day on two exchanges. The contracts used as the reference are not scrap: they trade high purity refined metal. Scrap is paid below that reference, and the gap depends on how much work it takes to bring it back to that state.
| Exchange | Contract | Which metal | How it is quoted |
|---|---|---|---|
| LME, London | Copper, 25 tonne lot | Grade A copper cathode3 | US dollars per tonne |
| LME, London | Aluminium, 25 tonne lot | High grade primary aluminium, P1020A or Al99.706 | US dollars per tonne |
| COMEX (CME Group) | Copper (HG), 25,000 pounds | Copper4 | US dollars and cents per pound |
| LME, London | Steel Scrap CFR Turkey | HMS 1/2 80:20 scrap delivered to Turkey, per the Platts index7 | US dollars per tonne |
A price per pound cannot be compared directly with a price per tonne: the unit and the currency have to be converted first.
The LME scrap contract is cash settled against an index of scrap delivered to Turkey7. In Mexico what weighs more is demand from the mills: in 2025, 95.9% of the country's crude steel was made in electric furnaces, which melt mostly scrap89. See steel and scrap.
The exchange rate
Because copper and aluminum are quoted in dollars, the same exchange price turns into more or fewer pesos depending on the exchange rate. The official reference for converting dollar obligations payable in Mexico into pesos is the FIX rate, which the Bank of Mexico sets every banking business day and publishes in the Diario Oficial de la Federación, the federal gazette5.
If the dollar rises against the peso, copper scrap is worth more pesos even if the exchange price stays put. If it falls, it is worth less.
Why No. 1 copper pays more than No. 2
Purity and work. In the ReMA classification, No. 1 copper is clean, unalloyed, untinned and uncoated. No. 2 is also unalloyed copper, but with a nominal 96% copper content and a 94% minimum, and it may carry some tin or solder, as long as it is not excessive1.
The purest copper scrap is simply remelted and recast without refining; less pure scrap goes through a smelter and is refined10. That extra step is what gets deducted from the price.
| Grade | What it is | Copper content |
|---|---|---|
| No. 1 wire (Barley, Berry) | Bare, clean copper wire and cable, untinned and uncoated | Unalloyed copper |
| No. 1 heavy (Candy) | Clean copper clippings, punchings, bus bars and tubing | Unalloyed copper |
| No. 2 (Birch, Cliff) | Unalloyed copper wire, solids and tubing with some tin or solder | Nominal 96%, minimum 94% |
| Light copper (Dream) | Copper sheet, gutters, downspouts and boilers | Nominal 92%, minimum 88% |
| Insulated wire (Druid, Droid) | Copper cable with insulation | Sold on recovery or by sample |
More on sorting and selling copper in copper scrap.
Why steel is quoted per tonne and copper per kilo
It comes down to value per weight. Ferrous scrap moves in full truckloads and its international reference is in dollars per tonne7; a kilo of steel is worth little on its own. Copper, aluminum and bronze are worth far more per kilo and are also sold in small amounts, which is why in Mexico they are quoted per kilo, even though their exchanges quote per tonne or per pound34.
For aluminum and for bronze and brass, see aluminum scrap and bronze and brass scrap.
How to get a firm offer
- 01
List the lot
Photos, type of material, rough quantity and address. If you do not know what it is, a photo is enough.
- 02
Get the offer
Within 24 hours, in writing, with the price itemized by material and grade, weight, distance and access, and the weekly reference.
- 03
It is weighed
You are paid on the real net weight from a certified weighbridge, gross minus tare, with a photo of every ticket.
- 04
You get paid
By bank transfer after weighing, with a CFDI 4.0 invoice. No cash.
The full process, with the documents it leaves, is on sell scrap metal.
Frequently asked questions
How much do you pay per kilo of copper?
The table above shows the reference per kilo for No. 1 and No. 2 copper, with the date it was updated. The firm price for your lot comes from assessing it: grade, cleanliness, real weight and distance.
What is the price of aluminum scrap per kilo?
Each type of aluminum, such as extrusions, cans or radiators, has its own reference in the table above, with its date. The firm offer comes after we see the lot.
What is a tonne of steel scrap worth?
The table gives the reference per tonne for each ferrous grade, with its date. Plate, heavy melting scrap, sheet and turnings each have their own price.
Why does the price of scrap change?
Because metals trade daily on exchanges and in dollars3, and the exchange rate moves too5. The offer uses the reference for the week of purchase.
Does the price include VAT?
No, the reference is before VAT. If the buyer is a company that buys it as an input or to resell it, it withholds 100% of the VAT on your invoice1112. See regulation.
Do you pay more for large volumes?
A large lot spreads freight and loading over more kilos, and the offer itemizes how much distance and access weigh in your case.
Why is the offer below the exchange price?
Because the exchange quotes refined metal, and scrap has to be melted, and sometimes refined, to become that again10. Freight comes on top.
Sources
Every figure on this page comes from a third party publication. Names and logos belong to their owners and only identify the source; they do not imply endorsement.
- Recycled Materials Association (ReMA)ReMA's ISRI Specifications Circular, Guidelines for Nonferrous Scrap (NF-2025), Red Metals (2026)Open the publication
- Recycled Materials Association (ReMA)ReMA's ISRI Specifications Circular, Ferrous Scrap Guidelines (FS-2023) (2026)Open the publication
- London Metal Exchange (LME)LME Copper, contract specifications (2026)Open the publication
- CME Group (COMEX)Copper Futures (HG), contract specs (2026)Open the publication
- Banco de México (Banxico)Tipo de cambio para solventar obligaciones denominadas en dólares de los EE.UU.A., pagaderas en la República Mexicana (FIX) (2026)Open the publication
- London Metal Exchange (LME)LME Aluminium, contract specifications (2026)Open the publication
- London Metal Exchange (LME)LME Steel Scrap CFR Turkey (Platts), contract specifications (2026)Open the publication
- World Steel Association (worldsteel)World Steel in Figures 2026 (2026)Open the publication
- World Steel Association (worldsteel)#SteelFacts, June 2026 update (2026)Open the publication
- Recycling (MDPI)Forsén, Aromaa y Lundström, Primary Copper Smelter and Refinery as a Recycling Plant, Recycling 2(4):19 (2017)Open the publication
- Cámara de Diputados, leyes federales vigentesLey del Impuesto al Valor Agregado, art. 1o.-A (vigente)Open the publication
- Cámara de Diputados, leyes federales vigentesReglamento de la Ley del IVA, art. 3 (vigente)Open the publication
