What a junk car is worth, and what decides it

What decides the number

1. Weight. Scrap metal is sold by weight, so a heavier car carries more of it.
2. What's still on it. An offer usually assumes a complete car. A missing engine, transmission or catalytic converter lowers it.
3. The title. Clean, with a lien, salvage or missing: each one has a route, and each one moves the number.
4. Distance and loading. Pickup distance is a real cost. So is a car with no wheels, no keys or a spot in a back yard.
5. Mileage and whether it runs. On an older car, mileage counts for a lot. A car that runs and drives can be used in more ways.
6. Parts demand. A car whose parts many people need can be worth more than a twin in the same shape.

A worked example: what the steel is worth at the mill

Step 1: the weight. EPA's Automotive Trends Report gives the average weight of new vehicles for each model year, cars and trucks together. EPA reports "inertia weight," which it defines as curb weight plus 300 pounds, so we subtract 300 (EPA, Table 3.1).

Step 2: convert to metric tons. One pound is 0.4536 kilograms, and 1,000 kilograms is one metric ton.

Step 3: the price. USGS figures for the first 11 months of 2025 put the average composite price of No. 1 heavy melting steel scrap between $303.46 a metric ton (November) and $366.26 (March) (USGS).

Example for 2000: 3,821 − 300 = 3,521 lb. 3,521 × 0.4536 = 1,597 kg, or 1.597 metric tons. 1.597 × $303.46 = $485, and 1.597 × $366.26 = $585.

Step 4: not all of a car is steel. Those figures treat the whole car as steel, and it isn't. Glass, plastic, rubber, fluids, aluminum and copper are all in there too. USGS gives a way to check: it says North American shredders pull upward of 13 million tons of steel each year out of about 17 million cars (USGS). 13 million ÷ 17 million is about 0.76 metric tons of steel per car.

At the same 2025 prices, 0.76 tons of steel comes to 0.76 × $303.46 = $231 up to 0.76 × $366.26 = $278.

That's a ceiling for the steel alone, at the mill. It isn't what a yard or a buyer pays you.

Why the mill price isn't the price you're paid

The USGS figure is the average delivered price of one grade of steel scrap, No. 1 heavy melting steel. A whole car is a long way from being that grade. Before its steel reaches a mill, someone has to:

• tow it,
• drain the fuel, oil, coolant and other fluids,
• pull the battery, the tires and any parts worth reselling,
• remove the catalytic converter,
• shred the body and separate the metals.

Each step costs money, and it comes out of what the car is worth to whoever buys it. A buyer who resells parts may pay more for a car whose parts are in demand. A buyer who only shreds pays on metal.

The catalytic converter

The converter matters because of what's inside. USGS says catalytic converters are the leading U.S. use of platinum-group metals, and that U.S. recyclers recovered roughly 50,000 kg of palladium and 8,600 kg of platinum from car converters in 2025 (USGS).

Those metals swing hard in price. USGS's average prices, per troy ounce:

How much of each metal a converter holds depends on the car, so there's no honest single price for "a converter." What you can count on: an offer assumes the converter is on the car, and a missing one lowers the number. If yours is gone, see selling a car with missing parts.

Scrap prices move

The Bureau of Labor Statistics tracks what U.S. producers get for iron and steel scrap as a price index (1982 = 100). Here is how it moved over the last two years (BLS WPU1012):

From September 2024 to August 2026 the index rose about 12%. Its high month, March 2026, was about 19% above its low, December 2024. For a longer view, it stood at 858.6 in March 2022. The same car can draw a different number a few months apart for this reason alone.

What lowers a number, and what matters less

Lowers it:

• a missing engine, transmission or catalytic converter
• no title, or a title problem that has to be sorted out first
• hard loading: no wheels, no keys and stuck in Park, a back yard or soft ground
• a long distance to haul
• on an older car, very high mileage

Matters less on a car bought for its metal and parts:

• a dirty interior
• dents, scrapes and faded paint
• a cracked windshield

Comparing offers

Getting a second offer is reasonable, since each buyer's towing and handling costs are different. Ask each one:

• Is this the amount I'll be paid at pickup, or can it change?
• Is the tow included?
• What paperwork do you need from me?
• When am I paid?

Our offer

We don't publish a price list, and we won't promise a number before we know the car. Describe it online or at (877) 421-6008, and the offer is based on that description. The pickup costs nothing. How it works has each step.

Weighing other routes? Compare parting it out yourself with a junkyard or scrap yard. No title? Start with selling without a title.