Junk car prices per ton:
scrap prices for cars, September 2026

Find your car's curb weight on the door jamb sticker or owner's manual. Divide by 2,000 to get tons. Multiply by your state's current per-ton rate from the table above. That gives you the scrap floor: what scrap yards pay treating your car as pure steel. Most complete cars are worth more because copper, aluminum, and the catalytic converter all carry value above the steel scrap price.

Most scrap yards require a title to process a car legally. Without a title, your options are more limited and you'll typically receive less cash. In most states you can get a duplicate title from your DMV for $20 to $50, and it usually pays for itself in the higher offer you receive. Some buyers will purchase cars without a title using alternative proof of ownership, but expect the offer to reflect the added paperwork cost.

It depends on the buyer. Traditional scrap yards often require you to deliver the car yourself or charge $50 to $100 for pickup, deducted from your payout. Full-value buyers like Clunqr include free towing on every transaction, so the price you're quoted is the price you receive, with no deduction at pickup. When comparing offers, always factor in the towing cost to get a true comparison.

Per pound, significantly more. Bare bright copper runs $3.50 to $4.50 per pound versus $0.08 to $0.10 for steel. Aluminum rims run $0.70 to $1.20 per pound. A typical car contains 50 to 70 lbs of copper wiring and 30 to 50 lbs of aluminum, which is real money above the steel floor. Full-value buyers who salvage these components separately pay more for complete cars as a result.

Scrap prices are driven by proximity to processors. States near major steel mills, shredder operations and export terminals, with Michigan the clearest example, have more buyers competing for scrap metal, pushing prices up. States far from processing infrastructure like Hawaii or rural southern states have fewer buyers and higher transport costs, which depresses local car scrap prices. The nationwide average masks a range of nearly $60/ton between the highest and lowest states.

At $175/ton, the scrap rate works out to about $0.09 per pound, or $8.75 per 100 lbs (hundredweight). Yards quote either way, per ton or per hundredweight, so it helps to know both. To convert, divide the per-ton rate by 20 for the per-100-lb figure, or by 2,000 for the per-pound figure.

Yards typically subtract about 500 lbs for tires and fluids before paying, because they pay to dispose of those items legally. Your paid weight is your curb weight minus that deduction, multiplied by the per-ton rate. It's standard practice, not a markdown specific to your car.

Yes, twice over. You lose the parts value of the drivetrain, and many yards also pay a lower base rate per hundredweight on a car that's been stripped of its engine and transmission, often 15 to 20% less. That's why selling a complete car usually nets more than parting out the drivetrain and scrapping the shell, unless you have a specific buyer lined up for the parts.

Because the scrap rate is the floor, not the ceiling, and for a complete car a full-asset buyer can pay above it. A buyer who only weighs steel pays at or below the scrap rate after hauling and disposal costs. A buyer who recovers the converter, copper, aluminum, and rebuildable cores pays more, because those are worth more than the steel. A Clunqr Buyer prices all of it and includes free towing, so the quoted number is the number you receive.