Scrap price per ton
The market price paid for scrap metal by weight, which sets the floor value of a junk car.
The scrap price per ton is what processors and mills pay for a ton of a given scrap grade. Junk car buyers work back from it: estimated weight times scrap price, minus towing and processing costs, plus any extra for sellable parts.
Prices move with steel demand and global markets, so the same car can fetch different offers from month to month. Ask whether a quote is per ton, by estimated weight, or a flat price.
The U.S. Geological Survey reports the average delivered price of No. 1 heavy melting composite scrap at $417.66 per metric ton in 2021, $333.28 in 2023, $314.85 in 2024 and an estimated $319 in 2025.1 Car scrap grades are priced differently, but the trend shows how much prices can swing.
References
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U.S. Geological Survey, “Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026: Iron and Steel Scrap” (February 2026), https://pubs.usgs.gov/periodicals/mcs2026/mcs2026-iron-steel-scrap.pdf ↩