Rhodium scrap is reclaimed rhodium metal (Rh, atomic number 45, CAS 7440-16-6), recovered almost entirely from spent catalytic converters rather than jewelry, coins or electronics. It is the same rhodium (Rh), element 45 traded as bullion, refined through intermediates such as rhodium(iii) chloride. Below: its source, converter content, why its spread and payable differ from platinum's, and how a lot is sold.
What Is Rhodium Scrap?#
Rhodium scrap is catalytic-converter material, industrial residue or laboratory ware containing rhodium, sold to a refiner to be assayed and refined into metal. It arrives as decanned ceramic monolith or whole converter can, never a bar or coin, since rhodium is not minted into bullion. A lot is priced on assayed content, not gross weight. It sits alongside scrap platinum, palladium and rhodium as one of three converter metals here, smallest by volume but often the largest contributor to a lot's value.
Where Rhodium Scrap Comes From#
Catalytic converters supply essentially all of the world's secondary rhodium: Johnson Matthey reports 312,000 ounces of automotive secondary rhodium in 2025, against zero from any other stream. Ruthenium and iridium carry no secondary line at all in Johnson Matthey's tables, and osmium is largely lost as an impurity. Platinum and palladium also flow back from jewelry and industrial reclaim; rhodium's is a single stream.
| Metal | Primary supply, 2025 (koz) | Secondary, automotive (koz) | Auto secondary as % of combined supply |
|---|---|---|---|
| Platinum | 5,557 | 1,132 | 15.9% |
| Palladium | 6,589 | 2,657 | 27.3% |
| Rhodium | 701 | 312 | 30.8% |
Johnson Matthey, PGM Market Report, May 2026 (2025 actuals). Combined supply: platinum 7,104 koz, palladium 9,724 koz, rhodium 1,013 koz.
Catalytic Converters: The Only Significant Source#
Rhodium is the most converter-dependent of the six platinum group metals: automotive recycling supplied 30.8% of its combined 2025 supply, against 15.9% for platinum and 27.3% for palladium, on Johnson Matthey's figures. Only three PGMs appear in meaningful quantity, platinum, palladium and rhodium, and rhodium alone reduces nitrogen oxides in the three-way catalyst. Ruthenium, iridium and osmium are absent or trace-only, so a buyer will not pay for them. Scrap platinum price diverges past that origin, since platinum's diesel role and chemistry are not rhodium's.
Why Rhodium-Plated Jewelry Is Not a Scrap Source#
Rhodium-plated jewelry is not a viable scrap source: the plating is only 0.75 to 1.25 micrometres thick, thinner than a human hair, too little to recover economically. White gold and platinum jewelry carry it for a bright, tarnish-resistant finish, a surface treatment rather than bullion content, unlike selling platinum jewelry for scrap, where the metal is the payable content.
Rhodium reaches a plating bath as already-refined metal; its rhodium occurrence is confined to PGM ore mined for platinum and palladium, with no jewelry-scale rhodium mining. Johnson Matthey's "Other" demand category, an upper bound also covering aerospace and thermocouples, put jewelry-adjacent demand at 26,000 ounces in 2025 against 1,063,000 total, a rounding error beside the converter market.
How Much Rhodium Is in a Catalytic Converter#
A US gasoline three-way catalytic converter carries about 0.28 to 0.38 grams of rhodium, roughly 5.5% of total PGM by mass, per US Department of Energy figures; a diesel system carries about 0.32 to 0.39 grams. DOE's 2016 projections (EERE Program Record #16006) put a gasoline vehicle at 5.12 g total PGM in 2011, rising toward 6.21 g by 2025, roughly 89% palladium and 5.5% each platinum and rhodium. Diesel runs the inverse mix, roughly 74% platinum, 22% palladium, 4% rhodium, and a diesel with selective catalytic reduction instead of a lean NOx trap carries no rhodium at all.
| Vehicle type | Total PGM per vehicle | Rhodium content |
|---|---|---|
| Gasoline light-duty, 2011 | 5.12 g | 0.28 g |
| Gasoline light-duty, 2025 (projected) | 6.21 g | 0.35 g |
| Diesel light-duty, 2011 | 10.14 g | 0.39 g |
| Diesel light-duty, 2025 (projected) | 8.51 g | 0.32 g |
US DOE EERE Program Record #16006 (17 February 2016). The 2025 column is a 2016-vintage projection, not an observed outcome.
See how much platinum, palladium and rhodium is in a catalytic converter for the full picture.
How Rhodium Scrap Is Valued#
Rhodium traded at $8,200 bid and $9,450 ask per troy ounce on Kitco, 5 August 2026, the most expensive of the six platinum group metals by a wide margin. That range, not a single mid-point, is what a seller transacts against, well above platinum's $1,747-$1,757 and palladium's $1,353-$1,393 same-day range. See rhodium price today for a live figure.
The Rhodium Price and Its Wide Bid-Ask Spread#
Rhodium's bid-ask spread runs to roughly 14% of its mid-price, against about 0.6% for platinum and 3% for palladium the same day, because rhodium has no exchange, no benchmark auction and no liquid forward curve. Platinum and palladium settle against the LBMA Platinum and Palladium Price auctions, run by ICE Benchmark Administration since 1 July 2026; rhodium has neither, only dealer base prices and OTC spreads. A seller marked at the bid side is not paid "the rhodium price" in any single-number sense; rhodium price chart shows how spread and price have moved.
Why Rhodium's Refining Payable Is Lower Than Platinum's#
Refiners typically pay 88% to 93% of contained rhodium, against 96% to 98% for platinum and palladium, per Ecotrade Group, because rhodium is hardest of the three to take fully into solution and separate cleanly. Recohub quotes a narrower gap: 94% to 95% for rhodium against 98% for platinum and palladium. Neither supports one universal figure; cite the two ranges separately, not averaged.
| Metal | Ecotrade typical payable | Recohub typical payable |
|---|---|---|
| Platinum | 96% - 98% | 98% |
| Palladium | 96% - 98% | 98% |
| Rhodium | 88% - 93% | 94% - 95% |
Because rhodium can be the largest contributor to a converter's value, a few points of payable difference on it moves the cheque more than the same difference on platinum or palladium. Technical recovery, over 95% of contained PGM industry-wide, differs from the commercial payable a seller receives; the gap is the refiner's margin, not lost metal. See rhodium vs platinum for how the two compare beyond scrap.
Selling Rhodium Scrap#
Rhodium scrap is sold to a refiner or an accredited buyer, priced on assayed rhodium content, not gross weight. A lot moves through the sequence used for platinum and palladium too, covered in full under precious metal refining:
- Decan the shell from the ceramic substrate.
- Mill the substrate to a consistent size.
- Assay the milled sample for rhodium, platinum and palladium.
- Settle against that assay, not gross weight.
Estimate value first with the platinum scrap calculator, covering all three metals. Rhodium is also held as a standalone metal, under rhodium investment, for bars, powder and its risks.
Why Rhodium Drives Catalytic Converter Theft#
Catalytic converter theft tracks the rhodium price: the 2019-2021 spike "incentivised increased theft of catalytic converters off vehicles on the road," in the World Platinum Investment Council's words. State Farm's claims data shows the pattern: theft claims rose from 2,500 in 2019 to a peak of 45,000 in 2022, then fell as the price retreated. Hybrids are targeted hardest, since their converters carry the highest PGM loading and least in-use wear. See catalytic converter theft for state and model figures.
Rhodium Scrap FAQ#
Five questions come up most often.
- How much is 1 lb of rhodium worth?
- Where can I sell rhodium scrap?
- What household items have rhodium?
- Is rhodium rarer than gold?
- What is the highest price rhodium has ever been?
How much is 1 lb of rhodium worth?#
One pound of rhodium (453.6 g, 14.58 troy oz) was worth roughly $119,600 to $137,800 at Kitco's 5 August 2026 bid-ask range, before refining deductions. See rhodium price per gram for a scrap-lot-scale unit.
Where can I sell rhodium scrap?#
Rhodium scrap is sold to an accredited refiner, not on the open consumer market, because valuing it correctly requires an assay. A refiner, or a broker acting for one, settles the lot on assayed content.
What household items have rhodium?#
Rhodium in the home is almost always a plated surface layer, not solid metal: on white gold and platinum jewelry, and, far less commonly, sterling silver. None carry enough to be worth scrapping alone.
Is rhodium rarer than gold?#
Rhodium's 2025 primary supply was 21.8 tonnes (701,000 ounces), Johnson Matthey, a small fraction of any other traded precious metal; no comparable gold figure is sourced here, so a rarity multiple is not stated. See the rhodium market, where supply this narrow drives volatility.
What is the highest price rhodium has ever been?#
Rhodium's highest recorded price is around $29,800 per troy ounce in March 2021, on dealer-quoted series; the figure is not independently verified and should always carry that attribution. See rhodium price history for the highs and lows behind that peak.