This calculator estimates a catalytic converter's scrap value from its platinum, palladium and rhodium content, today's spot prices and a payable percentage, not a fixed price list, working from grams of each metal or a vehicle's make, model and engine type, with editable payable and charge fields.
Enter grams of platinum, palladium and rhodium, or your vehicle's make, model and engine type, below. Payable percentage and refining and treatment charges are editable.
| Metal | USD per troy ounce |
|---|
Prices appear here once a licensed quote is connected; until then this block shows no price values. How our prices are sourced
How the Calculator Works#
The calculator multiplies each metal's grams by its spot price and payable percentage, then subtracts refining and treatment charges, to estimate contained-metal value. Platinum, palladium and rhodium price separately against their own spot quote, and the three results sum to one total, a starting reference for comparing offers, the role the site's other platinum calculators and converters play for loose scrap and bars.
What the Calculator Needs From You#
The calculator asks for grams of platinum, palladium and rhodium, or a vehicle make, model and engine type if the exact assay is unknown; only these three metals are present in meaningful quantity in an autocatalyst, since ruthenium, iridium and osmium are not used in automotive emissions catalysis and are not recoverable from a converter. A vehicle lookup returns an empirical average for that code, not a specification, since no manufacturer publishes a converter's PGM loading. Inputs in full:
- Grams of platinum, palladium and rhodium, if already known.
- Vehicle make, model and engine type, where the lookup is supported.
- Payable percentage per metal, prefilled and editable.
- Refining and treatment charges, prefilled and editable.
The Value Formula: Grams, Payable Percentage and Charges#
Estimated value equals (grams × spot price × payable %) minus refining and treatment charges; refining charges run US$5 to US$25 per troy ounce and treatment charges US$200 to US$500 per lot, according to Ecotrade. The refining charge applies per ounce recovered, while the treatment charge is fixed per lot, so a small converter absorbs the same charge as a larger batch. Ecotrade's own page converts that range to "approximately $150 to $700 per kilogram," understating it by roughly 13%; at 31.1035 grams per troy ounce the correct conversion is US$161 to US$805 per kilogram, the per-ounce figures the calculator uses. The result is a ceiling, not a quote, detailed on catalytic converter scrap prices.
Platinum, Palladium and Rhodium Content by Converter Type#
Gasoline and diesel converters carry different PGM mixes: a 2011-baseline US gasoline system averages 5.12 g of PGM at roughly 89% palladium, while a diesel system averages 10.14 g at roughly 74% platinum, according to the US Department of Energy. That inversion is why entering the wrong engine type skews the estimate; full detail by vehicle and era lives on platinum, palladium and rhodium content of a catalytic converter.
| System | Total PGM (g, 2011 DOE baseline) | Pt (g) | Pd (g) | Rh (g) | % Pt | % Pd | % Rh |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (three-way catalyst) | 5.12 | 0.28 | 4.55 | 0.28 | ~5.5% | ~89% | ~5.5% |
| Diesel (DOC + DPF, 80% SCR / 20% LNT mix) | 10.14 | 7.53 | 2.22 | 0.39 | ~74% | ~22% | ~4% |
Gasoline Converters: Palladium-Heavy#
A gasoline three-way catalyst's 5.12 g of PGM splits 0.28 g platinum, 4.55 g palladium and 0.28 g rhodium, per DOE's 2011 baseline (EERE Program Record #16006). Palladium carries most of the mass, but rhodium's much higher price per ounce lets it contribute a comparable dollar share at one sixteenth the grams. Platinum and rhodium enter the calculator in near-equal amounts on this baseline, so their relative contribution comes down to their spot prices on the day.
Diesel Systems: Platinum-Heavy, Lower Grade#
A diesel system's 10.14 g of PGM splits 7.53 g platinum, 2.22 g palladium and 0.39 g rhodium; diesel systems often contain more total metal than gasoline systems but assay at a lower grade because the metal spreads across a larger ceramic volume. A diesel oxidation catalyst and particulate filter carry no rhodium; only a lean NOx trap adds platinum and rhodium, so a vehicle using selective catalytic reduction instead loses that contribution and values lower in the calculator.
Why the Calculator's Number Is Higher Than a Buyer's Offer#
A buyer's offer is lower than the calculator's contained-metal value because a refiner, an aggregator and processing costs each take a share before the scrapyard is paid. The calculator's output is the metal's value before any of those three intermediaries take their cut, quantified below.
Payable Percentages: Why Rhodium Pays Out Less#
Rhodium pays out at a lower percentage than platinum or palladium: Ecotrade quotes platinum and palladium at 96-98% payable against rhodium at 88-93%, and Recohub quotes 98% against 94-95%, because rhodium is harder to take fully into solution during refining. Both sources agree on the direction, which is why the calculator applies a separate, editable payable percentage to each metal rather than one blended figure. Rhodium can be the largest single contributor to a gasoline converter's value despite its small gram weight, so this gap has an outsized effect on the estimate.
| Metal | Ecotrade payable % | Recohub payable % |
|---|---|---|
| Platinum | 96-98% | 98% |
| Palladium | 96-98% | 98% |
| Rhodium | 88-93% | 94-95% |
From Contained Value to Scrapyard Offer: One Worked Example#
On WPIC's worked North American example at 2024 average prices, US$250 of contained PGM value in an average passenger-vehicle converter yielded an implied scrapyard offer of about US$34, after a 92.5% refiner offer and roughly US$193 in aggregator processing costs. That converter carried 5.8 g of PGM (1.3 g platinum, 4.0 g palladium, 0.6 g rhodium); the gap between $250 and $34 is mostly fixed per-unit costs that stay about the same whether the converter held 3 g or 7 g of metal. Read this calculator's estimate as contained value, not a promised payout, detailed on catalytic converter worth by type.
| Step | US$ | % of contained value |
|---|---|---|
| Contained metal value | 250 | 100% |
| Aggregator receipt (refiner pays ~92.5% after processing loss) | 227 | 90.8% |
| Aggregator processing costs | -193 | 77.2% |
| Implied scrapyard offer | 34 | 13.6% |
======== CONTEXTUAL BORDER ========
Sell, Identify and Learn More#
Selling, identifying and grading a converter each have a dedicated DailyPlatinum guide.
Selling a Converter#
Sellers can get a scrap quote, compare buyers or check current converter scrap prices below.
- Get a cash quote, covered on where to sell a catalytic converter.
- Price loose scrap on the platinum scrap calculator.
- Price plain platinum by weight on the platinum value calculator.
- Price a mixed lot on the PGM basket price calculator.
Identifying a Converter#
Identifying a converter uses its code or serial number, not this calculator.
- Read the shell or heat shield code against catalytic converter codes and serial numbers.
- Tell OEM from aftermarket with how to identify a catalytic converter.
- Compare loadings by application on most valuable catalytic converters.
Other Converter Topics#
Related topics include converter grading, assay methods, recycling and theft.
- Follow a unit from decanning to refined metal: catalytic converter recycling.
- See how buyers sort material by grade: catalytic converter grades.
- Read the XRF and ICP methods behind a settlement: catalytic converter assay.
- Go deeper on diesel loadings: diesel catalytic converter scrap value.
- See what carries the PGM washcoat: catalytic converter ceramic monolith.
- Learn why these values drive theft: catalytic converter theft.
Catalytic Converter Calculator FAQ#
How can I calculate the value of my catalytic converter?#
Enter grams of platinum, palladium and rhodium (or the vehicle type) and today's spot prices to get an estimated contained-metal value. Without an exact assay, the vehicle's make, model and engine type returns an average figure instead, labeled as an estimate.
What's a scrap catalytic converter worth?#
A scrap catalytic converter's contained-metal value depends on its exact PGM content and the day's spot prices; a buyer's cash offer is lower after refining, treatment and aggregator costs. No single "average" price applies across engine types, since gasoline and diesel units of equal weight carry very different metal splits.
Why is my calculator estimate higher than a buyer's offer?#
The calculator shows contained-metal value before deductions; a buyer's offer subtracts payable percentages, refining and treatment charges and its own margin. Those deductions are largely fixed per lot, so the gap is proportionally larger on a small, low-grade converter than a large one.
Do aftermarket converters have PGM value?#
Aftermarket converters carry PGM value only if a buyer can match them to a known assay; unmatched units are commonly discounted 3-5x or more against the OEM value, or valued mainly as steel. Aftermarket parts are certified to a lower, cheaper standard, so the same inputs overstate a unit's real content unless its assay is separately confirmed.