How much does metal weigh? Weight per foot for bar, tube, and sheet
Steel weighs 0.284 lb per cubic inch: a 1″ round bar runs 2.67 lb per foot, and a 48″ x 96″ sheet of 1/4″ plate about 327 lb. Aluminum is about a third of that. Multiply cross-section area by 12, then by density, and you can weigh any bar, tube, or sheet before you buy.
How much does metal weigh?
Three anchors cover most of it. A 1″ steel round bar weighs 2.67 lb per foot. The same bar in 6061 aluminum weighs 0.92 lb, about a third. A 48″ x 96″ sheet of 1/4″ steel plate weighs about 327 lb, which is why nobody couriers one. Everything else is the same two-step math: cross-section area times density.
That math is worth five minutes, because weight quietly runs your whole order. The courier prices it, your back lifts it, and the metal bill tracks it. This guide gives you the densities for the metals we cut, the formula for each shape, a weight table for common round bar, and live June 2026 prices that show weight turning into dollars.
How heavy is each metal?
Steel and stainless are near twins, brass, bronze, and copper run 8-13 percent heavier than steel, and aluminum is the outlier at about a third the weight. Density settles all of it. These are the working numbers for the grades on our racks, checked against the alloy data sheets:
| Metal (grade we stock) | Density (lb per cubic inch) |
|---|---|
| Aluminum (6061) | 0.098 |
| Carbon steel (44W, 1018) | 0.284 |
| Stainless steel (304) | 0.289 |
| Brass (C360) | 0.307 |
| Bearing bronze (C932) | 0.322 |
| Copper (C110) | 0.322 |
Two of those numbers do daily work. Steel to aluminum is 2.9 to 1, which is why a steel design rebuilt in aluminum drops to roughly a third of the weight, and why ladder racks and camper frames go aluminum. Carbon to stainless is under 2 percent, close enough that one weight chart serves both.
How do you calculate weight per foot?
One formula covers every shape we sell: cross-section area in square inches, times 12, times density. The 12 turns area into a foot of volume, and density turns volume into pounds. The only part that changes is the area math, so here it is per shape, each worked in carbon steel at 0.284:
| Shape | Area (square inches) | Worked example, steel |
|---|---|---|
| Round bar | 0.785 x diameter squared | 1″ round: 0.785 x 12 x 0.284 = 2.67 lb/ft |
| Flat or square bar | width x thickness | 2″ x 1/4″ flat: 0.50 x 12 x 0.284 = 1.70 lb/ft |
| Round tube or pipe | 0.785 x (OD squared minus ID squared) | 1-1/2″ OD x 1/8″ wall: 0.54 x 12 x 0.284 = 1.84 lb/ft |
| Sheet and plate | thickness x 144, per square foot | 1/4″ plate: 0.25 x 144 x 0.284 = 10.2 lb per square foot |
That 2.67 is the number printed in every steel bar chart, so the formula squares with the industry tables. Two wrinkles to know. Square tube runs lighter than sharp-corner math suggests because of its rounded corners: published weight for 1-1/2″ x 1/8″ steel square tube is 2.25 lb/ft. Our angle vs channel vs tube guide lists the common frame profiles. And pipe sizes are names, not measurements, so look up the true OD and wall before you square anything.
For any other metal, swap the density: multiply the steel weight by 0.35 for aluminum, or by 1.08 for brass. No calculator handy? The product page works it out for you: type your size and the shipping weight shows in pounds.
What does round bar weigh per foot?
Here's the table we'd hand you at the counter, computed from the densities above and rounded to two decimals. Any supplier chart you check lands within a couple percent. Weights are pounds per foot.
| Diameter | Carbon steel | Stainless 304 | Brass C360 | Aluminum 6061 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1/4″ | 0.17 | 0.17 | 0.18 | 0.06 |
| 1/2″ | 0.67 | 0.68 | 0.72 | 0.23 |
| 3/4″ | 1.50 | 1.53 | 1.63 | 0.52 |
| 1″ | 2.67 | 2.72 | 2.89 | 0.92 |
| 1-1/2″ | 6.01 | 6.13 | 6.51 | 2.08 |
The pattern matters more than any single row: weight climbs with the diameter squared. Double the bar and you carry four times the metal, which is exactly what the steel column shows between 1/2″ and 1″. That also hands you a shortcut for sizes the table skips: steel is 2.67 times the diameter squared, aluminum 0.92 times. A 5/8″ steel round is 2.67 x 0.39, call it 1.04 lb per foot.
Why does weight matter when you buy metal?
Because the courier charges by it and your back pays the rest. Weight and size set the shipping line at checkout, they decide whether one person or two unload the box, and inside a metal family weight is the best single predictor of price. Plan around it and the order goes smoother at both ends.
Shipping first. Couriers price weight and dimensions together, and pieces under 48″ travel as ordinary parcels, the size territory couriers price best. That's a tip, not a limit: pieces up to 96″ still ship anywhere in Canada, they just pay their way. Here's how metal shipping works if you want the full picture, and sheet pages show the shipping weight in pounds as you size your piece, so you see what the courier sees.
Handling is the part nobody warns you about. A 96″ stick of 1″ steel round is about 21 lb: one person carries it, though eight feet of bar has real whip in a stairwell. A 48″ x 96″ sheet of 1/4″ steel is about 327 lb: that's forklift territory, which is why full plate moves by freight while we cut sheet to the size your job needs. A 24″ x 48″ piece of the same plate is about 82 lb, and two people handle that fine. Sizing the thickness too? Our sheet and plate guide keeps you from buying weight you don't need.
How does weight show up in the price?
Inside a family, price tracks the metal you're buying, so weight is your budget sanity check. Live numbers from the rack, June 2026:
| From the rack | Weight | 12″ piece | 96″ piece |
|---|---|---|---|
| Carbon steel round bar, 1/2″ 1018 cold finish | 0.67 lb/ft | $6.09 | $22.14 |
| Carbon steel round bar, 1″ 1018 cold finish | 2.67 lb/ft | $13.03 | $72.06 |
| Aluminum round bar, 1″ 6061-T6 | 0.92 lb/ft | $13.75 | $77.24 |
Read the steel rows against the weights. The 1″ bar carries four times the metal of the 1/2″, and on 96″ sticks you pay about 3.3 times ($72.06 against $22.14). That's close to the metal ratio, softened by the volume discounts of 5-15% that apply automatically. On 12″ pieces the gap narrows to 2.1 times, because cutting and handling are a bigger share of a small piece's price. So expect price to follow weight on bigger pieces and flatten on small ones, and if a number breaks that pattern badly, check the size before you blame the metal. Our June 2026 price guide walks the whole rack, and everything in the steel rows lives on the carbon steel rack, priced by the inch.
Across families, weight buys you something else. The 96″ aluminum stick costs $5.18 more than the same steel one and weighs 7.4 lb against 21 lb. If the piece travels far or gets lifted often, that missing 14 lb is worth real money. All prices CAD, updated daily, so the product page always has today's number.
Building something heavier than a courier wants, a full sheet, or sticks past 96″? Send a quote request with the alloy, sizes, and lengths. We'll price the metal and the freight together, sourcing runs 2-21 days when it's not on the rack, and you'll see both numbers before you commit. Everything else ships cut to ±1/8″, anywhere in Canada, usually the next business day when you order by 1pm Atlantic.