Bismuth Prices
Current Bismuth price: $87.87 per kg.
Price as of Oct 14 2026. 1 The price shown above is the retail price for private investors and is aligned with industry retail pricing. For bulk bismuth purchases, whether for industrial use or investment, please contact us for a quotation.Bismuth price performance over time
Bismuth Historical Price Movement
Bismuth prices have come under increasing influence from supply-chain constraints and export policy changes.
At today’s price of $87.87 per kg, bismuth is up 60.05% year to date, up 392.82% since the start of 2025, up 641.52% since the start of 2024, and up 606.92% since the start of 2022, when the bismuth price stood at $12.43 per kg.
This reflects bismuth’s role in lead-free alloys, electronics, and other specialised industrial uses, combined with a market that remains sensitive to restricted exports, additional processing steps, and concentrated refining capacity.
Bismuth annual price performance
To better understand bismuth’s future price potential, let’s explore its key applications and the sources of global production (click here to jump to the forecast).
Bismuth is a technology metal primarily produced as a by-product of refining lead, copper, tin, and tungsten. It is characterised by its low toxicity, brittle crystalline structure, and distinctive metallic lustre, and is typically silvery-white with a slight pink hue. Bismuth is identified by the chemical symbol Bi and atomic number 83.
Bismuth Uses
The applications of bismuth are closely linked to its unique physical and chemical properties, particularly its low toxicity, high density, and distinctive crystalline structure. These characteristics make bismuth valuable across a range of industrial, medical, and technological applications.
One of the most important uses of bismuth is in pharmaceuticals and medical products. Bismuth compounds are widely used in gastrointestinal medicines, cosmetics, and medical devices due to their antibacterial properties and relative safety compared with other heavy metals.
Bismuth also plays a growing role in metallurgy, where it is added to steel, aluminium, and copper alloys to improve machinability and performance. In these applications, bismuth is increasingly used as an environmentally friendly substitute for lead, particularly in free-machining steels and brass used in automotive and industrial components.
In the electronics and materials industries, bismuth is used in low-melting-point alloys, solders, and fusible materials. These alloys are critical for applications requiring precise temperature control, including safety devices, fire detection systems, and electronic components.
Beyond these established uses, bismuth is gaining importance in emerging technologies, including thermoelectric materials, advanced battery chemistries, and lead-free electronic applications. As regulatory pressure to reduce toxic materials continues to increase, bismuth’s role as a strategic alternative metal is becoming increasingly relevant.
Where is Bismuth Produced?
Bismuth occurs in low concentrations and does not typically form standalone deposits. Instead, it is produced primarily as a by-product of lead, copper, tin, and tungsten refining. As a result, bismuth supply is closely linked to the production levels of these base metals rather than to demand for bismuth itself.
Global bismuth production is relatively limited, with annual output estimated at around 16,000 tonnes. The majority of this production comes from China, which dominates both mining output and downstream refining capacity. Additional quantities are produced in countries with established base-metal industries, including Laos, South Korea, and Japan, as well as more limited volumes from Kazakhstan, Bolivia, and parts of Europe.
Because bismuth production is dependent on base-metal refining and concentrated processing infrastructure, supply cannot be expanded quickly in response to rising demand. This structural characteristic plays an important role in shaping bismuth availability and contributes to periodic price sensitivity when supply conditions tighten.
What Factors Determine the Price of Bismuth?
Like other commodities, bismuth prices are fundamentally driven by the balance between supply and demand.
Bismuth has become increasingly important to a range of industries. Growing demand for end products in sectors such as automotive manufacturing, electronics, medical applications, and environmentally regulated industries directly influences demand for this specialised metal.
On the supply side, bismuth is considered constrained due to its production model and concentrated refining base. It occurs in relatively low concentrations and is produced primarily as a by-product of base-metal refining, particularly lead and copper. This means bismuth supply cannot be expanded independently and is largely determined by broader base-metal production levels, making the market sensitive to changes in industrial demand, regulatory developments, and supply-side disruptions.
How to Buy Bismuth
Industrial users of bismuth, including manufacturers in the automotive sector (such as Bosch and ZF Friedrichshafen), electronics (such as Panasonic and Samsung Electronics), medical applications (such as Bayer and Johnson & Johnson), and materials science (such as 3M and Henkel), typically source the metal through established specialty metals dealers.
These intermediaries act as the link between producers and end users, ensuring consistent quality, regulatory compliance, and reliable delivery for industrial-scale applications.
Smaller quantities of bismuth can sometimes be found via online platforms such as Amazon Marketplace, eBay, or Alibaba. However, this route is generally suited to laboratory use or hobbyists rather than to industrial buyers or investors, as material purity, certification, provenance, and resale options are often unclear or inconsistent.
Reputable metals dealers like ourselves provide full chain-of-custody documentation, guaranteeing industrial-grade bismuth purity (min. 99.99%) and traceability. We also arrange professional storage under controlled conditions, allowing investors to hold physical bismuth securely while preserving liquidity and resale potential.
Unlike exchange-traded metals, bismuth is not traded on a liquid futures market. Pricing is determined through direct transactions within the industrial supply chain, making access through established dealers essential for transparency, quality assurance, and dependable market access.
How to Sell Bismuth
For holders of industrial-grade bismuth, the most reliable route to resale is through established specialty metals dealers. Professional buyers require verified chain-of-custody documentation, material certification, and traceability, all of which are typically only available when bismuth has been sourced and stored through recognised market participants.
Bismuth purchased via online marketplaces such as eBay, Alibaba, or Amazon generally offers limited resale options. In these cases, resale is usually restricted to private buyers or small-scale users, and achieving prevailing industrial-market prices is unlikely due to uncertainties about purity, provenance, and suitability for regulated applications.
By contrast, investors who hold bismuth through us benefit from direct access to industrial resale channels. Because the material is fully documented, certified, and professionally stored under controlled conditions, liquidation can typically be arranged efficiently and at prices aligned with current market conditions.