Tool 04

Compare elements

Pick two to four elements and read their properties side by side. Every bar is scaled against all 118 elements, so an unusual value stands out at a glance.

Free, no account, and nothing you type leaves your browser.

Compare elements side by side

Pick up to four. Every bar is scaled against all 118, so you can see at a glance which is the outlier.

Worked examples

Sodium and potassium

PropertyNaK
Atomic radius pm186227
Ionisation energy kJ/mol495.9418.7

Down group 1 the outer electron sits farther from the nucleus: potassium has the larger atomic radius and the lower first ionisation energy.

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Fluorine and chlorine

PropertyFCl
Electronegativity3.983.16
Electron affinity kJ/mol328348.3

Fluorine is the most electronegative element, yet chlorine releases more energy when it gains an electron: its electron affinity is higher.

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Copper, silver and gold

PropertyCuAgAu
Density g/cm³8.9610.50119.32
Ionisation energy kJ/mol745.8731.4890.6

Density rises down group 11, but gold breaks the trend in ionisation energy: relativistic effects pull its outer 6s electron closer to the nucleus, so removing it takes more energy than for silver.

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How it works

Values come from the same element data as the rest of the site. Each bar shows where a value falls between the lowest and the highest among all 118 elements, so a short bar means low for the whole table, not just among your picks. The highlighted value in each row is the highest of the elements you chose.

Below the numbers, text rows compare family, block, period and group, electron configuration, oxidation states and year of discovery. Each element links to its own page.

Limits

  • A dash means the value is not measured or not defined, such as the electronegativity of most noble gases.
  • For the heaviest elements several values are predictions rather than measurements.
  • The highlight marks the largest number in a row, which is not always the most useful or the best.