Periodic table of specific heat capacity

Interactive periodic table of specific heat capacity in J/g·°C. ElementWorks is a free interactive periodic table: hover an element to preview it, click it for its full card, or pick another view from the Show menu.

Periodic table of specific heat capacity explained

Specific heat is the energy needed to raise the temperature of one gram of a substance by one degree Celsius. Metals such as lead and gold have low values, so they heat up quickly, while light elements such as lithium, beryllium and hydrogen have high values. It is used in calorimetry through q = m × c × ΔT.

Highest values

Hydrogen (H): 14.3 J/g·°C
Helium (He): 5.193 J/g·°C
Lithium (Li): 3.582 J/g·°C
Beryllium (Be): 1.825 J/g·°C
Sodium (Na): 1.228 J/g·°C

Lowest values

Radon (Rn): 0.094 J/g·°C
Thorium (Th): 0.113 J/g·°C
Uranium (U): 0.116 J/g·°C
Bismuth (Bi): 0.122 J/g·°C
Gold (Au): 0.129 J/g·°C

Data table

Show the full data table (all 118 elements)

Specific heat (J/g·°C) of all 118 elements
No.	Symbol	Element	Specific heat (J/g·°C)
1	H	Hydrogen	14.3 J/g·°C
2	He	Helium	5.193 J/g·°C
3	Li	Lithium	3.582 J/g·°C
4	Be	Beryllium	1.825 J/g·°C
5	B	Boron	1.026 J/g·°C
6	C	Carbon	0.709 J/g·°C
7	N	Nitrogen	1.04 J/g·°C
8	O	Oxygen	0.918 J/g·°C
9	F	Fluorine	0.824 J/g·°C
10	Ne	Neon	1.03 J/g·°C
11	Na	Sodium	1.228 J/g·°C
12	Mg	Magnesium	1.023 J/g·°C
13	Al	Aluminium	0.897 J/g·°C
14	Si	Silicon	0.705 J/g·°C
15	P	Phosphorus	0.769 J/g·°C
16	S	Sulfur	0.71 J/g·°C
17	Cl	Chlorine	0.479 J/g·°C
18	Ar	Argon	0.52 J/g·°C
19	K	Potassium	0.757 J/g·°C
20	Ca	Calcium	0.647 J/g·°C
21	Sc	Scandium	0.568 J/g·°C
22	Ti	Titanium	0.523 J/g·°C
23	V	Vanadium	0.489 J/g·°C
24	Cr	Chromium	0.449 J/g·°C
25	Mn	Manganese	0.479 J/g·°C
26	Fe	Iron	0.449 J/g·°C
27	Co	Cobalt	0.421 J/g·°C
28	Ni	Nickel	0.444 J/g·°C
29	Cu	Copper	0.385 J/g·°C
30	Zn	Zinc	0.388 J/g·°C
31	Ga	Gallium	0.371 J/g·°C
32	Ge	Germanium	0.32 J/g·°C
33	As	Arsenic	0.329 J/g·°C
34	Se	Selenium	0.321 J/g·°C
35	Br	Bromine	0.474 J/g·°C
36	Kr	Krypton	0.248 J/g·°C
37	Rb	Rubidium	0.363 J/g·°C
38	Sr	Strontium	0.301 J/g·°C
39	Y	Yttrium	0.298 J/g·°C
40	Zr	Zirconium	0.278 J/g·°C
41	Nb	Niobium	0.265 J/g·°C
42	Mo	Molybdenum	0.251 J/g·°C
43	Tc	Technetium	0.21 J/g·°C
44	Ru	Ruthenium	0.238 J/g·°C
45	Rh	Rhodium	0.243 J/g·°C
46	Pd	Palladium	0.246 J/g·°C
47	Ag	Silver	0.235 J/g·°C
48	Cd	Cadmium	0.232 J/g·°C
49	In	Indium	0.233 J/g·°C
50	Sn	Tin	0.228 J/g·°C
51	Sb	Antimony	0.207 J/g·°C
52	Te	Tellurium	0.202 J/g·°C
53	I	Iodine	0.214 J/g·°C
54	Xe	Xenon	0.158 J/g·°C
55	Cs	Cesium	0.242 J/g·°C
56	Ba	Barium	0.204 J/g·°C
57	La	Lanthanum	0.195 J/g·°C
58	Ce	Cerium	0.192 J/g·°C
59	Pr	Praseodymium	0.193 J/g·°C
60	Nd	Neodymium	0.19 J/g·°C
61	Pm	Promethium	—
62	Sm	Samarium	0.197 J/g·°C
63	Eu	Europium	0.182 J/g·°C
64	Gd	Gadolinium	0.236 J/g·°C
65	Tb	Terbium	0.182 J/g·°C
66	Dy	Dysprosium	0.17 J/g·°C
67	Ho	Holmium	0.165 J/g·°C
68	Er	Erbium	0.168 J/g·°C
69	Tm	Thulium	0.16 J/g·°C
70	Yb	Ytterbium	0.155 J/g·°C
71	Lu	Lutetium	0.154 J/g·°C
72	Hf	Hafnium	0.144 J/g·°C
73	Ta	Tantalum	0.14 J/g·°C
74	W	Tungsten	0.132 J/g·°C
75	Re	Rhenium	0.137 J/g·°C
76	Os	Osmium	0.13 J/g·°C
77	Ir	Iridium	0.131 J/g·°C
78	Pt	Platinum	0.133 J/g·°C
79	Au	Gold	0.129 J/g·°C
80	Hg	Mercury	0.14 J/g·°C
81	Tl	Thallium	0.129 J/g·°C
82	Pb	Lead	0.129 J/g·°C
83	Bi	Bismuth	0.122 J/g·°C
84	Po	Polonium	—
85	At	Astatine	—
86	Rn	Radon	0.094 J/g·°C
87	Fr	Francium	—
88	Ra	Radium	—
89	Ac	Actinium	—
90	Th	Thorium	0.113 J/g·°C
91	Pa	Protactinium	—
92	U	Uranium	0.116 J/g·°C
93	Np	Neptunium	—
94	Pu	Plutonium	—
95	Am	Americium	—
96	Cm	Curium	—
97	Bk	Berkelium	—
98	Cf	Californium	—
99	Es	Einsteinium	—
100	Fm	Fermium	—
101	Md	Mendelevium	—
102	No	Nobelium	—
103	Lr	Lawrencium	—
104	Rf	Rutherfordium	—
105	Db	Dubnium	—
106	Sg	Seaborgium	—
107	Bh	Bohrium	—
108	Hs	Hassium	—
109	Mt	Meitnerium	—
110	Ds	Darmstadtium	—
111	Rg	Roentgenium	—
112	Cn	Copernicium	—
113	Nh	Nihonium	—
114	Fl	Flerovium	—
115	Mc	Moscovium	—
116	Lv	Livermorium	—
117	Ts	Tennessine	—
118	Og	Oganesson	—

Frequently asked questions

What is the formula for specific heat?

q = m × c × ΔT, where q is heat in joules, m is mass in grams, c is specific heat in J/g·°C and ΔT is the change in temperature in °C.

Which element has the highest specific heat?

Hydrogen, at about 14.3 J/g·°C in this table, followed by helium and lithium.

Why do metals heat up quickly?

Heavy metal atoms store little energy per gram, so a small input of heat produces a large temperature rise.