Quick Conversions
Indium Reference Rate — 10-Day Trend
All prices in ₹ per gram · daily rate, updated once per day
A Metal That Is Scarce by Structure, Not Just by Geology
Indium's reputation as a "rare" metal is only half right. Estimates put global reserves at roughly 50,000-80,000 metric tonnes — not vanishingly small in absolute terms, but the real constraint isn't how much sits in the ground. It's that indium is never mined on its own; it exists in low concentrations scattered inside zinc ores, and only shows up as usable metal when a zinc smelter specifically chooses to recover it. Today's indium reference rate is ₹68.70 per gram on September 18, 2026.
- Estimated global reserves: roughly 50,000-80,000 metric tonnes
- Primary source: byproduct of zinc ore refining, no dedicated mines
- Dominant demand driver: indium tin oxide (ITO) for touchscreens and displays
Indium Reference Rate by Weight
Today's Indium rate is Sixty Nine Rupees per gram. At this rate, 10 grams of Indium costs Six Hundred and Eighty Seven Rupees.
| Unit | Weight | Price (INR) | Price in Words |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Gram | 1.0000 g | ₹68.70 | Sixty Nine Rupees |
| 8 Grams | 8.0000 g | ₹549.59 | Five Hundred and Fifty Rupees |
| 10 Grams | 10.0000 g | ₹686.98 | Six Hundred and Eighty Seven Rupees |
| 100 Grams | 100.0000 g | ₹6,869.82 | Six Thousand Eight Hundred and Seventy Rupees |
| 1 Kilogram | 1,000.0000 g | ₹68,698.16 | Sixty Eight Thousand Six Hundred and Ninety Eight Rupees |
| 1 Ounce (oz) | 28.3495 g | ₹1,947.56 | One Thousand Nine Hundred and Forty Eight Rupees |
| 1 Troy Ounce | 31.1035 g | ₹2,136.75 | Two Thousand One Hundred and Thirty Seven Rupees |
| 1 Metric Ton | 1,000,000.0000 g | ₹68,698,157.00 | Six Crore Eighty Six Lakh Ninety Eight Thousand One Hundred and Fifty Seven Rupees |
Why "How Much Is Left" Is the Wrong Question
Reserve estimates for a byproduct metal like indium are built on the indium content of known zinc deposits, not on dedicated indium exploration — nobody drills specifically looking for indium. That makes the 50,000-80,000 tonne figure a genuinely rough approximation, and it also means the number that actually matters day to day isn't total reserves but recoverable annual supply, which is capped by global zinc refining volume and by how many smelters have bothered to install indium-recovery circuits.
The gap between scarcity and true rarity
Indium isn't among the rarest elements in the earth's crust in a strict geological sense — it's more abundant than metals like silver by some measures. What makes it feel scarce is entirely structural: it can't be extracted independently, so supply tracks a completely different industry's decisions.
| Constraint | What It Means for Supply |
|---|---|
| No dedicated ore | Recovery is entirely tied to zinc refining decisions |
| Recovery equipment | Not every zinc smelter has installed indium-capture circuits |
| Geographic concentration | China accounts for more than half of global output |
| Recycling rate | End-of-life electronics recovery remains a smaller, developing source |
Indium Reference Rate — Last 10 Days
The most recent Indium price on record (2026-09-18) is Sixty Nine Rupees per gram. This is down by Less than One Rupees from the previous day's rate of ₹68.98.
| Date | Price (INR/g) | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2026-09-18 | ₹68.70 | -0.28 |
| 2026-09-17 | ₹68.98 | -0.09 |
| 2026-09-16 | ₹69.07 | +0.03 |
| 2026-09-15 | ₹69.04 | +0.09 |
| 2026-09-14 | ₹68.95 | +0.11 |
| 2026-09-13 | ₹68.84 | +0.00 |
| 2026-09-12 | ₹68.84 | +0.04 |
| 2026-09-11 | ₹68.80 | -0.04 |
| 2026-09-10 | ₹68.84 | +0.35 |
| 2026-09-09 | ₹68.50 | — |
What This Means for Anyone Watching Indium's Market
A supply chain this structurally rigid — capped by another industry's refining volume rather than by direct investment in indium itself — tends to produce sharper price swings than metals with dedicated mining capacity that can respond to demand. That dynamic is part of why indium's own price history shows meaningful volatility, and why the search for ITO alternatives carries real industry weight rather than being a purely academic exercise.
The comparison table and 10-day history above track the live reference rate. For a longer view, the site's own indium price history page holds real recorded data by year and month.
Indium Reserves — FAQs
Estimates put global indium reserves at roughly 50,000-80,000 metric tonnes. That figure is inherently soft, since indium isn't tracked the way a primary ore is — it's estimated from the indium content of known zinc deposits, not from dedicated indium exploration.
Both, in different ways. Indium isn't as scarce in the earth's crust as its reputation suggests, but it occurs in low concentrations scattered within zinc ores rather than in its own deposits — so the real constraint is economic and technical extraction capacity, not raw geological scarcity.
Because indium is recovered entirely as a byproduct of zinc refining, output is capped by two things at once: how much zinc ore gets processed globally, and whether a given smelter has installed the specific equipment to capture indium during that process — many haven't, since it's an added cost with a smaller payoff than the primary zinc line.
Not in a literal sense soon, but sustained demand growth against a supply that can't easily scale up is exactly the setup that creates recurring price volatility and sourcing anxiety for the electronics industry — a pattern already visible in indium's price history.
Materials researchers are actively pursuing alternatives to indium tin oxide (ITO), including silver nanowire and graphene-based conductive coatings, along with improved recycling of indium from end-of-life electronics and manufacturing scrap — though none has displaced ITO at meaningful commercial scale yet.
