Tungsten
Tungsten is a dense transition metal with the highest melting point of any metal.
Tungsten stays solid under temperatures that melt many other metals.
Explore Tungsten's atom- Atomic number
- 74
- Standard atomic weight
- 183.84(1)
- Family
- Transition metal
- Period
- 6
- Group
- 6
- Standard state
- Solid
In everyday life
Tungsten appears in cutting-tool materials and older incandescent lamp filaments.
Something to remember
Tungsten has the highest melting point of the metals.
Meet its electrons
[Xe] 6s2 4f14 5d4
Published neutral-atom ground-state configuration; excited atoms and ions can differ.
Electrons per shell: 2 · 8 · 18 · 32 · 12 · 2.
The playground shows an illustrative shell model. Real electrons are described by quantum orbitals, rather than tiny planets traveling along fixed paths.
A connection to explore
Tungsten and carbon form tungsten carbide, a hard material used in cutting tools.
Meet Carbon (C)Properties and conditions
- Standard atomic weight
- 183.84(1)CIAAW 2024 standard atomic weight (dimensionless). Parentheses give uncertainty in the last quoted digits. Source flags: none.CIAAW standard atomic weights ↗ · Retrieved 2026-10-15
- Standard state
- SolidPubChem classification, including explicit predictions where stated. Reference temperature and pressure are not supplied in the table.PubChem periodic table ↗ · Retrieved 2026-10-15
- First ionisation energy
- 7.98 eVEnergy to remove the first electron from an isolated neutral gas-phase atom. Uncertainty is not supplied.PubChem periodic table ↗ · Retrieved 2026-10-15
- Electronegativity
- 2.36 Pauling scaleA dimensionless relative measure; values depend on the chosen scale. Uncertainty is not supplied.PubChem periodic table ↗ · Retrieved 2026-10-15
- Melting point
- 3695 KPubChem reported value. Pressure, allotrope and measurement uncertainty are not specified in the table; consult the cited source.PubChem periodic table ↗ · Retrieved 2026-10-15
- Boiling point
- 5828 KPubChem reported value. Pressure and measurement uncertainty are not specified in the table; consult the cited source.PubChem periodic table ↗ · Retrieved 2026-10-15
- Density
- 19.3 g/cm³PubChem reported value. Temperature, pressure, allotrope and measurement uncertainty are not specified in the table; gas densities are especially condition-dependent.PubChem periodic table ↗ · Retrieved 2026-10-15
- Oxidation states
- +6Selected PubChem oxidation states; formal electron bookkeeping, not a list of stable free-ion charges or every possible compound.PubChem periodic table ↗ · Retrieved 2026-10-15
- Discovery
- 1783PubChem discovery attribution. Ancient knowledge and competing priority claims cannot always be represented by a single year.PubChem periodic table ↗ · Retrieved 2026-10-15
- Atomic radius
- 210 pmPubChem tabulated radius. Radius definitions depend on bonding and convention; measurement definition and uncertainty are not supplied in this table.PubChem periodic table ↗ · Retrieved 2026-10-15
- Electron affinity
- 0.815 eVPubChem reported gas-phase electron affinity. Sign conventions and electronic states matter; uncertainty is not supplied in this table.PubChem periodic table ↗ · Retrieved 2026-10-15
Isotopes, abundance and decay
Isotopes share a proton count but have different neutron counts. This selection includes naturally tabulated compositions and a reference isotope for other elements. It is not a list of every known isotope.
Explore 5 isotopes of W
| Isotope | Relative atomic mass | Natural fraction | Half-life | Decay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| W-180 | 179.9467108(20) | 0.0012(1) | 1.59 Ey (uncertainty 0.5) | ;A~100;2β+ ? |
| W-182 | 181.94820394(91) | 0.2650(16) | No decay observed | ;A ? |
| W-183 | 182.95022275(90) | 0.1431(4) | No decay observed | ;A ? |
| W-184 | 183.95093092(94) | 0.3064(2) | No decay observed | ;A ? |
| W-186 | 185.9543628(17) | 0.2843(19) | No decay observed | ;2β− ?;A ? |
Fractions use NIST’s terrestrial isotopic compositions, which can vary by sample. Parentheses denote uncertainty in the last digits. Half-lives and decay branches use NUBASE2020; # marks estimates, >/< mark limits. “No decay observed” follows that evaluation and does not prove permanent stability. Decay branch intensities are percentages; SF means spontaneous fission, EC electron capture, IT an isomeric transition.
Follow the science
Use these original references to explore the data and context. Atomic weights can vary with isotope composition; values for elements without stable isotopes may describe a representative isotope rather than a standard atomic weight.