The Periodic Table of Scarcity and Abundance Fe Iron
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Iron: What we use it for

Where does it go, and why this element?

About 98% of iron ore becomes steel. Buildings and infrastructure take about half of all steel, then machinery, cars and metal goods. Iron is used because steel is strong and easy to shape, and iron is the least expensive metal.

Last updated 3 October 2026.

Where it goes

Where it goes (World)
Buildings and infrastructure 52%
Mechanical equipment 16%
Automotive 12%
Metal products 10%
Other transport 5%
Electrical equipment 3%
Domestic appliances 2%
2025. Shares of steel use, not of iron. About 98% of iron ore becomes steel. worldsteel gives these shares with 2025 steel use in World Steel in Figures 2026. Its web page gave the same shares in 2024, so worldsteel may not re-estimate the split every year1

About 98% of the world’s iron ore is used to make iron for steel2. The end uses of iron are therefore the end uses of steel.

The world used 1,718 million tonnes of steel in 2025. Buildings and infrastructure took 52%, mechanical equipment 16%, cars 12% and metal products 10%, according to worldsteel, the steel industry’s association1.

In construction, steel goes into buildings, bridges, reinforcing in concrete, roofing and fencing. In machinery, it goes into engines, pumps and cranes. In transport, it goes into railway carriages, ships and car frames2.

In the United States in 2025, construction took about 31% of steel shipments, service centers and distributors 26% and cars 15%3.

The world used about 209 kg of steel per person in 20251. Use per person was 844 kg in South Korea, 347 kg in Germany and 261 kg in Russia1.

Small amounts of iron are used outside steel. Cast iron is used for pipes, fittings and engine blocks2. Iron chloride is used to treat water and to etch printed circuits2.

Why this element

Pure iron is soft. Adding a small amount of carbon, usually less than 1%, turns it into steel. Steel is much harder and has many uses2. Other elements change it further. Chromium and nickel make stainless steel, which does not rust. Vanadium, tungsten or molybdenum make tool steels for cutting tools and drill bits2.

Cost is the other reason. USGS calls iron the least expensive and most widely used metal3. Ore with 62% iron cost about US$100 per dry tonne in 2025, delivered to China. That is about 16 US cents per kilogram of iron (100.2 ÷ 620 kg)4. Steel accounts for about 90% of all metal used each year2.

Iron and some of its alloys are magnetic2. Electrical steel, an alloy of iron and silicon, is used in transformers and electric motors5. The US Department of Energy lists electrical steel, made for these uses, as a critical material6.

What could replace it

For most uses, nothing replaces iron at the same price. USGS says iron and steel compete with cheaper non-metal materials or with dearer materials that perform better3.

  • In cars, aluminum and plastics compete because they are lighter3.
  • In construction, aluminum, concrete and wood compete with steel3. Concrete buildings also contain steel as reinforcing2.
  • In containers, aluminum, glass, paper and plastics compete with steel3.

For the iron itself, the only primary source is iron ore. Scrap and direct reduced iron (DRI) replace each other as feeds for electric arc furnaces. The United States used about 7.8 million tonnes of DRI in 2025 in place of scrap7.

Where demand is going

In October 2025, worldsteel expected world demand for finished steel to be unchanged in 2025. Falling use in China was balanced by growth in Egypt, India, Saudi Arabia and Vietnam3. Apparent steel use fell from 1,841 million tonnes in 2021 to 1,718 million in 20251.

Australia’s Department of Industry, Science and Resources made a forecast in its June 2026 Resources and Energy Quarterly. It expected world steel production to reach about 2 billion tonnes by 2031. Output would fall in China and grow in India, Southeast Asia and the Middle East8. Over a longer time, the IEA projected in 2020 that world steel demand would rise by more than a third to 20509.

In June 2025 ArcelorMittal said it would not build its planned hydrogen direct reduction plants in Bremen and Eisenhüttenstadt, Germany. It turned down €1.3 billion of German government support. The company said the business case was too weak and that renewable hydrogen was not commercially viable10. In April 2026 Stegra agreed in principle on €1.4 billion of new financing to complete its green steel plant in Boden, Sweden. It said the timeline was under review11.

Sources

  1. 1

    World Steel Association (worldsteel), the steel industry's association, 2026. World Steel in Figures 2026 , Sustainability indicators; Top 50 companies; Major steel-producing countries; Production by process; Pig iron; DRI; Iron ore 2024; Steel use by sector (p. 30).

    Crude steel, pig iron and DRI output by country, top companies, iron ore trade, emissions and energy per tonne of steel.

    • Steel use by sector ... Building and infrastructure 52% ... STEEL USE 2025 1 718.2 Mt
    • Steel use by sector … Building and infrastructure … STEEL USE 2025 1 718.2 Mt
    • Globally, 209 kg of steel … per person in … 2025
    • South Korea … 843.7 … Germany … 347.1 … Russia … 261.0
    • Apparent steel use … 1 841.2 … 1 718.2
  2. 2

    Geoscience Australia, 2023. Iron (Australian mineral facts) , Properties; Formation; Resources; Mining; Processing.

    Ore minerals and their iron content, banded iron formations, Hamersley Province deposit types and grades, processing.

    • About 98% of world iron ore production is used to make iron in the form of steel
    • Steel buildings, bridges (such as the Sydney Harbour Bridge), reinforcing in concrete buildings, roofing, cladding, doors, fencing. … Steel engines, pumps, cranes … Steel railway carriages/engines, ships, car frames
    • Iron in cast form has many specific uses (e.g. pipes, fittings, engine blocks)
    • Iron chloride is used in water treatment and purification. … Iron chloride is used to etch copper in the making of electrical printed circuits
    • pure iron is quite soft. Adding a small amount of carbon (usually less than 1%) makes iron into steel which is significantly harder and extremely versatile
    • Stainless steel … nickel … chromium … doesn’t rust … Tool steel … vanadium, … tungsten … and/or molybdenum … very hard … metal cutting tools … drill bits
    • accounting for about 90% of all metal used each year
    • Iron and some alloys of iron are also magnetic
    • reinforcing in concrete buildings
  3. 3

    U.S. Geological Survey (C.C. Tuck), 2026. Iron and Steel, in Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026 , p. 2, World Production table; Events, Trends, and Issues; Substitutes.

    World pig iron and raw steel output, US tariffs, substitutes.

    • Construction accounted for an estimated 31% of net shipments by market classification, followed by steel service centers and distributors, 26%; automotive, 15%
    • Iron is the least expensive and most widely used metal
    • iron and steel compete either with less expensive nonmetallic materials or with more expensive materials that have a performance advantage
    • Iron and steel compete with lighter materials, such as aluminum and plastics in the automotive industry
    • aluminum, concrete, and wood in construction
    • aluminum, glass, paper, and plastics in containers
    • The World Steel Association7 estimated global finished steel demand to remain unchanged in 2025 owing to declining steel demand in China offset by growth in developing economies including Egypt, India, Saudi Arabia, and Vietnam
  4. 4

    World Bank, 2026. Commodity Price Data (The Pink Sheet), annual and monthly prices , Annual Prices (Nominal), 'Iron ore, cfr spot'; Description sheet; file updated 2 September 2026.

    Iron ore price, annual averages 1960 to 2025. Contract price for Brazilian ore in US cents per dry metric tonne unit to 2005, spot price in US dollars per dry tonne after.

    • Iron ore, cfr spot … 2025 … 100.2
  5. 5

    U.S. Department of Energy, 2023. Critical Materials Assessment 2023 , Section 1.2.10, Electrical Steel.

    Electrical steel (iron-silicon alloys) is used in transformers, generators, motors and inverters.

    • Electrical steel, also known as iron-silicon alloys, is widely used in transformers, generators, motors, and inverters
  6. 6

    U.S. Department of Energy, 2023. What Are Critical Materials and Critical Minerals? .

    The 2023 DOE critical materials list, including electrical steel.

    • NON-ELEMENTAL CRITICAL MATERIALS (DOE) … Electrical Steel
  7. 7

    U.S. Geological Survey (C.C. Tuck), 2026. Iron and Steel Scrap, in Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026 , p. 1, Recycling.

    US scrap recycling rates by end use and the raw materials saved by recycling.

    • An estimated 7.8 million tons of direct-reduced iron was consumed in the United States in 2025 as a substitute for iron and steel scrap
  8. 8

    Australian Government, Department of Industry, Science and Resources (Office of the Chief Economist), 2026. Resources and Energy Quarterly: June 2026 , Chapter 3 Iron ore: sections 3.1, 3.2, 3.3; Table 3.3 Iron ore outlook.

    Second price source (US$87/t FOB in 2025), 2026 price forecast, Australian iron ore export earnings, shipments to China, the CMRG restriction on BHP, and the steel output forecast to 2031.

    • World steel production is expected to reach around 2 billion tonnes by 2031, with falling output in China offset by higher production in India, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East
  9. 9

    International Energy Agency, 2020. Iron and Steel Technology Roadmap: Towards more sustainable steelmaking , Executive summary.

    Sector CO2 emissions (2.6 Gt, 7% of the energy system), coal use, scrap share and energy, demand projection to 2050.

    • Global demand for steel is projected to increase by more than a third through to 2050
  10. 10

    Argus Media, 2025. ArcelorMittal halts DRI-EAF projects in the EU .

    ArcelorMittal's decision of June 2025 not to build hydrogen-ready DRI plants in Bremen and Eisenhüttenstadt, and its stated reasons.

    • The projects were slated to receive €1.3bn ($1.5bn) in subsidies from the German federal government … Even with that support, the business case remains too weak … the lack of commercially viable renewable hydrogen
  11. 11

    Stegra (press release), 2026. Stegra has agreed in principle on a €1.4 billion financing round led by a Wallenberg Investments consortium .

    New financing for the Boden steel plant in Sweden, April 2026; the project timeline is under review.

    • Stegra has agreed in principle on €1.4 billion in new financing … to complete the construction of its large-scale green steel plant in Boden, Sweden … The project timeline is under review