Lithium Price 2026
By Axis Intelligence Research
Co-author: Aidan Jad | Last updated: October 3, 2026 | License: CC BY 4.0
Prices verified on October 2, 2026. Every price on this page was re-read from the publisher’s live page or filing on that date. The most recent public Benchmark Mineral Intelligence assessment available on October 2 was dated September 2, 2026; per-row dates are in the table and the CSV.
Battery-grade lithium carbonate was assessed at $19,750 per tonne ($19.75/kg) CIF Asia on September 2, 2026, by Benchmark Mineral Intelligence — 119% above the 2025 US contract average of $9,000 per tonne reported by the USGS. Normalized to contained lithium, spodumene miners now capture 76.9% of carbonate’s value, up from about 58% in January 2025, according to Axis Intelligence Research.
Quick Answer: What Is the Lithium Price Right Now?
- Lithium carbonate (battery grade, CIF Asia): $19,750/t, or $19.75/kg (Benchmark, September 2, 2026).
- Lithium hydroxide monohydrate (battery grade, CIF Asia): $18,750/t, or $18.75/kg (same assessment).
- Spodumene concentrate (SC6, FOB Australia): $2,254/t (same assessment).
- Axis Intelligence Research finding: on a contained-lithium basis, hydroxide is the most expensive form at $21,297 per tonne of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE) — 7.8% above carbonate, despite its lower headline price.
Key Findings
- Benchmark Mineral Intelligence assessed battery-grade lithium carbonate at $19,750 per tonne CIF Asia on September 2, 2026, down 0.8% week on week.
- According to Axis Intelligence Research, lithium hydroxide’s $18,750 headline price equals $21,297 per tonne LCE, a 7.8% premium to carbonate once both are converted to the same lithium content.
- Axis Intelligence Research’s Lithium Contained-Value Index (LCVI) read 130.0 on September 2, 2026, meaning carbonate traded at 1.30 times the contained value of its spodumene feedstock.
- According to Axis Intelligence Research, the LCVI fell from about 172.5 in January 2025 to 130.0 in September 2026, based on USGS and Benchmark price data — the converter’s share of carbonate value shrank by roughly half.
- Albemarle realized $19.53 per kg LCE in Q2 2026, up 60.5% year over year, with about 40% of its salts volume on long-term agreements, per its August 5, 2026 SEC filing.
Lithium Price Table: Every Form, Grade and Delivery Basis
Lithium does not have one price. It has a price per form (carbonate, hydroxide, spodumene), per grade (battery vs technical), per delivery basis (CIF Asia, FOB Australia, EXW China) and per contract model (spot vs long-term). Mixing them is the most common error in lithium price coverage. The table below keeps them separate.
| Product | Grade / spec | Basis | Price | Unit | Assessment date | Verified | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lithium carbonate | Battery, min 99.5% | CIF Asia (CJK) | 19,750 | USD/t | 2026-09-02 | 2026-10-02 | Benchmark Mineral Intelligence |
| Lithium hydroxide monohydrate | Battery, min 56.5% | CIF Asia (CJK) | 18,750 | USD/t | 2026-09-02 | 2026-10-02 | Benchmark Mineral Intelligence |
| Spodumene concentrate | 6% Li₂O (SC6) | FOB Australia | 2,254 (range 2,205–2,302) | USD/t | 2026-09-02 | 2026-10-02 | Benchmark Mineral Intelligence |
| Spodumene auction | SC6 | FOB Australia | 2,277 | USD/t | 2026-09-02 (post-close) | 2026-10-02 | Benchmark Mineral Intelligence |
| Lithium carbonate | Battery grade | EXW China | 150,300–160,500 | CNY/t | 2026-09-02 | 2026-10-02 | Benchmark Mineral Intelligence |
| Lithium hydroxide | Battery grade | EXW China | 138,000–144,500 | CNY/t | 2026-09-02 | 2026-10-02 | Benchmark Mineral Intelligence |
| Albemarle realized price | Blended salts + spodumene, LCE | Producer realized, Q2 2026 | 19.53 | USD/kg LCE | Q2 2026 | 2026-10-02 | Albemarle 8-K (SEC) |
| PLS realized price | ~SC5.2 | CIF China, Jun Q 2026 | 2,107 (2,415 SC6-equiv.) | USD/t | Quarter to 2026-06-30 | 2026-10-02 | PLS June 2026 Quarterly |
| US contract average | Battery-grade carbonate | US fixed contracts, annual | 9,000 | USD/t | 2025 | 2026-10-02 | USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026 |
Benchmark’s assessment notes hydroxide rose 2.7% week on week while carbonate and spodumene each slipped 0.8%. The Chinese domestic market moved the other way from seaborne: EXW China prices rose across all grades in the same window, which is the first thing a buyer outside China should notice. Two lithium markets, one week, opposite directions.
Lithium Price per kg vs per Tonne vs per Unit of Lithium
Per-kg prices are just per-tonne prices divided by 1,000: $19,750/t carbonate is $19.75/kg. That conversion is trivial. The one that matters is converting every form to the same lithium content, because a tonne of hydroxide, a tonne of carbonate and a tonne of spodumene contain very different amounts of lithium.
Axis Intelligence Research uses stoichiometric conversion factors derived from standard atomic weights (Li 6.941, C 12.011, O 15.999, H 1.008):
| Conversion | Factor | How it’s derived |
|---|---|---|
| 1 t lithium (Li) → LCE | 5.323 t | Li₂CO₃ (73.890) ÷ 2 Li (13.882) |
| 1 t Li₂O → LCE | 2.473 t | Li₂CO₃ (73.890) ÷ Li₂O (29.881) |
| 1 t LiOH·H₂O → LCE | 0.880 t | Li₂CO₃ (73.890) ÷ 2 LiOH·H₂O (83.926) |
| 1 t SC6 spodumene → contained LCE | 0.1484 t | 6% × 2.473 |
| SC6 tonnes per tonne contained LCE | 6.74 t | 1 ÷ 0.1484 (100% recovery, theoretical) |
The hydroxide paradox: cheaper per tonne, dearer per unit of lithium
Hydroxide’s $18,750 headline looks $1,000 cheaper than carbonate. It isn’t. A tonne of lithium hydroxide monohydrate carries only 0.880 tonnes of LCE, so:
$18,750 ÷ 0.880 = $21,297 per tonne LCE — a 7.8% premium to carbonate’s $19,750.
That premium is what high-nickel cathode makers pay for the hydroxide route, and it is invisible on any price page that lists the two side by side in raw dollars per tonne. Benchmark’s own commentary explains the mechanism in one line: hydroxide supply sits with fewer producers than carbonate, so the assessment reacts harder to NCM demand shifts.
What a tonne of contained lithium is worth
At $19,750/t carbonate, the contained lithium itself is valued at $105,124 per tonne of Li ($19,750 × 5.323). That is the contained-metal value — not the price of lithium metal as a product, which is a separate, smaller market priced at a further premium for electrolysis.
The Axis Lithium Contained-Value Index (LCVI)
LCVI — Lithium Contained-Value Index is Axis Intelligence Research’s measure of how lithium’s value is split between the mine and the chemical plant. It answers a question no price page answers directly: when carbonate sells for $19,750, how much of that is the rock, and how much is the conversion?
Formula:
LCVI = (battery-grade carbonate price, USD/t) ÷ (SC6 spodumene price, USD/t ÷ 0.1484) × 100
An LCVI of 100 would mean carbonate sells for exactly the contained value of its feedstock — converters earning nothing for recovery losses, reagents, energy, freight or margin. Every point above 100 is the conversion premium.
Feedstock share = 100 ÷ LCVI × 100 — the percentage of carbonate value captured upstream by the spodumene seller.
LCVI readings
| Date | Carbonate (USD/t) | SC6 spodumene (USD/t) | Spodumene contained value (USD/t LCE) | LCVI | Feedstock share | Inputs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January 2025 | ~9,300 (spot, CIF China) | ~800 (FOB Australia) | 5,392 | 172.5 | 58.0% | USGS MCS 2026 |
| November 2025 | ~10,300 | ~970 | 6,538 | 157.5 | 63.5% | USGS MCS 2026 |
| September 2, 2026 | 19,750 | 2,254 | 15,192 | 130.0 | 76.9% | Benchmark |
The 2025 readings use the approximate monthly spot figures the USGS reports in its lithium chapter, which credits Benchmark Mineral Intelligence as the price source. The September 2026 reading is the baseline on Benchmark’s published weekly assessment; Axis Intelligence Research will publish subsequent readings on this page.
The hydroxide variant of the index — hydroxide’s LCE-normalized price over the same spodumene contained value — reads 140.2 on September 2, 2026.
What the LCVI says. Through 2025 a converter buying SC6 kept more than 40 cents of every carbonate dollar. By September 2026 that had fallen to about 23 cents: carbonate minus spodumene contained value is $4,558 per tonne LCE, 23.1% of the carbonate price. And that $4,558 is a gross spread at 100% theoretical recovery — real plants lose lithium in the circuit, so the cash spread is tighter still.
This is not a forecast. It is a reading. But it explains things the headline price can’t. It is why PLS describes its Korean hydroxide joint venture as running batch-wise, “scaled to align with customer demand and prevailing conversion spread economics,” and why Albemarle placed Kemerton Train 1 into care and maintenance in 2026 even as carbonate doubled. A price rally that lands at the mine first is a rally the refiner pays for.
Aidan Jad, analyst comment: The engineering read is simple. Spodumene is a feedstock with a recovery penalty; carbonate is a finished chemical. When the feedstock reprices faster than the product, the conversion step becomes the squeeze point. At an LCVI of 130, a non-integrated converter is running on a thinner band than it had at any point in 2025 — and Albemarle’s own 2026 planning assumption, spodumene at 10% of the LCE price, implies an LCVI of 148. The market has already moved 18 points past the company’s own planning case.
The Lithium Value Stack: What a Tonne of LCE Costs at Each Step
The fully loaded view — from mine gate to battery-grade chemical — on one consistent unit, USD per tonne of contained LCE:
| Step | USD per t LCE | Basis | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miner cash cost, delivered China (PLS, Jun Q 2026) | 4,666 | US$600/t CIF China incl. freight and royalties ÷ 0.1286 (SC5.2) | PLS June 2026 Quarterly; Axis calculation |
| Spodumene realized (PLS, Jun Q 2026) | 16,277 | US$2,415/t SC6-equiv. ÷ 0.1484 | PLS; Axis calculation |
| Spodumene market (Benchmark, Sep 2) | 15,192 | US$2,254/t SC6 ÷ 0.1484 | Benchmark; Axis calculation |
| Carbonate, battery grade (Benchmark, Sep 2) | 19,750 | CIF Asia | Benchmark |
| Albemarle realized, Q2 2026 | 19,530 | US$19.53/kg LCE, blended | Albemarle 8-K |
| Hydroxide, battery grade (Benchmark, Sep 2) | 21,297 | US$18,750 ÷ 0.880 | Benchmark; Axis calculation |
Dates differ by step (Q2 quarter averages vs a September 2 spot), so read this as a structure, not a same-day ledger.
The structure is lopsided. A large Australian hard-rock miner delivered concentrate to China for roughly $4,700 per tonne of contained LCE in the June quarter and sold it for about $16,300 — a cash margin of US$1,507 per tonne of concentrate, 71.5% of PLS’s realized price. That is the upstream half of the LCVI story, in a miner’s own audited-format reporting.
PLS also reports a lithia recovery of 76.8% at Pilgangoora for the June quarter. Recovery losses at the concentrator are already baked into the cost per tonne of concentrate; recovery losses at the converter are a second, separate haircut that lands on the chemical producer.
Lithium Price History: 2021 to 2026
The USGS publishes an annual US contract average for battery-grade carbonate, sourced from Benchmark assessments:
| Year | US annual average, battery-grade carbonate (USD/t) | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 11,700 | — |
| 2022 | 63,700 | +444% |
| 2023 | 39,000 | −39% |
| 2024 | 11,800 | −70% |
| 2025 | 9,000 | −24% |
| Sep 2, 2026 (spot, CIF Asia) | 19,750 | — (different basis) |
Source: USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026 (annual averages, fixed contracts); Benchmark Mineral Intelligence (2026 spot). The 2026 figure is a spot point, not an annual average.
Against that series, the September 2026 spot sits 119% above the 2025 average and 69% below the 2022 average. The USGS describes 2025 as a year in which oversupply worries held prices down in the first half, before Chinese and European EV growth and energy-storage demand pulled them up in the second. Spot carbonate CIF China rose only from about $9,300 in January 2025 to about $10,300 in November; most of the move to $19,750 happened after that.
Producer data confirms the turn. PLS’s realized price averaged US$672/t for FY25 and US$1,488/t for FY26 (both ~SC5.2), a 121% increase, with the June 2026 quarter at US$2,107/t.
Spot vs Contract: Why Producer Prices Lag the Market
Albemarle’s realized $19.53/kg in Q2 2026 is close to Benchmark’s September $19.75/kg spot, but the two numbers measure different things. Albemarle’s CFO told analysts the realized figure ran about 15% below market pricing, reflecting spodumene in the sales mix and a three-month lag in its long-term agreements. The company’s filing states roughly 40% of salts volume — one-third of total volume — sits on long-term agreements.
For anyone modelling revenue, the practical rule follows: contract-heavy producers report this quarter what the market printed last quarter. In a rising market they look cheap against spot; in a falling one, expensive.
Albemarle frames its 2026 outlook around three observed market price cases: about $10/kg LCE (the FY2025 average), about $20/kg (the Q1 2026 average) and about $30/kg (the 2021–2025 average). Those three numbers are the most useful reference grid published by any producer this year.
What Moves the Lithium Price in 2026
Energy-storage demand. Albemarle now expects stationary storage to make up about 30% of 2026 global lithium demand, nearing parity with light-duty EVs, and reported lithium consumption up 45% year over year through May. Storage runs on LFP, and LFP runs on carbonate, not hydroxide — which is why carbonate leads most rallies and hydroxide follows.
Chinese domestic supply events. Benchmark tied September’s firmer EXW China carbonate to seasonal demand and the revocation of the environmental impact assessment at CATL’s Jianxiawo mine, while reports of CATL curtailing cell output softened sentiment late in the period.
Concentrate logistics. Benchmark noted spodumene availability loosened as Chinese converters finished maintenance and Zimbabwean arrivals increased. PLS flagged materially longer vessel wait times at Port Hedland in May.
Supply response. The USGS puts 2025 world lithium production (excluding the US) at about 290,000 tonnes of lithium content, up 31%, against estimated consumption of 263,000 tonnes, up 20%. Restarts are now under way: PLS began restarting its Ngungaju plant on July 1, 2026, and guides FY27 production to 1,030–1,100 kt of concentrate.
Trade policy. US imports of lithium carbonate and hydroxide carry a 3.7% ad valorem normal-trade-relations tariff as of December 31, 2025, per the USGS. US net import reliance exceeded 50% of apparent consumption in 2025.
How to Read and Use Lithium Prices: Buyer and Investor Guidance
Match the basis before comparing. CIF Asia, FOB Australia and EXW China are three different delivery points. A carbonate quote and a spodumene quote are not comparable until both are converted to contained LCE.
Compare hydroxide and carbonate per unit of lithium, never per tonne. On September 2, 2026, the per-tonne comparison said hydroxide was 5% cheaper. The per-lithium comparison said it was 7.8% dearer.
For offtake negotiations, watch the LCVI, not just the price. A converter signing a spodumene contract indexed to SC6 and a carbonate sales contract indexed to CIF Asia is long the LCVI. When it compresses, margins compress — even in a rising market.
For equity analysis, adjust for lag and mix. Realized prices from contract-heavy producers trail spot by roughly a quarter; miners reporting on an SC5.2 basis need a grade adjustment before comparing to SC6 benchmarks.
For battery cost work, lithium is one input among several. Pack-level pricing — $108/kWh globally in 2025 — lives on our EV battery price and chemistry statistics page; system-level storage costs are on our battery storage cost and capacity statistics page.
Disclosure: Axis Intelligence Research may earn referral fees from some data or brokerage services mentioned on this site. No commercial relationship influences any price, ranking or index reading on this page. See our affiliate disclosure.
Lithium Price FAQ
How many tonnes of spodumene does it take to make one tonne of lithium carbonate?
At 100% theoretical recovery, 6.74 tonnes of SC6 spodumene contain one tonne of LCE. Real conversion plants lose lithium in the circuit, so actual consumption is higher; the exact figure depends on the plant’s recovery rate.
Why is lithium hydroxide priced lower than carbonate per tonne?
Because a tonne of lithium hydroxide monohydrate contains less lithium — 0.880 tonnes LCE. Adjusted for content, hydroxide traded at $21,297 per tonne LCE on September 2, 2026, a 7.8% premium to carbonate, according to Axis Intelligence Research.
What is the difference between the China lithium price and the CIF Asia price?
EXW China is a domestic, ex-works price in yuan, set inside China’s market. CIF Asia is a seaborne, delivered price in dollars into Chinese, Japanese and Korean ports. In the week to September 2, 2026, they moved in opposite directions.
What does LCE mean in lithium pricing?
LCE (lithium carbonate equivalent) expresses any lithium product as the tonnes of lithium carbonate it could theoretically yield. One tonne of lithium metal equals 5.323 tonnes LCE. Producers such as Albemarle report realized prices in USD per kg LCE.
How much is lithium worth per tonne of lithium metal content?
At $19,750/t carbonate, contained lithium is valued at about $105,124 per tonne, according to Axis Intelligence Research. That is contained value, not the price of lithium metal as a manufactured product.
Do lithium miners or refiners benefit more from higher prices?
In 2026, miners. The Axis LCVI fell from about 172.5 in January 2025 to 130.0 in September 2026, raising the spodumene seller’s share of carbonate value from 58.0% to 76.9%.
Why does Albemarle’s realized price differ from the spot price?
Albemarle’s realized price blends spodumene sales with chemical sales and includes long-term contracts priced with roughly a three-month lag. Management said its Q2 2026 realized price ran about 15% below market.
What lithium price do producers use for planning in 2026?
Albemarle publishes three cases: about $10/kg LCE (FY2025 average), about $20/kg (Q1 2026 average) and about $30/kg (2021–2025 average), each run through its current contract book in the August 5, 2026 filing.
Methodology
Axis Intelligence Research collected every price from its primary publisher on October 2, 2026: Benchmark Mineral Intelligence’s public lithium price page (IOSCO-assured assessments), the USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026 lithium chapter, Albemarle’s Q2 2026 earnings release filed with the SEC as Exhibit 99.1 to Form 8-K, and PLS Group’s June 2026 Quarterly Activities Report lodged with the ASX. No figure is drawn from a secondary aggregator.
Conversion factors are stoichiometric, calculated from standard atomic weights as shown in the conversion table. They assume 100% recovery and pure compounds; they do not apply a plant recovery rate.
LCVI = carbonate price ÷ (SC6 price ÷ 0.1484) × 100, using same-date or same-month pairs from a single assessment source. The September 2, 2026 reading uses Benchmark’s CIF Asia carbonate and FOB Australia SC6. The 2025 readings use the approximate monthly values the USGS reports (spot carbonate CIF China; SC6 FOB Australia), sourced by the USGS from Benchmark. The carbonate and spodumene legs sit on different delivery bases (CIF vs FOB); freight between Australia and China is therefore inside the conversion premium, consistently across all readings.
Value-stack figures mix quarter averages (PLS, Albemarle) with a weekly spot (Benchmark) and are presented as structure rather than a single-date reconciliation.
Download the Dataset
lithium-price.csv — 79 rows of lithium prices by product, grade and delivery basis, producer realized prices, USGS 2021–2025 history, and every Axis Intelligence Research calculation with its method note. Licensed CC BY 4.0.
Cite This Page
- APA: Axis Intelligence Research, & Jad, A. (2026, October 3). Lithium price 2026: Carbonate, hydroxide and spodumene prices per tonne and per kg. Axis Intelligence. https://axis-intelligence.com/lithium-price/
- MLA: Axis Intelligence Research, and Aidan Jad. “Lithium Price 2026: Carbonate, Hydroxide and Spodumene Prices per Tonne and per kg.” Axis Intelligence, 3 Oct. 2026, axis-intelligence.com/lithium-price/.
- Chicago: Axis Intelligence Research and Aidan Jad. “Lithium Price 2026: Carbonate, Hydroxide and Spodumene Prices per Tonne and per kg.” Axis Intelligence, October 3, 2026. https://axis-intelligence.com/lithium-price/.
Related Axis Intelligence Research data: EV battery statistics · battery storage statistics · electric vehicle statistics · EV adoption by country · data center battery storage · renewable energy statistics · Uranium Price