Multipurpose SS · Austenitic
Stainless Steel 304
Stainless Steel 304 is a multipurpose stainless steel — most common stainless steel. Typical values: 205 MPa yield, 8 g/cm³, rated to 800 °C. Available for CNC machining, Sheet metal, Casting & forging at FabDigit.
Properties
Typical room-temperature values in the Annealed condition. Metric first, imperial in gray. The bars show where 304 sits against the other 87 stainless steel grades in the catalog.
Datasheet
| Yield strength | 205 MPa30 ksi |
|---|---|
| Tensile strength | 515 MPa75 ksi |
| Hardness | 150 HB |
| Density | 8 g/cm³0.289 lb/in³ |
| Specific strength (yield ÷ density) | 26 |
| Min service temp | -200 °C-328 °F |
| Max service temp | 800 °C1,472 °F |
| Electrical conductivity | 2.4 % IACS1.4 MS/m |
| Machinability | Fair45 / 100 |
| Weldability | Excellent85 / 100 |
| Formability | Very good75 / 100 |
| ISO 513 machining group | M |
Values are nominal handbook figures for design screening. Certified mill or lot data ships with every FabDigit order on request.
Against other stainless steel grades
Strength versus weight in the stainless steel family
Yield strength against density for every stainless steel grade FabDigit runs. 304 is highlighted; hover a dot for its name, or open the interactive family chart.
Manufacturability
The process limits FabDigit's quote engine applies to 304. Design inside these and the part quotes instantly; outside them it routes to an engineer.
CNC machining
| Machinability | Good45 / 100 |
|---|---|
| ISO material group | M.1 |
| Cutting speed (rough / finish) | 150 / 180 m/min |
| Minimum wall | 0.8 mm |
| Minimum internal radius | 1.5 mm |
| Drill depth limit | 4× diameter |
| Best surface (machined / polished) | Ra 1.6 / 0.8 µm |
| Hardenable after machining | No |
Sheet metal
| Formability | Better75 / 100 |
|---|---|
| Weldability | Excellent85 / 100 |
| Bendable | Yes |
| Minimum bend radius | 1× thickness |
| Spring-back | High |
| Welding processes | TIG, MIG, SPOT, SEAM, LASER |
Conditions and tempers
How 304 is supplied and what each state is for. The default is what FabDigit quotes unless your drawing says otherwise.
| Condition | Best for | Yield MPa | Tensile MPa | Elong. % | Hardness |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
AnnealedDefault Temper | Softest supply state — for forming, or when you heat-treat after machining | 215 | 505 | 40 | 88 HRB |
Cold Rolled Cold Work | Smoother and more precise than hot rolled — panels, brackets | 415 | 690 | 25 | 95 HRB |
Cold Drawn Cold Work | Precision bar with finished OD — shafts, pins, less machining | 415 | 690 | 25 | 95 HRB |
Heat treatment and post-processing
Operations FabDigit's suppliers routinely run on 304, ranked by how often they make sense for this grade.
Heat treatment
| Solution Anneal | Dissolve carbides; reset austenite (stainless) |
|---|---|
| Stress Relief | Reduce residual stress without changing structure |
| Quench & Temper | Achieve target hardness with controlled toughness28–55 HRC |
Post-processing
| Manual Deburr | Deburrstandard |
|---|---|
| Passivate (Citric) | Passivation |
| Edge Break (0.5mm) | Deburr |
| Passivate (Nitric / AMS 2700) | Passivation |
| Electropolish | Polish |
| Glass Bead Blast | Blast |
| Laser Mark | Marking |
| CMM Inspection | Inspection |
| FAI Report | Inspection |
| Individual Bag | Packaging |
Surface finishes for 304
Coatings and treatments compatible with stainless steel on the processes 304 runs on. Pick them in the quote configurator or call them out on the drawing.
Passivation
- Electropolishing
- Passivation (Stainless Steel)
- Pickling
Plating
- Chrome Plating
- Electroless Nickel (EN)
- Gold Plating
- Hard Chrome Plating
- Nickel Plating
- Silver Plating
PVD Coating
- AlCrN
- AlTiN
- CrN
- DLC
- MoS2
- TiAlN
- TiB2
- TiCN
- TiN
- WC/C
- ZrN
Organic Coating
- Cerakote
- Epoxy Coating
- Painting
- Powder Coating
- PTFE Coating
CVD Coating
- CVD Al2O3
- CVD TiCN
- CVD TiN
- Multilayer CVD
Marking / Decoration
- Chemical Etching
- Dot Peen Marking
- Electro-chemical Etching
- Embossing / Debossing
- Ink Stamping
- Laser Marking
- Mechanical Engraving
- Steel Stamping
- Vibro Engraving / Scribing
Black / Phosphate
- Black Oxide
Thermal Spray
- HVOF Coating
- Plasma Spray
Equivalent designations
Standards and trade names that resolve to Stainless Steel 304 in FabDigit's catalog. Equivalence is nominal — check the exact specification when certification matters.
- UNS
- S30400
- AISI / SAE
- 304L
- EN / DIN / Werkstoff-Nr.
- 1.4301X5CrNi18-101.4307X2CrNi18-9
- GB (China)
- 06Cr19Ni100Cr18Ni9
- JIS
- SUS304
- KS (Korea)
- STS304
- Other
- 18-8 SS18/8 SSA2-70Acier inoxydable 304Inox 304SS304
Stock forms
Raw-material forms FabDigit sources 304 in, with the common sizes held in North American stock.
- Plate thickness
- 1/4"8 mm10 mm1/2"15 mm3/4"20 mm1"
- Sheet thickness
- 0.5 mm0.020"0.8 mm0.032"1 mm1.2 mm0.050"1.5 mm0.064"2 mm0.080"2.5 mm3 mm0.125"+5
- Bar diameter
- 圆钢 Ø60.250"圆钢 Ø8圆钢 Ø10圆钢 Ø120.500"圆钢 Ø14圆钢 Ø16圆钢 Ø180.750"圆钢 Ø20圆钢 Ø22圆钢 Ø251.000"+23
- Bar flat
- 扁钢 20×5扁钢 25×4扁钢 30×4扁钢 40×4扁钢 50×5扁钢 60×10扁钢 80×8扁钢 100×12扁钢 120×12扁钢 150×16扁钢 200×20扁钢 250×25扁钢 300×30
- Bar square
- 方钢 6×6方钢 8×8方钢 10×10方钢 12×12方钢 16×16方钢 20×20方钢 25×25方钢 30×30方钢 40×40方钢 50×50方钢 63×63方钢 80×80方钢 100×100方钢 120×120+2
- Tube od
- 钢圆管 Ø18×1.5钢圆管 Ø20×2钢圆管 Ø25×2.5钢圆管 Ø32×2.5钢圆管 Ø40×3钢圆管 Ø48×2钢圆管 Ø57×3钢圆管 Ø60×3钢圆管 Ø76×4钢圆管 Ø89×4钢圆管 Ø100×5钢圆管 Ø108×5钢圆管 Ø114×6钢圆管 Ø133×5+4
- Tube rect_tube
- 矩钢管 40×20×2矩钢管 50×25×2矩钢管 60×40×2矩钢管 80×40×3矩钢管 100×50×2.5矩钢管 120×60×6矩钢管 150×100×6矩钢管 200×100×6矩钢管 250×150×6矩钢管 300×200×6
- Tube sq_tube
- 方钢管 20×20×1.5方钢管 25×25×1.5方钢管 30×30×1.5方钢管 40×40×2方钢管 50×50×2方钢管 60×60×2方钢管 70×70×2.5方钢管 80×80×3方钢管 100×100×2.5方钢管 120×120×3方钢管 150×150×3方钢管 200×200×4方钢管 250×250×4方钢管 300×300×4
- Structural Shape angle
- 角钢 20×20×3角钢 25×25×3角钢 30×30×4角钢 40×40×5角钢 50×50×4角钢 63×63×6角钢 70×70×5角钢 75×75×8角钢 80×80×8角钢 90×90×7角钢 100×63×6角钢 110×110×10角钢 125×125×10角钢 140×140×10+4
- Structural Shape channel
- 槽钢 50×37×4.5槽钢 63×40×4.8槽钢 80×43×5槽钢 100×48×5.3槽钢 126×53×5.5槽钢 140×58×6槽钢 160×63×6.5槽钢 180×68×7槽钢 200×73×7槽钢 220×77×7槽钢 250×78×7槽钢 280×82×7.5槽钢 300×85×7.5
Property data is compiled from published supplier and standards handbooks and normalised for comparison; hardness values on non-Brinell scales are converted approximately for charting only. Manufacturability limits are FabDigit quote-engine defaults and may be relaxed by engineering review. Nothing on this page is a certification — request mill certs, CoC or material test reports with your order.