Nickel is a silvery-white lustrous metal with a slight golden tinge. Nickel belongs to the transition metals and is hard and ductile. Nickel can be combined with other metals, such as iron, copper, chromium, and zinc, to form alloys.

Nickel is primarily sold for first use as refined metal or ferronickel. About 65% of the nickel is used to manufacture stainless steels. Another 20% is used in other steel and non-ferrous alloys, such as superalloys (e.g., Inconel 600) and nonferrous alloys (e.g., cupronickel). Both families of alloys are widely used because of their corrosion resistance, often for highly specialized industrial, aerospace and military applications. About 9% is used in plating and 6% in other uses, including coins, electronics, and in batteries for portable equipment and hybrid cars. In many of these applications there is no substitute for nickel without reducing performance or increasing cost.