Stainless Steel Material Guide – How to Differentiate between 304 and 201

In the eyes of many consumers, 304 stainless steel and 201 stainless steel are almost no different and it is really hard to distinguish them with naked eyes. Here I will introduce you to some methods to distinguish one from the other, hope it will be helpful to customers who wholesale stainless steel water bottles.

Specifications: There are two commonly used stainless steel materials,201 and 304. The actual composition of them is different, the quality of 304 is better while 201 is not that good, so the price of 304 is much more expensive than 201. One more reason is that 304 is an imported stainless steel plate and 201 is a domestic stainless steel plate.

The composition of 201 is 17Cr-4.5Ni-6Mn-N, a section of Ni steel, which is usually used as a replacement for 301. It can be used in railway vehicles after cold working.

304 is composed of 18Cr-9Ni, which is the most widely used stainless steel, heat resistant steel. It is usually used in food production equipment, chemical equipment, nuclear energy, etc.

201 contains high manganese content, which will lead itself easier to rust but its surface always shines dark light.304 contains more chromium, its surface is a matte finish and will not rust. Put the two together and you will find it clearly. The most important thing is the difference in corrosion resistance. The corrosion resistance of 201 is very poor because 201 contains less nickel, which means its price is also lower. The biggest difference between 201 and 304 is Nickel content.304 has higher nickel content, so it will not rust and its price will also be higher. (We can distinguish them by Stainless steel potion.)

Auland is a professional stainless steel water bottle manufacturer. We use high-quality stainless steel materials to provide customers with the best cost-effective stainless steel water bottles.