Free Printable Periodic Table of the Elements

About these periodic table handouts

The standard periodic table shows all 118 known elements with atomic number, symbol, name and standard atomic weight, colored by family. The names, symbols and numbers follow IUPAC, and the atomic weights come from the IUPAC Commission on Isotopic Abundances and Atomic Weights (CIAAW) 2024 table. Where an element's weight varies in nature, such as carbon or oxygen, the table prints the conventional value; a dash means the element has no stable isotopes and no standard atomic weight.

Colors group the elements into alkali metals, alkaline earth metals, transition metals, post-transition metals, metalloids, other nonmetals, halogens, noble gases, lanthanides and actinides. Group numbers run along the top from 1 to 18 and periods down the side from 1 to 7. Lutetium and lawrencium are placed in group 3, following IUPAC's 2021 recommendation. Elements 109 to 118 are colored by their group position because their chemistry is mostly unconfirmed.

The blank version gives only the atomic number in each box, so students can write symbols and names from memory or a reference. The first-36 version has large tiles for the elements most courses meet first, with a diagram that shows how to read each tile. Use the standard table for reference, the blank table for practice and quizzes, and the first-36 table for a younger or first-time class.

How to use them

1. Print the standard table in color for the wall or in black and white for notebooks.
2. Point out the group numbers and period numbers along the edges.
3. Have students color the blank table to match the family key.
4. Quiz with the blank table, giving a symbol and asking for the number.
5. Use the first-36 table for a first unit on atoms and elements.
6. Compare tile data with the key on the first-36 page when students ask what each number means.

Classroom tips

• Have students color the blank table themselves; choosing the family colors is a memory task in itself.
• Look for patterns on the standard table: ask which families are mostly gases, which are all metals.
• Use the first-36 page as a reading-the-tile lesson before showing the full table.
• Keep one color copy laminated at the lab bench so no one hunts for a weight.

Notes on this page

• Atomic weights follow IUPAC/CIAAW 2024; elements with no standard atomic weight show a dash. Zirconium (2024) and hafnium (2019) use the newer CIAAW values.
• Color families follow common classroom conventions; elements 109 to 118 are colored by group position because their chemistry is mostly unconfirmed.

Where the facts come from

• CIAAW (IUPAC Commission on Isotopic Abundances and Atomic Weights), Standard Atomic Weights 2024: Standard atomic weights for elements 1 to 118
• CIAAW, Zirconium and Hafnium pages: 2024 and 2019 revisions to zirconium and hafnium
• IUPAC, Periodic Table of Elements: Element names, symbols and atomic numbers; group 3 placement
• NIST, Atomic Weights and Isotopic Compositions: Second source for atomic data
• PyPI: periodictable 2.1.0 and mendeleev 1.3.0: Programmatic cross-check of symbols, names, numbers and weights

Last reviewed 2026-10-03. Handout Hero designs are original and made for this site. They are general reference material; check your own school, district or tradition where it matters.