Electronegativity Calculator
Calculate electronegativity difference between two elements and determine the type of chemical bond formed: nonpolar covalent, polar covalent, or ionic.
Enter first element symbol (e.g., Na, H, O)
Enter second element symbol (e.g., Cl, O, S)
What is electronegativity?
Electronegativity measures an atom's ability to attract shared electrons in a chemical bond. The Pauling scale (1.0-4.0) is most common: fluorine (3.98) is most electronegative; francium (0.7) is least. Higher electronegativity means stronger electron attraction in bonds.
How do you predict bond type from electronegativity difference?
ΔEN = |EN₁ - EN₂| predicts bond character: ΔEN < 0.4 = nonpolar covalent (equal sharing, e.g., H-H); 0.4-1.7 = polar covalent (unequal sharing, e.g., H-Cl); ΔEN > 1.7 = ionic (electron transfer, e.g., NaCl). Larger ΔEN means more polar/ionic character.
What is the difference between electronegativity and electron affinity?
Electronegativity is a relative measure of atom behavior in bonds (theoretical scale); electron affinity is the actual energy released when an atom gains an electron (experimental, kJ/mol). They're related but not identical. EA measures a single process; EN describes bond behavior.
Which bonds have partial charges?
In polar covalent bonds, the more electronegative atom gains partial negative charge (δ⁻) while the less electronegative atom has partial positive charge (δ⁺). Water (H-O-H): oxygen (3.44) > hydrogen (2.20), so O is δ⁻ and H is δ⁺. This polarity enables hydrogen bonding.