Silver (Ag)

Element 47 · transition metal · group 11, period 5

Electron shells, 2 + 8 + 18 + 18 + 1. The outer shell is highlighted - it is the only one that takes part in bonding.

Silver is element 47, a transition metal in group 11 and period 5. Its electron configuration is [Kr] 4d10 5s1. The shells fill 2, 8, 18, 18, 1. Courses differ here. Counting only the outer s subshell gives 1; counting the inner d subshell with it gives 11, which is the group number. It commonly forms ions with a charge of +1.

47 protons
1/11 valence e−
+1
d-block

Properties

Atomic number	47
Symbol	Ag
Standard atomic weight	107.87 u
Group	11
Period	5
Block	d-block
Category	transition metal
Electron configuration	1s² 2s² 2p⁶ 3s² 3p⁶ 3d¹⁰ 4s² 4p⁶ 4d¹⁰ 5s¹
Noble-gas notation	[Kr] 4d¹⁰ 5s¹
Electrons per shell	2, 8, 18, 18, 1
Valence electrons	1 or 11
Common ionic charge	+1
Electronegativity (Pauling)	1.93
Protons / electrons	47 / 47

Electron configuration of silver

Orbitals fill from the lowest energy upward. Writing that out for silver gives 1s² 2s² 2p⁶ 3s² 3p⁶ 3d¹⁰ 4s² 4p⁶ 4d¹⁰ 5s¹, which is 1s2 2s2 2p6 3s2 3p6 3d10 4s2 4p6 4d10 5s1 in plain text.

Everything up to Kr is the same as in that noble gas, so it is usually abbreviated to [Kr] 4d¹⁰ 5s¹. The part outside the bracket is what does the chemistry.

Subshell	Electrons	Capacity
1s	2	2
2s	2	2
2p	6	6
3s	2	2
3p	6	6
3d	10	10
4s	2	2
4p	6	6
4d	10	10
5s	1	2

Silver ion charge

Silver commonly forms ions with a charge of +1.

Common questions

How many valence electrons does silver have?

There is no single agreed answer for silver. Courses differ here. Counting only the outer s subshell gives 1; counting the inner d subshell with it gives 11, which is the group number. Check which convention your course uses before answering.

What is the electron configuration of silver?

1s2 2s2 2p6 3s2 3p6 3d10 4s2 4p6 4d10 5s1, or [Kr] 4d10 5s1 written from the previous noble gas. Orbitals fill lowest energy first, but silver is one of the elements that breaks that order - a half-filled or filled d subshell is stable enough to be worth borrowing an s electron for.

What is the charge of silver?

Silver commonly forms ions with a charge of +1. Transition metals have several accessible oxidation states, which is why more than one charge is listed.

How many protons, electrons and neutrons does silver have?

A neutral silver atom has 47 protons and 47 electrons. Its standard atomic weight is 107.87, so the most common isotope has about 61 neutrons.

See the ionic charge of every element →

How this page was produced. The configuration was built by filling orbitals in energy order from atomic number 47 alone, not looked up. The shell counts, the valence count and the charge all follow from it. Nothing on this page is written per element.