How many valence electrons are in carbon?

Carbon atoms have 4 valence electrons each. To find how many valence electrons are in an atom, you can look at the periodic table: Look at the writing above each Group, or column. The number next to the "A" is the number of valence electrons in an atom of an element in that Group. Carbon is in Group 4A, so it has 4 valence electrons. read more

Thus, carbon has 4 valence electrons. A quicker way to determine the number of valence electrons in carbon is to determine the group number (exclude metals) of carbon, which is 4. 4 is also the number of valence electrons for carbon and every other element in that column. read more

Valence electrons are the electrons found in an atom's outer electron shell. A neutral carbon atom has a total of six electrons, but not all six electrons are located in the same energy level. Two of them are located in the first shell, while the remaining four are located in the second shell. read more