AQA GCSE Chemistry periodic table (8462): what it shows and how to use it

Formula sheet

Press the card to open today's Chemistry paper with a periodic table beside it. The drawing is our own, showing the same facts as AQA's insert. The facts come from AQA's June 2022 insert, the latest on AQA's site.

Relative atomic masses as AQA prints them

The first 20 elements. AQA prints whole numbers, except chlorine (35.5) and copper (63.5).

Reading AQA's layout

• The key puts relative atomic mass over the symbol and atomic (proton) number under it.
• Groups run 1 to 7 and then 0. The transition metals sit between Groups 2 and 3 without a number.
• A footnote says the lanthanides (58 to 71) and actinides (90 to 103) are left out.
• A second footnote says copper and chlorine are not rounded to whole numbers.
• Masses of some elements are in square brackets, for example [97] for technetium. Use what is printed.
• The table ends at oganesson, 118, and a key page lists the elements by name.

The first 20 elements on two boards

Only the numbers differ, never the position. Use whichever table is in your paper: potassium is 39 here and 39.1 on OCR.

Missing from the insert

• Trends such as the reactivity of the alkali metals.
• Electron arrangements like 2,8,1 for sodium.
• Ion charges and which elements are metals.
• Melting points, electronegativity or densities.

Worked example: the mass of a hydroxide

Find the relative formula mass of Mg(OH)₂. The 2 outside the bracket multiplies both O and H.

With 11.6 g of the compound, the amount in moles is 11.6 ÷ 58 = 0.20 mol.

Worked example: percentage of oxygen in Ca(OH)₂

Because AQA rounds to whole numbers, the arithmetic is tidy. Check formula masses with the Molar Mass Calculator, which uses fuller values.

Worked example: where does chlorine sit?

Chlorine has atomic number 17, in Group 7 and Period 3, so it has 7 outer electrons and 3 shells. Calcium is in Group 2 and Period 4.

Check your skill at reading a relative atomic mass in our Atomic Structure course, then press Mark to see it marked there:

Other boards

OCR's sheet names every element and prints masses to one decimal place, as the comparison above shows: see our OCR guide. For CCEA see our CCEA GCSE Chemistry periodic table guide. Dates and boundaries are in the GCSE Chemistry guide.

Mock practice

Try the daily Foundation or Higher paper: 8 questions, 25 to 35 marks, not an AQA paper. Write the masses you use at the top of each answer.

Exam answers

Today's paper comes with worked answers and a mark scheme from us once it is marked. We publish no AQA official answers.

Read next

UK · GCSEOCR GCSE Chemistry periodic table (J248): the data sheetThe periodic table on the OCR Chemistry A (J248) data sheet for 2027: its layout, the relative atomic masses it gives, what it leaves out, and examples.