A period on the periodic table is a row of chemical elements. All elements in a row have the same number of electron shells. Each next element in a period has one more proton and is less metallic than its predecessor. Arranged this way, elements in the same group (column) have similar chemical and physical properties, reflecting the periodic law. For example, the halogens lie in the second-to-last group (group 17) and share similar properties, such as high reactivity and the tendency to gain one electron to arrive at a noble-gas electronic configuration. As of 2026, a total of 118 elements have been discovered and confirmed.
Modern quantum mechanics explains these periodic trends in properties in terms of electron shells. As atomic number increases, shells fill with electrons in approximately the order shown in the ordering rule diagram. The filling of each shell corresponds to a row in the table. In the f-block and p-block of the periodic table, elements within the same period generally do not exhibit trends and similarities in properties (vertical trends down groups are more significant). However, in the d-block, trends across periods become significant, and in the f-block elements show a high degree of similarity across periods.
Periods There are currently seven complete periods in the periodic table, comprising the 118 known elements. Any new elements will be placed into an eighth period; see extended periodic table. The elements are colour-coded below by their block: red for the s-block, yellow for the p-block, blue for the d-block, and green for the f-block.
Period 1
The first period contains fewer elements than any other, with only two, hydrogen and helium. They therefore do not follow the octet rule, but rather a duplet rule. Chemically, helium behaves like a noble gas, and thus is taken to be part of the group 18 elements. However, in terms of its nuclear structure it belongs to the s-block, and is therefore sometimes classified as a group 2 element, or simultaneously both 2 and 18. Hydrogen readily loses and gains an electron, and so behaves chemically as both a group 1 and a group 17 element.
Hydrogen (H) is the most abundant of the chemical elements, constituting roughly 75% of the universe's elemental mass. Ionized hydrogen is a sole proton. Stars in the main sequence are mainly composed of hydrogen in its plasma state. Elemental hydrogen is relatively rare on Earth, and is industrially produced from hydrocarbons such as methane. Hydrogen can form compounds with most elements and is present in water and most organic compounds. Helium (He) exists only as a gas except in extreme conditions. It is the second-lightest element and is the second-most abundant in the universe. Most helium was formed during the Big Bang, but new helium is created through nuclear fusion of hydrogen in stars. On Earth, helium is relatively rare, only occurring as a byproduct of the natural decay of some radioactive elements. Such 'radiogenic' helium is trapped within natural gas in concentrations of up to seven percent by volume.
Period 2
Period 2 elements involve the 2s and 2p orbitals. They include the biologically most essential elements besides hydrogen: carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen.
Lithium (Li) is the lightest metal and the least dense solid element. In its non-ionized state it is one of the most reactive elements, and so is only ever found naturally in compounds. It is the heaviest primordial element forged in large quantities during the Big Bang. Beryllium (Be) has one of the highest melting points of all the light metals. Small amounts of beryllium were synthesised during the Big Bang, although most of it decayed or reacted further within stars to create larger nuclei, like carbon, nitrogen or oxygen. Beryllium is classified by the International Agency for Research on Cancer as a group 1 carcinogen. Between 1% and 15% of people are sensitive to beryllium and may develop an inflammatory reaction in their respiratory system and skin, called chronic beryllium disease. The primary mirrors on the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) are made of beryllium. Boron (B) does not occur naturally as a free element, but in compounds such as borates. It is an essential plant micronutrient, required for cell wall strength and development, cell division, seed and fruit development, sugar transport and hormone development, though high levels are toxic. Carbon (C) is the fourth-most abundant element in the universe by mass after hydrogen, helium and oxygen and is the second-most abundant element in the human body by mass after oxygen, the third-most abundant by number of atoms. There are an almost infinite number of compounds that contain carbon due to carbon's ability to form long stable chains of C—C bonds. All organic compounds, those essential for life, contain at least one atom of carbon; combined with hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, sulfur, and phosphorus, carbon is the basis of every important biological compound. Nitrogen (N) is found mainly as mostly inert diatomic gas, N2, which makes up 78% of the Earth's atmosphere by volume. It is an essential component of proteins and therefore of life. Oxygen (O) comprising 21% of the atmosphere by volume and is required for respiration by all (or nearly all) animals, as well as being the principal component of water. Oxygen is the third-most abundant element in the universe, and oxygen compounds dominate the Earth's crust. Fluorine (F) is the most reactive element in its non-ionized state, and so is never found that way in nature. Neon (Ne) is a noble gas used in neon lighting.
Period 3
All period three elements occur in nature and have at least one stable isotope. All but the noble gas argon are essential to basic geology and biology.
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