ASTM International is one of the world’s largest voluntary standards-development organizations. Its consensus documents define how materials are tested, specified, and reported, and are used worldwide for quality control, product development, and procurement.
Why ASTM standards matter in testing
An ASTM method fixes the variables that change a result (specimen geometry, conditioning, apparatus, loading rate, calculation, and reporting) so measurements stay comparable across suppliers, production lots, and laboratories.
What ASTM standards cover
ASTM standards are grouped into lettered series by material or subject:
| Series | Scope |
|---|---|
| A | Ferrous metals (steel and iron products) |
| B | Nonferrous metals (aluminum, copper, magnesium) |
| C | Ceramics, concrete, and masonry |
| D | Miscellaneous materials such as plastics, rubber, paper, and textiles |
| E | Miscellaneous subjects such as test methods, statistics, and machine verification |
| F | End-use products such as fasteners, medical, and consumer goods |
Common test types
Tension, compression, flexure (bend), impact, and shear or peel and tear, plus practices for verifying machine force and extensometers. Most are performed on a universal testing machine with matched grips, fixtures, and extensometry.
How to read a ASTM designation
A designation combines a series letter, a sequential number, an optional M for the SI (metric) companion, and a hyphenated year of adoption or last revision:
| Part | Example | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Letter | E | Series (here, general test methods) |
| Number | 8 | Sequential standard number |
| M | E8M | Metric (SI) companion version |
| Year | -21 | Year of adoption or last revision |
Browse all ASTM standards
- ASTM A1061/A1061M Multi-Wire Steel Prestressing Strand Testing
- ASTM A370 Mechanical Testing of Steel Products
- ASTM A416/A416M: Low-Relaxation Seven-Wire Steel Strand for Prestressed Concrete
- ASTM A931 Tension Testing of Wire Ropes and Strand
- ASTM A938 Torsion Testing of Wire
- ASTM B557 Tension Testing for Wrought and Cast Aluminum and Magnesium Alloy Products
- ASTM C109/C109M Compressive Strength of Hydraulic Cement Mortars
- ASTM C1550 Flexural Toughness of Fiber-Reinforced Concrete
- ASTM C170/C170M: Compressive Strength of Dimension Stone
- ASTM C297/C297M Flatwise Tensile Strength of Sandwich Constructions
- ASTM C305 Mechanical Mixing of Hydraulic Cement Pastes and Mortars of Plastic Consistency
- ASTM C365/C365M Flatwise Compressive Properties of Sandwich Cores
- ASTM C367/C367M Testing for Acoustical Ceiling Panels
- ASTM C39/C39M Compression Testing of Cylindrical Concrete Specimens
- ASTM C42/C42M Testing for Drilled Concrete Cores and Sawed Beams
- ASTM C617/C617M Standard Practice for Capping Cylindrical Concrete Specimens
- ASTM C633 Thermal Spray Coating Adhesion and Cohesion Testing
- ASTM C78/C78M Flexural Strength of Concrete Testing
- ASTM C880/C880M Flexural Strength Testing for Dimension Stone
- ASTM C99/C99M – Modulus of Rupture of Dimension Stone
- ASTM D1037 – Test Methods for Wood-Base Fiber & Particle Panel Materials
- ASTM D1054 Rubber Resilience (Goodyear-Healey Rebound Pendulum)
- ASTM D1424 Tearing Strength of Fabrics (Elmendorf Pendulum)
- ASTM D1621 Compressive Properties of Rigid Cellular Plastics
- ASTM D1708 — Tensile Properties of Plastics (Microtensile Specimens)
- ASTM D1822 Tensile-Impact Resistance of Plastics
- ASTM D1922 Propagation Tear Resistance (Elmendorf) for Plastic Film
- ASTM D2105 – Longitudinal tensile properties of fiberglass (RTRP/RPMP) pipe and tube
- ASTM D2290 Apparent Hoop Tensile Strength of Plastic Pipe (Split Disk / Ring Segment)
- ASTM D2344/D2344M Short-Beam Strength (Short-Beam Shear) Test for Polymer Matrix Composites
- ASTM D2412 — Plastic Pipe Stiffness by Parallel-Plate Loading
- ASTM D256 — Izod Pendulum Impact Resistance of Plastics
- ASTM D2990 — Creep and creep-rupture testing of plastics (tension, compression, and flexure)
- ASTM D3039/D3039M – Tensile Properties of Polymer Matrix Composite Materials
- ASTM D3330/D3330M — Peel Adhesion of Pressure-Sensitive Tape
- ASTM D3410/D3410M — Compressive Properties of Polymer Matrix Composites by Shear Loading
- ASTM D3518/D3518M — In-plane shear response of polymer matrix composites (±45° tensile laminate)
- ASTM D3763 — High-Speed Puncture Properties of Plastics (Instrumented Impact)
- ASTM D3763-02 High Speed Puncture Properties of Plastics (Instrumented Impact)
- ASTM D395 Compression Set Testing (Rubber & Elastomers)
- ASTM D412 Tensile Test Methods for Vulcanized Rubber & Thermoplastic Elastomers
- ASTM D430 Rubber Deterioration — Dynamic Fatigue (Flex Fatigue)
- ASTM D5034 Grab Tensile Test for Textile Fabrics
- ASTM D5035 – Breaking Force & Elongation of Textile Fabrics (Strip Method)
- ASTM D5379/D5379M – Shear Properties of Composite Materials (V-Notched Beam)
- ASTM D5528 (DCB) Mode I Interlaminar Fracture Toughness of Composites
- ASTM D573 Rubber Air-Oven Aging (Deterioration) Test Method
- ASTM D5734 — Tearing Strength of Nonwoven Fabrics (Elmendorf / Falling-Pendulum)
- ASTM D5748 Protrusion Puncture Resistance of Stretch Wrap Film
- ASTM D5868 Lap Shear Adhesion for FRP Bonding (Test Method)
- ASTM D6110 Charpy Impact Resistance of Notched Plastics
- ASTM D624 Tear Strength Testing (Rubber & TPE)
- ASTM D6272 Four-Point Flexural Properties of Plastics (Test Method)
- ASTM D638 – Standard Test Method for Tensile Properties of Plastics
- ASTM D6484/D6484M – Open-Hole Compressive Strength of Polymer Matrix Composite Laminates
- ASTM D6641/D6641M – Compressive Properties of Polymer Matrix Composites (CLC Fixture)
- ASTM D6742/D6742M Filled-Hole Tension & Compression Testing (Polymer Matrix Composites)
- ASTM D695 — Compressive Properties of Rigid Plastics (Compression Test Method)
- ASTM D7078/D7078M — V-Notched Rail Shear Test for Composite Shear Properties
- ASTM D7121 Rubber Resilience (Schob Rebound Pendulum) Test Method
- ASTM D7136/D7136M — Drop-Weight Impact Damage Resistance of Polymer Matrix Composites
- ASTM D7137/D7137M — Compression After Impact (CAI) / Compressive Residual Strength of Damaged Composite Plates
- ASTM D7192 — High-Speed Puncture Properties of Plastic Films
- ASTM D7264 (D7264/D7264M) — Flexural Properties of Polymer Matrix Composite Materials
- ASTM D790 — Flexural (3-Point Bend) Properties of Plastics
- ASTM D7905 / D7905M – Mode II Interlaminar Fracture Toughness (ENF) of UD Composites
- ASTM D828 — Tensile Properties of Paper and Paperboard (CRE Method)
- ASTM D882 (D882-26) — Tensile Properties of Thin Plastic Sheeting
- ASTM E1012: Verification of Testing Frame & Specimen Alignment
- ASTM E139 — Creep, Creep-Rupture, and Stress-Rupture Testing of Metallic Materials
- ASTM E143 — Shear Modulus at Room Temperature (Test Method)
- ASTM E190 Guided Bend Test for Ductility of Welds
- ASTM E21 Elevated-Temperature Tensile Testing of Metallic Materials
- ASTM E2248 – Impact Testing of Miniaturized Charpy V-Notch (MCVN) Specimens
- ASTM E2298: Instrumented Impact Testing of Metallic Materials (Instrumented Charpy)
- ASTM E23 — Notched Bar Impact Testing of Metallic Materials (Charpy & Izod)
- ASTM E290 Bend Testing of Material for Ductility
- ASTM E345 – Tension Testing of Metallic Foil
- ASTM E4-24 Force Calibration and Verification of Testing Machines
- ASTM E436 Drop-Weight Tear Test (DWTT) for Ferritic Steels
- ASTM E488/E488M – Strength of Anchors in Concrete Elements
- ASTM E646: Tensile Strain‑Hardening Exponent (n‑Value) for Metallic Sheet
- ASTM E74 (Class AA) — Force-measuring instrument calibration for reference standards
- ASTM E8/E8M – Tension Testing of Metallic Materials
- ASTM E83: Calibration, verification, and classification of extensometer systems
- ASTM E9 Compression Testing of Metallic Materials (Room Temperature)
- ASTM F1306 — Slow Rate Penetration Resistance of Flexible Barrier Films and Laminates
- ASTM F606 / F606M Fastener Mechanical Testing
- ASTM F606-02 Fastener Mechanical Testing (Bolts, Nuts, Washers, Rivets)
- ASTM F606/F606M — Mechanical Testing of Threaded Fasteners, Washers, DTIs, and Rivets