What Does Super Glue Stick To (And Doesn’t Stick To)

Cyanoacrylate adhesives or super glues are known for their ability to stick to anything you can think of. People think of them as universal adhesives that can fix any broken material.

But is that true? Do super glues perform that well on all surfaces, or are there some materials that aren’t suited for this versatile adhesive?

Is there a difference between the models of super glue, and are there some that do better on certain materials than the other?

We will answer all those questions and more in this article. Read on to find all the compatible materials for super glue bonding.

What Are The Materials Super Glue Sticks To


We will first go through common materials that most of the cyanoacrylate adhesives work well. Notice that we said most as there will always be a slight difference in the chemical composition of super glue between different manufacturers.

These are the materials that about 90% of the super glue adhesives will work great on.

Wood

wood

Super glue is widely used for small wood-crafting projects, balsa wood modeling, and repairs. There are better alternatives out there, but for small projects and repairs, this adhesive will do just fine.

The best super glue in this department is the Gorilla super glue. This super glue expands and is specially formulated to create a cross-linking bond with the wood like no other.

The Gorilla Glue company was founded with the goal to create the best glue for wood, and that’s why their adhesives are among the best wood glues you can buy.

Gorilla 6206005 36oz Glue, 36 oz, Natural Wood Color
  • Complete Projects Fast: Requires only 20-30 minutes of clamp time, fully cured in 24 hours. Quickly creates an incredibly strong bond for wood projects.

Last update on 2024-03-29 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

You can check out the gorilla super glue for wood on Amazon here!

Metal

Super glue sticks to metal excellently and is one of the top choices for bonding small metal parts.

Metal surfaces, especially the ones like aluminum, often have oxide layers that need to be removed and the surface prepaired.

Most metal adhesions fail because of improper preparation of the surface and not the bad adhesive.

Most of the super glue adhesives will work with metal, but we recommend either a Loctite super glue or gorilla super glue.

Gorilla Clear Glue, 5.75 Ounce Bottle, Clear
Loctite Super Glue Ultra Gel Control, Clear Superglue For Plastic, Wood, Metal, Crafts, & Repair, Cyanoacrylate Adhesive Instant Glue, Quick Dry - 0.14 fl oz Bottle, Pack Of 6
Gorilla Clear Glue, 5.75 Ounce Bottle, Clear
Loctite Super Glue Ultra Gel Control, Clear Superglue For Plastic, Wood, Metal, Crafts, & Repair, Cyanoacrylate Adhesive Instant Glue, Quick Dry - 0.14 fl oz Bottle, Pack Of 6
Amazon Prime
Amazon Prime
Gorilla Clear Glue, 5.75 Ounce Bottle, Clear
Gorilla Clear Glue, 5.75 Ounce Bottle, Clear
Amazon Prime
Loctite Super Glue Ultra Gel Control, Clear Superglue For Plastic, Wood, Metal, Crafts, & Repair, Cyanoacrylate Adhesive Instant Glue, Quick Dry - 0.14 fl oz Bottle, Pack Of 6
Loctite Super Glue Ultra Gel Control, Clear Superglue For Plastic, Wood, Metal, Crafts, & Repair, Cyanoacrylate Adhesive Instant Glue, Quick Dry - 0.14 fl oz Bottle, Pack Of 6
Amazon Prime

Last update on 2024-03-29 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

You can check out the Loctite Super Glue Gel on Amazon here!

You can check out the Gorilla Super Glue Gel on Amazon here!

Stone

Stone is a porous material, meaning it lets liquid flow or it passes through it. Super glue, and especially the gel versions, have just the right viscosity to seep into the stone and make the bond super strong.

They are one of the best glue for stones that you can find along with epoxies and polyurethane adhesives.

The super glue model we found works the best with stone is the Loctite super glue gel. The gel-like consistency will help you glue stones with ease!

Loctite Super Glue Gel Control, Clear Superglue For Plastic, Wood, Metal, Crafts, & Repair, Cyanoacrylate Adhesive Instant Glue, Quick Dry - 0.14 fl oz Bottle, Pack Of 6
  • Superior Performance: Cyanoacrylate super glue specially formulated to fix breaks around the home or office and hold stronger

Last update on 2024-03-29 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

You can check it out on Amazon Here!

Ceramic

ceramic vase

Broken ceramic vases and sculptures are one of the reasons super glue got so popular today. It is the absolute king of gluing ceramic and can do so in record time because of its fast drying properties.

Basically, all super glue models work on ceramics and will do an excellent job at fixing and joining the small broken pieces.

We recommend Gorilla Super glue, Loctite Super glue, and Original Super Glue.

Loctite Super Glue Gel Control, Clear Superglue For Plastic, Wood, Metal, Crafts, & Repair, Cyanoacrylate Adhesive Instant Glue, Quick Dry - 0.14 fl oz Bottle, Pack Of 6
Gorilla Super Glue Gel XL, 25 Gram, Clear, (Pack of 1)
Super Glue 15187 , Clear- pack of 12
Loctite Super Glue Gel Control, Clear Superglue For Plastic, Wood, Metal, Crafts, & Repair, Cyanoacrylate Adhesive Instant Glue, Quick Dry - 0.14 fl oz Bottle, Pack Of 6
Gorilla Super Glue Gel XL, 25 Gram, Clear, (Pack of 1)
Super Glue 15187 , Clear- pack of 12
Amazon Prime
Amazon Prime
Amazon Prime
Loctite Super Glue Gel Control, Clear Superglue For Plastic, Wood, Metal, Crafts, & Repair, Cyanoacrylate Adhesive Instant Glue, Quick Dry - 0.14 fl oz Bottle, Pack Of 6
Loctite Super Glue Gel Control, Clear Superglue For Plastic, Wood, Metal, Crafts, & Repair, Cyanoacrylate Adhesive Instant Glue, Quick Dry - 0.14 fl oz Bottle, Pack Of 6
Amazon Prime
Gorilla Super Glue Gel XL, 25 Gram, Clear, (Pack of 1)
Gorilla Super Glue Gel XL, 25 Gram, Clear, (Pack of 1)
Amazon Prime
Super Glue 15187 , Clear- pack of 12
Super Glue 15187 , Clear- pack of 12
Amazon Prime

Last update on 2024-03-29 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

Gorilla Super Glue on Amazon

Loctite Super Glue on Amazon

Original Super Glue on Amazon

Leather

While there are better alternatives to bonding leather, super glue does a pretty good job at it.

Not all super glue models will work on leather, so be wary when choosing one for that kind of application.

The one we had the most success with is the Loctite super glue gel. It performs better than all other models for this purpose.

Check out the Loctite glue on Amazon here!

Loctite Super Glue Gel Control, Clear Superglue For Plastic, Wood, Metal, Crafts, & Repair, Cyanoacrylate Adhesive Instant Glue, Quick Dry - 0.14 fl oz Bottle, Pack Of 6
  • Superior Performance: Cyanoacrylate super glue specially formulated to fix breaks around the home or office and hold stronger

Last update on 2024-03-29 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

Human Skin

This was our attempt to be funny, but seriously, human skin seems to be the favorite material that super glue sticks to.

Make sure to wear gloves and old clothes when working with super glue since you might have a hard time removing it later.


What Are The Materials Super Glue Doesn’t Stick To


plastic bottles

Let’s first note that super glue adhesives can indeed bond any material. It’s just that some models perform better on some materials than others. You need to have this in mind and do your research before going for a certain adhesive for a certain application.

The notorious material that doesn’t seem to work well with most super glue adhesives is plastic.

Plastic seems to be troublesome for most under $1 super glue models from supermarkets, but also some more expensive models as well.

For example, gorilla glue struggles a lot with some types of plastic like the ones made from polyethylene.

On the other hand, Loctite super glue seems to work excellently with almost all types of plastic materials.

We couldn’t find a thermoplastic that this adhesive couldn’t bond and is, in our opinion, the best super glue for the plastic you can buy.


Conclusion


There are more materials these versatile adhesives can stick to, but we didn’t want this post to be too long, so we included the most commonly bonded materials.

There isn’t a list of materials that you can use to find what can super glue stick to because different models have different properties.

Make sure to do your research before choosing super glue, and check whether it works well with your particular material.