Yttrium is a soft, silver-metallic, lustrous and highly crystalline transition metal in group 3. As expected by periodic trends, it is less electronegative than its predecessor in the group, scandium, and less electronegative than the next member of period 5, zirconium; additionally, it is more electronegative to its successor in its group, lanthanum, being closer in electronegativity to the later lanthanides due to the lanthanide contraction Yttrium is the first d-block element in the fifth period.

Yttrium is found in most rare-earth minerals,it is found in some uranium ores, but is never found in the Earth's crust as a free element.About 31 ppm of the Earth's crust is yttrium, making it the 28th most abundant element, 400 times more common than silver. Yttrium is found in soil in concentrations between 10 and 150 ppm (dry weight average of 23 ppm) and in sea water at 9 ppt.

Yttrium Acetate is widely applied in electronic ceramics, glass, and electronics. High purity grades are the most important materials for tri-bands Rare Earth phosphors and Yttrium-Iron-Garnets, which are very effective microwave filters. Yttrium compounds are used as a catalyst for ethylene polymerization. Yttrium is used in the production of a large variety of synthetic garnets, and Yttria is used to make Yttrium Iron Garnets, which are very effective microwave filter

The pure element is relatively stable in air in bulk form, due to passivation of a protective oxide (Y₂O₃)film that forms on the surface. This film can reach a thickness of 10 µm when yttrium is heated to 750 °C in water vapor.When finely divided, however, yttrium is very unstable in air; shavings or turnings of the metal can ignite in air at temperatures exceeding 400 °C.Yttrium nitride (YN) is formed when the metal is heated to 1000 °C in nitrogen.