Updated 19 October 2026
Cerakote is a ceramic-based thin-film coating made by NIC Industries. It is sprayed on by hand at roughly 25 microns (one thousandth of an inch), then cured in an oven or, for the high-temperature range, in the air. The result is a hard, colour-stable finish that resists wear, chemicals and corrosion far better than paint, and goes on thin enough that threads, bores and mating faces keep their fit.
What Cerakote actually is
Cerakote is a polymer-ceramic composite: ceramic particles held in a resin that cross-links when it cures. It is applied with a spray gun as a liquid, not as a powder or a plating bath, which is why it can be put on almost any material that can be cleaned, blasted and cured, including steel, aluminium, titanium, magnesium, some plastics and composites.
There are several ranges. The H-Series is oven cured and is the everyday choice for colour, wear and corrosion protection. The C-Series is air cured and is the exhaust and header coating, rated for continuous heat that would destroy any paint or powder. The Elite Series is oven cured with higher abrasion and chemical resistance, and there are clear coats, metallic and colour-shift effects and specialist coatings such as dry film lubricants. Every finish we apply has its own page with the manufacturer's published figures: see all finishes.
Cerakote vs powder coating
Powder coating is an electrostatically applied thermoset powder, baked to flow and cure. It is tough and economical for large, simple parts, but it goes on at 60 to 120 microns, several times thicker than Cerakote. On a machined part that thickness fills threads, closes up bores and changes the fit of mating faces, so the part has to be masked heavily or re-machined afterwards.
Cerakote at 25 microns keeps the geometry. It is also harder (the H-Series is rated up to 9H pencil hardness), more chemical resistant, and it holds fine detail such as engraved text and sharp edges that powder tends to round off. Powder coat wins on cost for big structural parts where thickness does not matter. Cerakote wins where fit, heat, detail or weight matter, which is most motorsport and precision work.
Cerakote vs anodising
Anodising is an electrochemical process that grows an oxide layer on aluminium (and, less commonly, titanium and magnesium). It is excellent for aluminium parts that need a thin, hard, dyed surface, and it is the right answer for many of them. Its limits are the ones Cerakote removes: it only works on those metals, the colour range is narrow and dye-dependent, colours fade in UV, and it cannot be applied to a steel bracket or a titanium exhaust in the same batch as an aluminium cover.
Cerakote gives the same colour on every material in a project, with over 260 colours including true whites, bright colours and metallics that anodising cannot produce, and the colour is UV stable. Thickness is similar (anodising grows the part by roughly half the film thickness, Cerakote adds its full 25 microns on top), so both keep tolerances on machined parts.
Cerakote vs paint
Two-pack paint and high-temperature paint are the cheapest options and the least durable. Paint chips, softens under fuel and brake fluid, and heat-rated paints discolour long before their advertised temperature. Cerakote cures to a far harder film, is unaffected by most workshop chemicals, and the C-Series keeps its colour on exhausts that glow. If a part is going to be handled, bolted, fuelled or heated, paint is a short-term finish.
When Cerakote is the right choice
- Machined parts where threads, bores and faces must stay to tolerance.
- Exhausts, headers, turbo housings and heat shields (C-Series and V-Series).
- Suspension, brake and engine components that see fuel, oil, brake fluid and salt.
- Mixed-material projects that need one matching colour across aluminium, steel and titanium.
- Visible parts where the finish is part of the product: wheels, covers, brackets, trim.
- Production batches where every part has to match the first one.
Where it is not the right choice: parts that cannot survive blasting or the cure temperature, rubber and soft plastics, and parts with bearings, seals or heat-sensitive inserts that cannot be removed first. If you are not sure, send us the part and we will tell you.
Questions people ask
Is Cerakote a paint?
No. Cerakote is a sprayed ceramic composite coating that chemically cures into a hard film. It is applied with spray equipment like paint, but it behaves more like a ceramic than a paint once cured.
How thick is Cerakote?
About 25 microns (0.001 inch) per coat, which is the manufacturer's recommended film thickness for most finishes. Powder coating is typically 60 to 120 microns.
Is Cerakote better than powder coating?
For machined, heat-exposed or detailed parts, yes: it is thinner, harder, more chemical resistant and keeps fit and detail. For large structural parts where thickness does not matter, powder coating is usually cheaper.
Can Cerakote be applied over anodising or powder coat?
Existing coatings are normally stripped and the part blasted back to bare metal so the Cerakote bonds to the substrate. Tell us what is on the part now and we will quote the stripping.
Does Cerakote fade or chip?
Cerakote colours are UV stable and the film is rated up to 9H pencil hardness in the H-Series. It can be damaged by sharp impacts like any coating, but it does not chalk, fade or soften with fuel and oil the way paint does.