Is H2 Polar or Non-polar?

Learn to determine if H2 is polar or nonpolar based on the Lewis Structure and the molecular geometry (shape).

We start with the Lewis Structure and look and the polarity of the individual bonds in Hydrogen gas based on the electronegativity difference between atoms. Then we will use VSEPR to determine the shape of the molecule and look at how the shape of the molecule allows us to determine if the entire molecule is polar or nonpolar.

If you look at the Lewis Structure for H2 it appears to be a symmetrical molecule. However, to determine if H2 is polar we consider the molecular geometry. A polar molecule results from an unequal/unsymmetrical sharing of valence electrons. For Hydrogen gas the molecule is symmetrical and therefore it is a nonpolar molecule.

While there may be unequal sharing of electrons in the individual bonds, in a nonpolar molecule like H2 these bonds are evenly distributed and cancel out. There is no net dipole and the H2 is non-polar.
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[samsonchen]

The fun thing for hydrogen is that when H- interacts with lets say acid, it can react with H+ to form H2. A non polar molecule formed via cation anion reaction

[turkiyemayla]

My Chemistry teacher wrote H2 as a polar molecule to the board i was researching it's reason for all of the day 😭 thank you! Seems like my Chemistry teacher doesn't know Chemistry🤦🏻‍♀️