Is helium a metal or nonmetal?

Helium is a nonmetal element. It is the second element on the periodic table, following hydrogen, and is part of the highly stable noble gas group. Noble gas elements are known for their low reactivity due to their full outer shells of electrons.

Some of the most important properties of helium are that it has no color, smell or taste. Notably, it has the lowest boiling and melting points of all elements, which is why it is almost always found as a gas. Helium is one of the most common elements in the entire universe, making up an estimated 24 percent of it by mass.