Are lipids polar?

In general lipids are not polar; however the lipids that make up cell membranes are amphipathic, which means they have one non-polar end and one polar end. Cell membrane lipids are amphipathic in order to allow the cell membrane to be selectively permeable to compounds and atoms.

Lipids come in many different forms. The entire group of lipids, as a whole, are considered to be non-polar and are all soluble in organic solvents. The only portion of lipids that are polar are cell-membrane lipids. Other lipids include fatty acids, cholesterol molecules, lipid rafts, sphingolipids and glycerophospholipids. All of these lipids are found within the human body; and, they have different jobs and functions.