How many valence electrons does nitrogen have?

Nitrogen has five valence electrons. Valence electrons are the negatively charged particles found in the outer energy level of an atom, and are required to form chemical bonds.

Nitrogen belongs to group 5A of the periodic table. Because nitrogen is one of the representative elements, the number of valence electrons it has corresponds to its group number. Another way to determine the number of valence electrons in nitrogen is to look at its electron configuration. Nitrogen has two electrons in its first energy level and five in its second energy level. Because the second energy level is the outermost energy level, nitrogen must have five valence electrons.