What is the molecular geometry of methane?

The molecular geometry of methane is tetrahedral.

Methane, CH₄, has one carbon atom bonded to four hydrogen atoms. The four equivalent C–H bonds point toward the corners of a tetrahedron, placing the carbon at its center. The H–C–H bond angle is approximately 109.5°.

This arrangement follows the electron-pair repulsion model: four bonding regions around carbon spread as far apart as possible in three-dimensional space. In orbital terms, methane is commonly described using four equivalent sp³ hybrid orbitals, each directed toward one hydrogen atom. Modern molecular-orbital descriptions explain the same symmetry through four bonding molecular orbitals.

Methane is the simplest alkane and the main component of natural gas. It is colorless and odorless in its pure form, although commercial natural gas is odorized for safety. A frequent mistake is calling methane planar or linear because its formula is written in a line; that notation is only a shorthand. Its tetrahedral shape also explains why all four hydrogen positions are equivalent and why methane has no permanent dipole moment.