Bismuth(III) nitrate is an inorganic bismuth salt of nitric acid, commonly encountered as the pentahydrate. It appears as a white to colorless crystalline solid and is highly soluble in water and nitric acid, but hydrolyzes in neutral or weakly basic aqueous solutions to form basic bismuth nitrates or bismuth oxy-nitrate. Due to its strong Lewis acidity and oxidizing nature, it is widely used as a precursor for other bismuth compounds, in analytical chemistry, and in materials and pharmaceutical research.