Sodium thiocyanate is typically used as a chaotropic agent to disrupt protein tertiary structure, denature nucleic acids or solubilize carbohydrates. Chaotropic agents work by disrupting non-covalent bonds; including hydrogen bonding network between water molecules, van der Waals forces and hydrophobic interactions.

Sodium thiocyanate is water soluble and has been used in a wide array of applications, including as an accelerating agent for concrete, in the production of ink for ink jet printers, as a stabilizing chemical in photography and as an intermediate in herbicides and pesticides. It is also widely used to synthesize other thiocyanate compounds.