How to identify whether a molecule is polar or not?

A polar molecule is a molecule that has a net dipole moment due to its having unsymmetrical polar bonds.
There are two factors that go into determining if a molecule is polar or not. To determine if a molecule (or ion) is polar or non-polar, you must determine both factors.
1) The polarity of the individual bonds in the molecule;
2) The shape or geometry of the molecule.

First, to determine if a given individual bond is polar, you need to know the electronegativity of two atoms involved in that bond.  If the electronegativity of the two atoms has a difference of 0.3 or less, then the bond is non-polar. If the electronegativity difference is greater that 0.3 but less than 1.7, then the bond is polar. If the two values have a difference greater than 1.7, then the bond is ionic, which is just very very polar.
 

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