Industrially, mimetite is a minor ore of lead. The chief use of mimetite is as a collector's specimen, often creating attractive botryoidal crusts on the surface of the specimen. Though mimetite is also found in prismatic crystal forms, it is not used as a gemstone due to its softness. Quality prismatic forms have been found in Johanngeorgenstadt in Saxony and Wheal Unity in Cornwall, England.
Mimetite is found in association with lead and arsenic minerals, including those minerals with which it forms a series. Some associated minerals include: calcite, galena, pyromorphite, smithsonite, vanadinite, and wulfenite.
Alternative names of mimetite include arsenopyromorphite, mimetesite, and prixite. Campylite is the name for a variety with barrel shaped crystals of a brownish-red or orange-yellow color and containing a considerable proportion of phosphoric acid.
Useful information pertaining to the field identification of mimetite include its habit, color, and high density. However, this mineral's similarity to pyromorphite can be problematic, especially since these minerals are known to share colors. Pyromorphite is typically green, and mimetite is typically yellow, but specimens of each are known in the other's colors. As a result, some identification may require lab analysis.