An attempt is made to estimate the polarizability of an ion in an ionic diatomic molecule. The method is applied to alkali halide and hydride diatoms. In this connection, the applicability of Rittner’s model to these test molecules is examined critically. A new phenomenological form of the repulsive part of Rittner’s model is suggested. It is argued that the polarizability of an ion can be used as an index of the gas-phase chemical hardness of an ion in a molecule.