Selling gold jewelry — an old ring, a broken chain, pieces you just don't wear anymore — should be simple. In practice, a lot of people either get lowballed or don't understand what they're being offered and why. Here's how the pricing actually works.
What Determines the Value
Three things: karat (purity), weight, and the current spot price of gold. Karat tells you what percentage of the piece is actually gold — 24K is pure gold, 14K is 58.3% gold, 10K is 41.7%, and so on. Weight is measured in grams or pennyweight. Multiply the pure gold content by the current spot price, and that's the baseline value before any premium for craftsmanship, brand, or gemstones is even considered.
Common Mistakes
The biggest one is not knowing the karat before you walk in — pieces are often stamped (look for a small "14K," "10K," "585," or "417" stamp), and that stamp should roughly match what you're quoted for. Another is assuming diamonds or gemstones in old jewelry get valued as part of the "gold" offer — at many gold-buying counters they don't, and get tossed aside or valued at almost nothing. It's also worth getting more than one opinion if a piece has real craftsmanship, a designer name, or genuinely valuable stones — sometimes a piece is worth more intact than melted down.
How It Works With Me
I weigh and test each piece in front of you, explain the karat and current spot value, and separate out anything — diamonds, colored stones, notable design — that might be worth more as-is than as scrap gold. No pressure, no lowball-and-negotiate routine. If a piece is worth more to a buyer as jewelry than as melt value, I'll tell you that too.
You can see current details on the Sell Your Gold page, or book a time to bring pieces in and get an honest number.
