As inflation rages and the economy takes us through twists and turns, many of you may decide it’s a good time to sell gold jewelry, especially since gold prices have risen to a recent high. Or you may decide you want to guard against future inflation and buy gold items as a store of value. Finally, you might have an important birthday or anniversary coming up and want to buy a gift for someone special.
Regardless of your reasons for buying or selling gold jewelry, there are a number of things to keep in mind. We’re going to walk you through the top tips for buying and selling gold jewelry, whether you’re right here in San Diego, or anywhere across the country.
Tip #1: Know the Purity (Karat)
The price of gold is based on pure gold. However, pure gold is too soft for everyday jewelry, so it is mixed with other metals to create alloys that can withstand being worn more often. The amount of gold that is in the resulting alloy composition is represented in karats: 10-karat (K), 14K, 18K, and 24K.
If you have an item that is 24 karat gold, it is 99.99% pure, but the other karat designations have less gold. You will need to know the karatage of your gold jewelry in order to know how much gold is in each item, so that you can be sure the price reflects the correct amount of gold.
Look over your jewelry to see if you can find the karat value stamped into it and look up the percentage of gold in this chart.
| Karatage | Amount of Pure Gold |
|---|---|
| 10-karat (10K) | 41.7% |
| 14-karat (14K) | 58.3% |
| 18-karat (18K) | 75% |
| 24-karat (24K) | 99.99% |
Separate your jewelry pieces by karatage so you can then weigh them separately.
Tip #2: Know the Weight
Gold dealers buy and sell gold based on the troy ounce, which is equivalent to 31.1035 grams. Make sure to find a scale that can measure grams and know the weight of your gold jewelry pieces. If you are only able to weigh your gold in ounces, you should know that 1 ounce is 0.911 troy ounces. Some dealers will use pennyweight, where 1 pennyweight is equal to 1/20th of a troy ounce.
Weigh each item and add up the total weight for each karatage.
Always know the weight of your items, as well as the way that the dealer is weighing your items. Make sure you’re both using the same measurement or able to convert to your measurement to confirm it’s the same.
Tip #3: Know the Spot Price of Gold
Once you know the purity (karat) of your gold jewelry, and the weight of each karatage, you can then calculate a value based on the current spot price.
Live spot prices for gold, silver, and platinum are available on our website.
You will then want to multiply the total weight of each karat group by the percentage of gold in each karat. For example, if you have 20 grams of 14K gold jewelry, you multiply the total grams by 58.3% to know that you have 11.66 grams of gold. You can then convert that to troy ounces (11.66/31.1035), which would mean that you have 0.3748 troy ounces of gold.
If the current spot price of gold is $1,900 per troy ounce, then you have $712 in melt value. You will typically get 70%-80% of the melt value, so you could expect around $500-$570. Here at CV Coins & Collectables we pay 85% minimum, which would equal $605 on the same transaction of 20 grams of 14-karat gold.
Repeat this for each karat group. That is, weigh all of your 10K, 14K, and 18K gold jewelry in separate groups and figure out the total gold and melt value for each group.
Tip #4: Yellow Gold, White Gold, and Rose Gold
The type of metal used in the gold alloy will affect the color of your jewelry. However, 14K gold of any color will still be 14K gold.
Yellow gold is made with an alloy of gold plus silver, palladium, nickel or zinc.
White gold is made with an alloy of gold plus nickel or palladium, zinc and copper. The white gold alloy is not actually white and is plated with rhodium, which is a type of platinum metal.
Rose gold is currently very popular and is made with gold and copper. Most often, you’ll find 14-karat rose gold jewelry, which is 58.3% pure gold with copper added for color.
While these types of gold may be more popular in finished pieces at various points of time, if they are bought for their melt value, the specific color will not affect the price.
Tip #5: Determine Whether the Jewelry Has Value Beyond the Gold
Most gold jewelry is bought by dealers based on its melt value. As mentioned above, you can generally expect to be paid 85% of your jewelry’s melt value at CV Coins!
However, if a piece of jewelry has artistic value, based on the designer, or is an antique with some kind of historic value, we at CV Coins pay you more for your jewelry. That is why we pay a minimum of 85% of the melt value. Some items we pay more than melt value. We strive to be fair and honest with transparent offers.
While your piece may not be by a known designer or an antique, it may still have a diamond or other gemstone. If it’s valuable, we at CV Coins will make an offer separately on each item. This is the right thing to do.
Tip #6: Find a Reputable Gold Dealer
Whether you’re buying or selling gold jewelry, finding a reputable dealer is essential. Look for a dealer who has a good reputation and has the right expertise and equipment. Reading online reviews is a great way to see what other customers have said about the dealer.
If you live in the Greater San Diego area, CV Coins & Collectables is the #1 gold & silver dealer since 1967. We buy and sell gold jewelry on a daily basis and are committed to transparency and fair prices.
When You’re Ready to Buy or Sell Your Gold Jewelry
Selling your gold jewelry is a great way to earn extra cash when needed, especially when the price of gold is high. Buying gold jewelry is a great way to find unique pieces for gifts or for yourself.
CV Coins & Collectables is known as being honest, transparent, and above all else, fair! CV Coins & Collectables has been widely known as the best place to sell gold in San Diego for over 50 years, with people traveling from far to visit our shop. Looking to buy or sell gold jewelry? Schedule an appointment online or stop by our store today.