What's Your Scrap Gold Worth?

Gold prices are currently high, making it an excellent time to sell your broken jewelry and other scrap gold.  However, you might have a hard time knowing whether or not you're getting a fair price for your gold.  Here's a short guide to finding out how much scrap gold is worth and getting a good deal.

Scrap value is the minimum value that gold should be sold for - the value of the gold itself.  Before you sell your old jewelry or other gold items at this price, think about whether or not you could be getting a better price.  After all, there are a number of factors that could bring the price up. 

Good workmanship could get you a price that's less than retail, but higher than scrap.  Likewise, something that's antique or bears a maker's mark may be worth more, as well as any piece with gems set into it.  They all have value outside the transaction, and should be removed from any gold piece that is only worthwhile as scrap.  Sell precious stones to another dealer.

Once you have determined that the piece has no other value than scrap, you'll need to know what karat it is.  This ranges from eight karat to twenty-four karat, and will tell you what percentage is truly gold.  Twenty-four karat gold is nearly pure, and eighteen karat is about seventy-five percent pure.

Eight karat gold is found mostly in Europe, and is too low in purity to be recognized as having much value in the US.  This material is about a third gold, and sometimes may tarnish.  Nine karat is thirty-seven and a half percent gold, and is found mostly in the UK.  The minimum US standard is ten karat, at about forty-one percent gold.  This material is chosen for its hard wearing qualities, as it's harder than pure gold.

Twelve karat gold is fifty percent pure.  It's rarely seen these days, but may be found in old watch cases.  Fourteen karat gold is fifty-eight percent pure, common in the US, and is also made in Asia for markets overseas and in Russia.  Fifteen karat gold is sixty-two percent pure, and a discontinued standard from countries in the UK.  Since no fifteen karat pieces have been made since the mid-1930s, this mark tells you the piece may have antique value.

Eighteen karat gold pieces make up the majority of quality pieces, and may also be marked 750 parts per thousand.  You'll find twenty-two karat gold mostly in pieces from Asia and the Middle East.  It's very yellow and soft.  At the top of the list is twenty-four karat gold, the softest and purest available. 

Once you know how pure your gold is, finding the weight is the next step.  Gold and silver are measured in either troy ounces or in grams.  Look up the daily spot price per ounce (you can find it online), then divide that number by the percentage of purity of your gold.  This will tell you the price you can expect to get for your scrap gold.