What is 18K gold worth?

What 18K gold is worth today

Gold is trading at $3,942 per troy ounce (the Kitco bid). At that price we pay $89.36/g for 18K gold, which is 94% of the value of the pure gold it contains.

Scrap prices are per gram of metal after melting, not per gram of what you send. Stones are removed, and dirt, glue, springs, and anything else that isn't gold or silver burn off or separate out, so the weight paid is usually less than your scale shows.

Work out yours in our estimate calculator →

What is 18K gold?

18K means 18 parts gold out of 24: 75% pure gold. It's stamped 18K or 750.

• Color: a deeper, richer yellow than 14K. White 18K is alloyed with palladium or nickel and is usually rhodium-plated; rose 18K uses extra copper.
• Durability: softer than 14K, so it scratches more easily, but it's the standard for fine jewelry in Europe and for luxury watches.

Work out the value yourself

• Pure gold per gram = gold price ÷ 31.1035 (grams in a troy ounce)
• 18K gold per gram = that × 0.75
• What a buyer pays = that × the buyer's percentage

For example, with gold at $4,000 an ounce, a gram of pure gold is worth $128.60, so a gram of 18K holds about $96.45 of gold. At our 94% of melt value, that's about $90.66 a gram, and 15 grams of 18K comes to about $1,360.

Where you'll find 18K

Fine jewelry, engagement and wedding rings, European and Italian chains, and luxury watch cases. It's stamped 18K or 750. We can't buy watch cases for now, because they carry serial numbers.

Check these before you sell

Check the stamp (see how to read gold stamps), weigh your pieces in grams, and ask any buyer what percentage of melt value they pay, and of which gold price. Scrap is paid on the gold actually there after melting, so stones, clasp springs, and solder don't count; here's why the melt can weigh less.

Other karats: 9K · 10K · 12K · 14K · 18K · 22K · 24K

The highest payouts for your gold, at a published percentage of the live Kitco bid.