How to Sell Scrap Gold for the Best Price

What Counts as Scrap Gold?

Scrap gold is any gold item that is valued primarily for its metal content rather than its craftsmanship, design, or brand. Common examples include:

Sort by Karat

Different karat purities have different values per gram. Mixing 10K and 18K pieces together leads to inaccurate estimates and potential lowball offers.

Look for karat stamps on each piece: 10K (417), 14K (585), 18K (750), 22K (916), or 24K (999). Place each piece in a separate bag or container labeled with its karat.

Unmarked pieces should go in their own pile. These will need professional testing with an XRF spectrometer or acid test to determine purity. Do not assume they are worthless — many older pieces were not stamped but contain genuine gold.

Weigh Accurately

Use a digital scale that measures in grams to at least one decimal place. Kitchen scales and postal scales both work. Weigh each karat group separately.

Remove any non-gold components: clasps that may be base metal, leather or fabric elements, large gemstones. The buyer pays for gold weight, and extra non-gold weight dilutes your per-gram value.

Dental Gold: A Hidden Treasure

Dental gold is often overlooked but can be quite valuable. Dental crowns, bridges, and inlays are typically made from high-purity gold alloys, often 16K to 22K. A single dental crown can contain 1 to 3 grams of gold.

If you have dental gold — from a relative's estate or your own dental work — include it with your scrap gold shipment. Offramp tests dental gold with the same XRF spectrometer used for jewelry, ensuring you get paid for the exact purity.

Finding the Right Buyer

Scrap gold buyers range from pawn shops (20–55% of melt value) to online buyers like Offramp (80%+ of melt value). The difference on a typical scrap lot can be hundreds of dollars.

Avoid “gold parties” and hotel-room gold buyers. These operations typically pay even less than pawn shops and create social pressure to accept low offers.

The best approach: calculate your estimated melt value using a gold calculator, then compare that number to what each buyer offers. The buyer paying the highest percentage wins.