How much is your gold jewelry worth?

There is no better time than right now to sell your unused gold jewelry.  As of this writing pure gold is over 1500/oz, the highest it's ever been.

But, there is more to getting a proper idea of value than you think. Here is how jewelers determine the value of your gold.

When you buy gold jewelry without gemstones what you are paying for is the labor involved to make that item, cost of the materials, and of course, profit. When you sell your gold to be melted down, all you are getting back from the piece is the value of the material. But this will vary depending on the amount of actual gold in the item.

Lets say you have a nice heavy wedding band that weighs 8 grams. Due to the fact that alloys (other metals besides gold) are mixed with gold to make jewelry, out that 8 grams you would only have 3.328 grams of pure gold if it is 10K, 4.68 grams if it is 14k, and 6 grams it was an 18 karat gold band. (There is no difference between white and yellow gold in the amount of gold in the item.)

So, if the gold price is resting at $1500 an ounce you will have $160.51 for a 10k ring, $225.73 for a 14k ring, and $289.39 dollars if it's 18k. How much of that value you secure in selling your ring depends on where you sell and how good you are at bargaining.

Shop around and get at least a couple of quotes to make sure you are getting a fair deal. Good luck!