Pawn Shop Gold Calculator
Pawn Shop Gold Calculator
Current Market Value:
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Average Pawn Shop Offer:
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Alloy’s Minimum Offer:
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Current Gold Prices
Gold Karat Marking Guide
- 24K: Marked “999” or “24K”
- 22K: Marked “916” or “22K”
- 18K: Marked “750” or “18K”
- 14K: Marked “585” or “14K”
- 10K: Marked “417” or “10K”
Why Alloy
As a customer, you’ll have little stress and receive the largest payout.
Others Online Buyers
- No instant estimates
- Confusing and long process
- Reputation concerns
- Inconsistent payouts
- Accurate instant estimates
- Free shipping & insurance
- Video recorded unboxing
- Industry-best cash offer
Store Buyers
- Negotiation required
- Poor and challenging experience
- Low payouts
- Intimidation tactics
Clients Nationwide
Love Alloy
Quick and easy process. I felt confident sending my items in and was happy with the payout. Highly recommend them!
Julie Smith
New York, NY
Alloy made everything simple from start to finish. Way better than selling locally. Great communication and a better price than I expected.
Chris Miller
Los Angeles, CA
Excellent service! I got a fair offer fast and way better than my local pawn shop. The whole process felt safe and professional.
Amanda Garcia
Chicago, IL
Super smooth transaction. The instructions were easy to follow, and I received my payment quicker than I thought. Would use them again for sure!
Melody Thompson
Houston, TX
Wasn’t sure at first, but Alloy exceeded expectations. Got a way better offer than my local options. Very transparent and trustworthy from the start.
Kevin Anderson
Denver, CO
Found them on a CBS article, decided to give them a shot and so glad I did. Got way more than I ever have my gold. Highly recommend them!
Curtis Lee
Austin, TX
I wish I would have found them before I wasted a bunch of time getting offers locally. Got the best offer and the service was amazing!
Amy Taylor
Seattle, WA
Getting An Estimate For Your Gold Is As Easy As 1,2,3!
STEP 1
Request a Free Appraisal Kit
Free insured shipping and returns included.
STEP 2
Get a Free Estimate
Our experts will provide a free no-obligation detailed estimate.
STEP 3
Get Paid
Accept your free no-obligation offer & get paid.
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We offer real, fair pricing for your gold with no pressure to sell.
Frequently Asked Questions
Gold karat tells you how much of your piece is pure gold vs. an alloy (metals mixed with gold). Pure gold is marked 24K, indicating about 99.9% fineness. Lower karats represent the number of pure-gold parts out of 24.
- 24K = 24/24 = 99.9% pure, millesimal stamp 999
- 22K = 22/24 = 91.6% pure, stamp 916 or 917
- 18K = 18/24 = 75.0% pure, stamp 750
- 14K = 14/24 = 58.5% pure, stamp 585
- 10K = 10/24 = 41.7% pure, stamp 417
There are several simple tests you can do at home to determine if your gold is real or fake. For a more comprehensive explanation, please see our “How to Test Gold” post.
Hallmarks: Real gold requires a stamp denoting its karat value. Look inside the rings, on the clasps, or on the tags for a small stamp. It will either indicate the karat value (14K, for example) or the millesimal fineness (750, etc.)
Magnet: Gold is not magnetic. Run a magnet over your piece. If there is magnetic attraction, it likely isn’t real gold. Clasps and springs can stick, however, as they contain a stronger metal.
Density: The “specific gravity test” is a method that uses a scale, a glass of water, and your gold item. This video lays out the process:
Scratch: Scratch a piece of real gold across the surface of unglazed ceramic. If it is real gold, it will leave behind a gold line. If it is black, something other than gold makes up your piece.
Acid: Purchase a nitric acid testing kit to test and confirm the karat of your piece. This video walks you through testing:
Professionals use non-destructive tools like XRF spectrometers to scan the purity. Electronic conductivity or density testers examine coins and bars. These methods are more reliable than any test you can do at home.
Most gold buyers will value your piece based on its melt value. Unless your piece is in high demand, they will only be looking at the presence of gold.
Once you know the purity, or karat, of your piece, determining its value is easy. First, you’ll need to weigh it. This post explains how you can use scales you might already have at home to weigh your piece. It also explains how to account for any stones.
The simplest way to calculate your gold’s value is to use the calculator above. Enter the required information and calculate. You instantly receive the spot value, the pawn shop’s offer, and Alloy’s estimated offer.
When you sell your gold to a professional gold buyer, don’t expect a full spot price offer. Businesses carry overhead or may also choose to refine the gold, incurring additional expenses. This study outlines the average payouts from pawn shops, straight from the sources.
Knowing how much your item is worth before you walk into a pawn shop is a great strategy. Alloy’s calculator is going to be the simplest way to get your item’s value without having to do the math yourself.
Understand the melt value of your piece first. Locate the karat marking, weigh it, and enter the information into the calculator. The calculator displays the full melt value of your gold, the pawn offer, and the Alloy offer estimate.
Alloy has found that the average payout from pawn shops is approximately 43%. Understand that when you sell to a pawn shop, you will likely get an offer in that percentage range. The sale rate and pawn rate are different things. If you want to repurchase your item, meaning pawn it, then you should expect an even lower offer.
A couple of things to remember before you go to the pawn shop. Different karats indicate different levels of gold in your piece. If your items are of a different karat, weigh and calculate them separately. At the shop, separate the pieces by karat for evaluation, or they may default to the lowest karat present.
Be sure that your calculation and the pawn shop’s calculations match the same unit of measure. If you weighed your pieces in grams, ask them to do the same.
To improve your offer, it’s often best to shop around. If your piece is high-end, antique, or highly sought after, a pawn shop may not be the best place to sell it.
How much a gram of gold is worth at a pawn shop is calculated in this way:
- Spot price per gram x (millesimal fineness ÷ 1000) x pawn payout percentage = pawn price per gram
Assume a baseline payout of about 40-45% of spot, based on our research. Here is how the different karats work out.
- 24K (999): Spot $/g × 0.999 × Pawn % = Pawn $/g
- 22K (916): Spot $/g × 0.916 × Pawn % = Pawn $/g
- 18K (750): Spot $/g × 0.750 × Pawn % = Pawn $/g
- 14K (585): Spot $/g × 0.585 × Pawn % = Pawn $/g
- 10K (417): Spot $/g × 0.417 × Pawn % = Pawn $/g
There are a couple of different ways to look at the value of one ounce of 14K gold.
To calculate the melt value, you need to find the spot price per ounce first.
14K is 58.5% pure, so:
- Spot $/oz x 0.585 = Melt $/oz
Pawn shops do not offer the spot price for gold. Assume you will receive only a percentage of your item’s value when selling.
- Spot $/oz x 0.585 x Pawn Payout % = Melt $/oz
Example:
If the spot price is $2,500/oz, then the melt value ≈ $2,500 × 0.585 = $1,462.50.
At 40-45% of melt value, the pawn shop value lands ≈ $585–$658/oz.
Note: 1 troy ounce = 31.1035 g. Kitchen scales display regular ounces (28.35 g), so convert to grams and then to troy ounces if needed.
How much a 14K gold ring is worth at a pawn shop depends on the weight of the ring. Visit our article about Selling a Gold Band to find the size and average weight of your gold band.
For the following examples, we’ll use a size 7, 4mm gold band, which typically weighs around 4.1 grams. Here you will see the purity of 14K gold notated by the 58.5% in the formula.
- Pawn = Spot $/g x 4.1 x 0.585 x Pawn %
For the different karats, the math looks like this:
- 24K (999): Pawn = Spot $/g × 4.1 × 0.999 × Pawn %
- 22K (916): Pawn = Spot $/g × 4.1 × 0.916 × Pawn %
- 18K (750): Pawn = Spot $/g × 4.1 × 0.750 × Pawn %
- 14K (585): Pawn = Spot $/g × 4.1 × 0.585 × Pawn %
- 10K (417): Pawn = Spot $/g × 4.1 × 0.417 × Pawn %
Of course, to avoid doing the math, use the calculator above.
Scrap gold is gold purchased for its metal content only. A buyer will not take into consideration the condition, brand, or style. Instead, the buyer will refine it, so its value depends on the purity and weight of the item.
14K gold is 58.5% pure gold. Here is how you would calculate the value of your 14K scrap gold:
- Spot $/g x Weight (g) x 0.585
This formula will give you the melt value.
Pawn shops offer a percentage of the melt value when buying gold. You should factor in the percentage rate when calculating.
- Spot $/g x Weight (g) x 0.585 x Pawn %
Use a realistic pawn payout range of about 40-45% of melt value.
Pawn shops determine the value of gold items by considering the following factors:
Melt value: They will test the purity, weigh the item in grams, and then estimate the melt value. Your offer is a percentage of the calculated melt value. Businesses have expenses that they must consider when making purchases.
Condition: For scrap gold, dents, scratches, or worn settings rarely change the offer. Stones and non-gold parts are excluded or deducted from the weight.
Resale potential: If the shop can resell the item quickly, or it is a coin or bar with high demand, the shop may price it above scrap. Designer marks, branded rings, or popular bullion can add a small premium.
Other factors: A store’s current inventory may influence whether it wants to buy gold. Local competition can also affect the final percentage they are willing to pay.
To put it succinctly, there isn’t a single “pawn shop percentage”. It comes down to basic retail math, and it varies by item, demand, and how the shop acquired it.
Many shops price resale items at about one and a half to two times their cost. This resale price usually lands around a one-third to one-half gross margin (before expenses).
If the store acquired the piece from a defaulted loan, their cost is the loan amount they paid out. If they bought it outright, their cost is the cash price they paid.
Scrap gold works differently from resale pieces because shops do not resell it to the public. The shop will either refine it or sell it to a refiner for a percentage of the melt value. For this reason, they do not pay full melt value for scrap.
There are two ways to get instant cash for your gold at a pawn shop: you can pawn your gold or sell it outright. Here are the distinctions.
Pawn your gold: When you pawn your gold, you get a short-term loan using your item(s) as collateral. When you repay the principal and fees, you get it back. If you fail to pay, you forfeit the item. This option is good when you need cash right away, but want the option to reclaim your item.
Sell your gold outright: Pawn shops may also buy gold outright. This sale works as you would assume. You bring your items, they assess the value, and give you an offer. If you agree to the payout, you leave with money in hand.
If you need cash fast, but it doesn’t have to be immediately, The Alloy Market guarantees the highest payouts. After you ship your item to us in the free and insured package provided by Alloy, we will assess it and send you an offer. When you accept, we initiate payment that same day!
Request your free appraisal kit today.
The following outlines how pawning your jewelry works.
Before you go to the pawn shop, be sure you bring your item(s) and your ID. Calculate the value of your items before you go. When you know how much it’s worth, you anticipate the dollar amount you are willing to accept and walk away from.
The store will test your gold’s purity, weigh it, and calculate the melt value. For loans, expect an even lower percentage than when you sell your items outright. When you pawn scrap gold, you trade the speed of getting cash in hand for a higher payout. You may get a slightly higher payout with a designer or high-demand item.
The pawn shop will present you with an offer and loan terms. Read over and ensure you understand everything before agreeing. You will sign the agreement, they will pay you the agreed amount, and hold your item for the allotted time.
To redeem your item, you must pay back the principal and fees associated with the loan before the due date. If you do not pay, the store keeps the item.
There is no clear-cut answer to this, as your motivations for selling determine the answer. If you need immediate cash or want to retain the option to buy back your items, a pawn shop may be the best choice for you.
If timing isn’t an issue and you want the highest payout for your item, we will always suggest The Alloy Market. Alloy guarantees the highest payouts and aims to make selling a seamless process.
When you request a free appraisal kit, we ship you everything you need to get started. We provide a free postage-paid parcel with insurance and tracking. You’ll connect with an Alloy expert who is always available to answer your questions. Once we assess and send you your offer, we need your approval to initiate payment that same day.
Give Alloy a try today and request your free Alloy Kit.