Scrap gold can fetch substantial value, with the bullion prices at an all time high at present. In this article, I provide you with some tips on how to calculate the value of scrap gold accurately. Also provided is a scrap gold value calculator, which you may use to directly evaluate the price of any scrap gold piece.
If I ask you to name one product that will never lose value, despite drastic changes in the market conditions, what would your first guess be? Well, it has to be gold. The value of this most coveted precious metal has seen an unprecedented and unmatched boom in recent times. The gold market is a seller’s market at the present moment and even scrap gold can fetch good value right now. Gold is sold in alloy form, with varying karat value to make various types of products including dental prosthetic items, jewelry, electronic items, coins and bars.
If you are planning to sell your accumulated lot of scrap gold to refiners, it’s essential that you know its market value, according to its purity. This WealthHow article is a short guide explaining how to calculate the value of scrap gold precisely. I’ve also provided a gold price calculator which can provide a precise value of your scrap gold, according to karat value and current market price. If you are already familiar with calculation of scrap gold value, you can use the calculator provided below right away. If you are not familiar with the procedure, read through the explanation provided below, before using the calculator.
Gold Price Valuation
The price of a gold product is decided by its Karat (K) value. It is a number which specifies the gold fraction that is present in a product along with other metals. According to standard scales, the lowest karat value is 8 Kt, while the purest gold is 24 Kt. Let me explain the Karat valuation through an example as it’s essential that one understands this concept for further calculation.
Karat value is essentially a ratio of the amount of pure gold in a product to the total mass of product. For example, an 8 Kt gold piece holds 8/24 amount of pure gold by weight. A 22 karat gold piece has 22/24 amount of pure gold by weight. A 24 Kt gold product has close to 99.99% pure gold. With that background, you are ready grasp the procedure for scrap gold value calculation.
How to Calculate Value of Scrap Gold?
To begin valuation, you will need a magnifying glass, a calculator and a precision digital balance, which can measure mass values up to the third decimal in grams. The scrap gold, which does not have the karat value printed on it, will have to be valued by professional jewelers. They may charge a small fee for it.
Step 1: Know Karat Value and Calculate Weight Fraction
Begin with observing each gold piece with a magnifying glass and spot the karat value engraved on it. Once you know the karat value, convert it into weight fraction. For example, if you have a 10 karat value piece, its weight fraction would be 10/24 = 0.4167. Divide the karat value by 24 to get the weight fraction. This weight fraction is the amount of pure gold contained in a single gram of scrap gold.
Step 2: Get Current Gold Price and Calculate Per Gram Value
Next, go online and find the current gold price specified in troy ounces. A single troy ounce is 31.1034768 gm. Once you get the current price of a single troy ounce, divide it by 31.1034768 to get the price of gold per gram.
Step 3: Calculate Price of Scrap Gold Piece
Lastly, to calculate the price of a gold piece, with specific karat value and weight, multiply the weight fraction by total weight of the gold piece. That will give you the total amount of pure gold contained within the piece. Multiply this value, by the price of pure gold per gram to get the precise market price for the scrap gold piece. Let me illustrate this through an example.
Suppose you have a gold chain weighing 10 gm, with a valuation of 10 Kt printed on it. The price of gold per troy ounce, at the moment of writing this article is $1537.70. To find the market price of the chain according to market value, first I must get the gold value per gram. Dividing $1537.70 by 31.1034768 gm, makes that value to be 1537.70/31.1034768 gm = $49.44.
The amount of pure gold in grams, contained within the gold chain of 10 Kt value is 10/24 x 10 gm = 0.4167 x 10 = 4.167 gm. Hence the price of the gold chain according to current market price is 4.167 x $49.44 = $206.02. To use the above calculator, enter the current market price of gold per troy ounce, its karat value and its total weight. Once you have entered this value, hit the calculate button to get price of the scrap gold piece.
The most important step in calculating value of scrap gold is the valuation. It is advisable that you get the valuation and karat based grading done from qualified jewelers, in case of products with no printed karat value. If you are aware of the karat value of the scrap gold you plan to sell and know the mass of each piece measured by a digital balance, you can use the above calculator to measure the value karat wise!