Selling white gold: what really counts?
A white gold wedding ring, a fine chain, earrings that shine like silver. If you want to sell white gold, you mainly want to know two things: is it really gold, and what is it worth? The short answer: white gold is gold. It is mixed with white metals, which make the gold pale, and usually finished with a thin layer of rhodium, which makes it bright white.
Think of that layer as a white jacket. On sale, only what lies underneath counts: the gold content and the weight. The white colour and the shiny rhodium do not count. At De Munter you receive the same price for white gold as for yellow gold of the same content and the same weight. Below you read how to look through that jacket.
What is white gold exactly?
Pure gold is yellow. White gold is created by mixing gold with white metals, such as palladium or silver. Nickel is used as well. Such a mixture of metals is called an alloy.
The gold in that alloy simply stays gold. The carat, or the number in thousandths on the hallmark, says how much pure gold is in it, whether the piece is yellow, white or rose. A white gold ring of 18 carat therefore contains 75 percent gold, just like a yellow one.
Why white gold is not really white by nature
The white metals make the gold paler, but often not entirely white. A white gold alloy has a stronger yellow tone than platinum, for example. Without a finish, much white gold therefore keeps a light yellow tinge.
That is why white gold often gets an extra layer, made of the metal rhodium. That layer gives the bright white colour you know from white gold.
Palladium, silver or nickel: what sits next to the gold?
Which white metals are in your white gold differs from one alloy to another. The World Gold Council gives these compositions as typical for the sector, but not as the only ones:
| White gold | Silver | Palladium | Gold |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9 carat | 62.5% | none | 37.5% |
| 14 carat | 32.2% | 9.5% | 58.3% |
| 18 carat | none | 25% (or platinum) | 75% |
In Belgium the legal content for 14 carat is 585 thousandths, so 58.5 percent. What sits next to the gold therefore varies, but the gold share follows the carat.
Nickel is a strong whitener that also makes the metal harder. In the United States it was the common choice for a long time. According to the World Gold Council, nickel bearing alloys make up only a small part of white gold alloys.
The rhodium layer: a white jacket half a thousandth of a millimetre thick
Rhodium is a hard, shiny, silver white metal. A jeweller applies it as a wafer thin layer on the white gold: that is called rhodium plating. The layer makes the surface harder, shinier and bright white.
0.5 micron
that is how thick the rhodium layer on gold jewellery usually is. Two thousand such layers on top of each other make up one millimetre.
Why your white gold ring turns yellow
The rhodium layer gradually wears away. The ring then turns light yellow or less shiny. What you see is the natural colour of the white gold alloy underneath. It is the same white gold as before, only without its white jacket.
How quickly that happens is something jewellers differ on considerably. They mention periods from a few months to a few years. According to jewellers, a ring on the hand wears fastest.
- Gold is mixed with white metals The mixture is pale, but often still has a light yellow tinge.
- The jeweller applies rhodium A layer of usually half a thousandth of a millimetre makes the ring bright white.
- The layer wears away Through wearing, the rhodium disappears bit by bit.
- The ring turns yellowish The natural colour of the white gold comes back. The gold underneath has stayed the same.
If you want to keep wearing the ring, a jeweller can rhodium plate it again. The jeweller charges for that, and the amount depends on the piece and on the rhodium price. If you want to sell, leave it as it is: a new layer does not count on sale, and polishing does not change the gold value either.
In our gold check you read that gold plated work can show a different colour along the edges, because the metal underneath shines through. With white gold a yellowish tinge can mean exactly the opposite: the rhodium is gone and the solid white gold appears. A yellowish patch therefore says nothing in itself about whether a piece is genuine. If in doubt, have it tested instead of deciding yourself.
White gold, silver or platinum? How to see the difference
White gold, silver and platinum can look the same from the outside, certainly when they are rhodium plated. Silver jewellery too sometimes gets a layer of rhodium, for the shine and against tarnishing. So the colour does not help you. The hallmark does give you a strong indication. In Belgium that lies not only in the number, but also in the shape around it.
| Belgian hallmark | Often on foreign or older pieces | Points to |
|---|---|---|
| Lozenge with 585, 750 or 833 | 375 (9K), 14K, 18K, 750 | Gold, including white gold |
| Oval with 925 or 835 | 800, 925, Sterling, 999 | Silver |
| Hexagon with 950 | Pt, Plat | Platinum |
A hallmark is a strong indication, not proof. That is why we weigh and test your gold during the valuation, in front of you.
Selling white gold: how to go about it
- The colour says nothing about the value. White gold with a content of 585 or 750 contains as much gold as yellow gold of the same content and the same weight.
- Do not have your ring rhodium plated or polished first. The layer usually weighs only a few milligrams and does not count on sale, and polishing does not change the gold value.
- A yellowish patch is not a sign of a fake. With white gold it can simply be worn rhodium. Have it tested instead of deciding yourself.
- Look at the hallmark first. A lozenge with 585 or 750 points to gold, an oval with 925 or 835 to silver. Only a test gives certainty.
Do you have white gold jewellery lying around and are you unsure whether it is gold, silver or platinum, or what it is worth today? Have it valued without obligation. We determine the carat content, weigh the pure gold and show you the current gold rate, step by step and in front of you. We come to your home, or you come to a visiting day in your municipality.