What Purity Actually Means

Pure gold, 24 karat, is too soft on its own for daily wear. So jewelers mix in copper, silver, zinc, whatever gives it strength. What comes out the other end is less than 24K. Usually 22K. Sometimes 18K. Depends on the piece.

The karat number is just the ratio. How much real gold versus everything else mixed in. 22K works out to about 91.6% gold. 18K drops to around 75%. That one number decides most of what you’ll walk out with.

Why Two Almost-Identical Pieces Sell Differently

This confuses a ton of first-time sellers, and fair enough, it’s confusing. Two necklaces, same weight, same design, same shine even, and they sell for completely different amounts. Nine times out of ten it’s because one’s 22K and the other’s 18K.

You can’t see eyeball purity. The mixed-in metals don’t change color enough for most people to catch it, even if you’re really looking. Which is exactly why testing has to happen before anything gets sold.

How Testing Actually Works

A few methods, and buyers usually pick one:

• Acid testing: small scratch, then acid applied, reaction tells them the karat range
• Electronic testing machines: reads purity through conductivity, more precise than acid alone
• XRF machines: doesn’t damage the piece at all, reads the full composition instantly

Good buyers do this in front of you. Not behind a counter, not in a back room. Right there, and they’ll explain what the number means as it comes up. If someone just glances at your gold and throws out a price with zero testing, that’s not a good sign. Walk away, honestly.

Hallmarks Help, But They’re Not the Whole Story

Most gold sold in India these days has a BIS hallmark. Tells you the purity from when it was made. Useful, sure. But older pieces? Bought before hallmarking became common? That stamp isn’t a guarantee anymore.

And even hallmarked jewelry gets retested sometimes. Especially if it’s been repaired. A jeweler swaps out a broken link with slightly different gold, resizes a ring, whatever, and that one section can read differently under testing. Not a big deal. Normal, actually. But a decent buyer tells you this instead of just handing you a number and moving on.

Turning Purity Into a Real Number

Once purity’s confirmed, the math isn’t complicated. Take the day’s rate for 24K, scale it down based on your item’s actual karat, multiply by weight. Higher karat, a bigger chunk of that 24K rate applies. Lower karat, smaller chunk.

Which is why a 22K chain always beats an 18K chain of the same weight, gram for gram. Nothing to do with the buyer being generous or stingy about it. Just how much actual gold you’re holding.

Not every one of the gold buyers in Bangalore treats this the same way, by the way. Some rush through testing, barely explaining a thing. Others slow down, show you the actual reading, answer whatever you throw at them. That gap matters more than people realize, usually right after they’ve already had a rushed, confusing experience somewhere else.

A Quick Example

Two rings. Ten grams each. One’s 22K, the other’s 18K. Same day, same gold rate, and the 22K ring still comes out ahead, no contest, purely because there’s more actual gold packed into it. Knowing your jewelry’s karat beforehand means you’re not blindsided at the counter.

What If the Gold Was Pledged?

Say you took a loan against some jewelry. Now the loan’s closed and you want to sell instead of keeping it. Purity doesn’t change just because it sat in a locker at a lender’s office for two years. Once you’ve closed the loan, collected the item and the release papers, testing works exactly like it would for anything else.

Pledged gold buyers in Bangalore see this constantly. Loans close, people decide selling makes more sense than holding on. Just keep your closure paperwork ready. Most buyers ask for it before quoting anything final.

Ask These Before You Sell Anything

Doesn’t take long, and it’s worth it:

1. What method are you using to test purity?
2. Can I actually watch it happen?
3. What’s today’s rate for whatever karat my piece comes out at?
4. Any deductions besides the purity adjustment?
5. Do I get a receipt with the tested purity and final weight on it?

If a buyer answers all this without getting weird or defensive about it, that’s someone worth trusting again later.

How Hema Jewellers Handles This

At Hema Jewellers, testing happens with you standing right there, proper equipment, no guesswork. The reading gets explained before any price is worked out. So you actually know how the number came together, not just what it is.

Bottom Line

Purity isn’t some fine-print detail. It’s the thing deciding most of your final price, ahead of design, ahead of age, ahead of which shop you walk into. Know your jewelry’s karat. Insist on real testing before agreeing to anything. Puts you in a much stronger spot.

Next time you’re getting ready to sell, don’t lead with “what rate will I get.” Lead with “how are you testing this.” Tells you a lot more about who you’re dealing with.

FAQs

1. What’s the difference between 22K and 24K gold?

24K is pure gold with no other metals mixed in, while 22K contains about 91.6% gold with the rest made up of metals like copper or silver for added strength.

2. Can purity change after a piece is repaired?

Yes, if the repair used metal of a different purity than the original piece, that specific section can show a slightly different reading during testing.

3. Is hallmarked jewelry always accurately tested?

Hallmarks reflect purity at the time of manufacturing, but older pieces or repaired jewelry may still need retesting to confirm current purity accurately.

4. Does purity testing damage my jewelry?

Some methods like XRF testing are non-destructive, while others like acid testing involve a small scratch, though reputable buyers keep this minimal and explain it beforehand.

5. Why do two similar-looking gold pieces sell for different prices?

They likely have different karat purity, since gold content, not appearance, determines the actual selling price of any piece.