How To Check If Gold Is Real

Key takeaway: You can run a few honest at-home checks, such as the magnet test and a careful look at the hallmark, but none of them prove purity on their own. For a result you can trust, The Gold Avenue in Illovo, Sandton tests your gold electronically in front of you and values it against the live market, so you see exactly what you have before you decide to sell.

Gold has a way of gathering in drawers and jewellery boxes. An inherited chain, a single earring that lost its partner, a ring from a marriage that ended, a coin tucked away years ago. At some point the question arrives: is this actually gold, and if it is, what is it really worth? It is a fair question, and a surprisingly easy one to get wrong, because the things most people rely on, like a tiny stamp inside a ring, do not always tell the truth.

This guide walks through how to check if gold is real, from the markings stamped into the metal to the at-home tests you may have read about, and finally to the professional testing that buyers use. It is written from the perspective of The Gold Avenue, a luxury watch, gold and diamond exchange in Illovo, Sandton, where every item is weighed and tested in front of the customer. The aim here is simple: to help you understand your gold well enough that no one can underpay you for it.

What the carat stamp means

Most gold jewellery carries a small stamp, called a hallmark, that tells you the gold content. Pure gold is soft, so it is almost always mixed with other metals to make it hard enough to wear. The carat figure tells you how much of the piece is actually gold.

• 9ct is 37.5% gold (often stamped 375).
• 14ct is 58.5% gold (stamped 585).
• 18ct is 75% gold (stamped 750).
• 22ct is 91.6% gold (stamped 916).
• 24ct is 99.9% gold, which is essentially pure gold (stamped 999).

So a ring marked 750 is three-quarters gold, with the rest made up of metals such as copper, silver or zinc. Those alloy metals also shape the colour. More copper gives a warmer, reddish tone, while white gold is alloyed and usually plated to achieve its pale finish. Knowing the carat matters because the higher the gold content, the more the piece is worth by weight.

Why a stamp alone is not proof

Here is the part many people miss. A hallmark is a useful clue, but it is not evidence on its own. There are three reasons to treat any stamp with healthy caution.

• Stamps wear away. Decades of wear can rub a hallmark down until it is faint or gone, especially on the inside of a well-worn ring or the clasp of an old chain.
• Stamps go missing. Plenty of genuine gold, particularly older or handmade pieces, was never clearly marked in the first place.
• Stamps can be faked. A 750 stamp can be pressed into plated or low-grade metal just as easily as into solid gold. The mark is only as honest as whoever applied it.

This is exactly why a serious buyer never prices gold on the strength of a stamp. The stamp starts the conversation. A proper test finishes it.

At-home tests, and what they can and cannot tell you

There are a handful of checks you can do at home. Used sensibly, they can catch an obvious fake or give you a little reassurance. None of them confirm purity, and some carry a real risk of damaging your piece, so treat them as rough indicators rather than verdicts.

The magnet test

Real gold is not magnetic. If you hold a reasonably strong magnet near your piece and it pulls towards it, there is base metal in there and it is not solid gold. This is one of the safer checks because it does not touch or mark the item. The catch is that passing the test does not prove anything: many non-gold metals are also non-magnetic, so a piece that ignores the magnet could still be plated or fake. Think of it as a quick way to rule something out, not to rule it in.

The float and density idea

Gold is very dense, much heavier for its size than most metals. The popular version of this is dropping the piece into water to see whether it sinks quickly, since solid gold should not float or drift. In reality this tells you very little on its own, because plenty of other metals sink too. The genuinely useful version of the density idea is the specific-gravity test, which compares the weight of the item in air against its weight in water to calculate density. Done properly with accurate scales, that points to the likely purity, but it is a measured laboratory-style method rather than a kitchen-sink guess.

Skin discolouration and the ceramic scratch

You may have heard that fake gold leaves a green or black mark on the skin, or that rubbing gold across an unglazed ceramic tile leaves a gold streak rather than a grey one. Both have a grain of truth and both come with cautions. Skin reactions depend on body chemistry and on the alloy metals even in genuine gold, so they are unreliable. The ceramic scratch will mark and scuff your piece, which is the last thing you want to do to jewellery you may sell. Avoid anything that scratches, files or otherwise damages an item before it has been valued.

The acid test

The acid test is a step up from the kitchen methods and is genuinely informative, which is why jewellers have used it for generations. A tiny mark is made on the gold and a drop of testing acid, calibrated to a particular carat, is applied. How the mark reacts indicates whether the gold matches that carat. It is reasonably reliable in trained hands. The drawback is that it is a touch destructive, since it involves marking the surface, and it depends on doing it carefully with the right acids for each carat. For these reasons it is best left to someone who tests gold regularly rather than attempted at home on a piece you care about.

Professional electronic and XRF testing

The most accurate and least invasive option is electronic testing, and in particular XRF testing. XRF stands for X-ray fluorescence. The device reads the metal and reports its composition without cutting, scratching or acid, so your piece is returned to you in exactly the condition it arrived in.

Two things make this the gold standard for valuation.

• It is non-destructive. Nothing is filed, marked or dissolved. A delicate antique chain can be tested without losing a single milligram.
• It is accurate. Rather than a yes-or-no guess, you get a reliable reading of the gold content, which is what determines the value.

When the carat is confirmed by electronic testing and the piece is weighed, the value follows directly from the weight, the purity and the live gold price. There is no guesswork and no room to be talked down.

Why a proper buyer tests in front of you

There is a simple reason The Gold Avenue weighs and tests every item in front of the customer: transparency removes the doubt. When you watch your gold go onto the scale and through the tester, and you see the carat and weight on which the offer is based, you are no longer relying on trust alone. You are looking at the same numbers the buyer is.

This is the heart of how The Gold Avenue was built, as a transparent, five-star alternative to the traditional pawn-and-gold-buying trade. Testing openly is also how a reputable buyer protects you from being underpaid. A worn or missing stamp does not cost you money when the metal itself is read accurately, and a faked stamp cannot inflate an offer when the true content is on the screen.

Your quick checklist before selling gold

Before you take any gold piece to be valued, run through this short list. It keeps you informed and makes the visit faster.

• Look for a hallmark (375, 585, 750, 916 or 999) but treat it as a clue, not proof.
• Try the magnet test at home to rule out an obvious fake. Remember that passing it proves nothing on its own.
• Do not scratch, file or acid-test a piece yourself if you intend to sell it. Damage lowers value.
• Separate items by apparent carat and colour if you can, so each is valued correctly.
• Insist that the buyer tests and weighs the gold in front of you and explains the offer.
• Bring your FICA documents, a South African ID or passport and proof of address, so you can sell on the day if you choose to.

How to get your gold tested and valued at The Gold Avenue

Having your gold checked properly does not need to be daunting. The process at The Gold Avenue in Illovo, Sandton is built to be clear and unhurried.

1. Get in touch. Call or send a WhatsApp message with a rough idea of what you have, whether that is a single chain or a drawer full of odds and ends.
2. Bring your items and your FICA documents. Carry your gold along with a South African ID or passport and proof of address.
3. Watch the testing. Each piece is tested electronically and weighed in front of you, so you see the carat and weight for yourself.
4. See the live valuation. Your gold is priced against the live market, based on its purity and weight, with the calculation explained.
5. Decide with no obligation. If you are happy, accept and take same-day payment by cash or EFT. If not, there is no pressure to sell and you simply take your gold home.

To arrange a test and valuation, or simply to ask a question about a piece you are unsure of, reach The Gold Avenue here.

The Gold Avenue
Illovo Point, 68 Melville Road, Illovo, Sandton, 2196
Phone: 010 109 0080
WhatsApp: 076 393 5429

Frequently asked questions

Can I tell if gold is real with just a magnet?

A magnet can help, but only to a point. Real gold is not magnetic, so if your piece is pulled towards a magnet it contains base metal and is not solid gold. The problem is that many fakes and plated items are not magnetic either, so passing the test does not confirm the gold is real. Use it to catch an obvious fake, then rely on electronic testing for a definite answer.

Does a 750 or 916 stamp guarantee my gold is genuine?

No. A stamp such as 750 (18ct) or 916 (22ct) is a useful indicator, but stamps wear off, go missing on older pieces, and can be faked on plated metal. That is why The Gold Avenue tests the metal itself rather than pricing on the strength of a stamp. Accurate testing protects you whether your stamp is worn, absent or false.

Will testing damage my jewellery?

The electronic and XRF testing used at The Gold Avenue is non-destructive, so nothing is scratched, filed or marked. Your piece is returned exactly as it arrived. This is why it is wise to avoid at-home scratch or acid tests on anything you might sell, since those can leave marks that reduce the value.

What do I need to bring to sell my gold?

To sell in South Africa you need to meet FICA requirements, so bring a South African ID or passport along with proof of address. Bring the gold itself as well, and you can have it tested, valued and paid out on the same day if you choose to go ahead.

Key takeaway: You can run a few honest at-home checks, such as the magnet test and a careful look at the hallmark, but none of them prove purity on their own. For a result you can trust, The Gold Avenue in Illovo, Sandton tests your gold electronically in front of you and values it against the live market, so you see exactly what you have before you decide to sell.

Gold has a way of gathering in drawers and jewellery boxes. An inherited chain, a single earring that lost its partner, a ring from a marriage that ended, a coin tucked away years ago. At some point the question arrives: is this actually gold, and if it is, what is it really worth? It is a fair question, and a surprisingly easy one to get wrong, because the things most people rely on, like a tiny stamp inside a ring, do not always tell the truth.

This guide walks through how to check if gold is real, from the markings stamped into the metal to the at-home tests you may have read about, and finally to the professional testing that buyers use. It is written from the perspective of The Gold Avenue, a luxury watch, gold and diamond exchange in Illovo, Sandton, where every item is weighed and tested in front of the customer. The aim here is simple: to help you understand your gold well enough that no one can underpay you for it.

What the carat stamp means

Most gold jewellery carries a small stamp, called a hallmark, that tells you the gold content. Pure gold is soft, so it is almost always mixed with other metals to make it hard enough to wear. The carat figure tells you how much of the piece is actually gold.

• 9ct is 37.5% gold (often stamped 375).
• 14ct is 58.5% gold (stamped 585).
• 18ct is 75% gold (stamped 750).
• 22ct is 91.6% gold (stamped 916).
• 24ct is 99.9% gold, which is essentially pure gold (stamped 999).

So a ring marked 750 is three-quarters gold, with the rest made up of metals such as copper, silver or zinc. Those alloy metals also shape the colour. More copper gives a warmer, reddish tone, while white gold is alloyed and usually plated to achieve its pale finish. Knowing the carat matters because the higher the gold content, the more the piece is worth by weight.

Why a stamp alone is not proof

Here is the part many people miss. A hallmark is a useful clue, but it is not evidence on its own. There are three reasons to treat any stamp with healthy caution.

• Stamps wear away. Decades of wear can rub a hallmark down until it is faint or gone, especially on the inside of a well-worn ring or the clasp of an old chain.
• Stamps go missing. Plenty of genuine gold, particularly older or handmade pieces, was never clearly marked in the first place.
• Stamps can be faked. A 750 stamp can be pressed into plated or low-grade metal just as easily as into solid gold. The mark is only as honest as whoever applied it.

This is exactly why a serious buyer never prices gold on the strength of a stamp. The stamp starts the conversation. A proper test finishes it.

At-home tests, and what they can and cannot tell you

There are a handful of checks you can do at home. Used sensibly, they can catch an obvious fake or give you a little reassurance. None of them confirm purity, and some carry a real risk of damaging your piece, so treat them as rough indicators rather than verdicts.

The magnet test

Real gold is not magnetic. If you hold a reasonably strong magnet near your piece and it pulls towards it, there is base metal in there and it is not solid gold. This is one of the safer checks because it does not touch or mark the item. The catch is that passing the test does not prove anything: many non-gold metals are also non-magnetic, so a piece that ignores the magnet could still be plated or fake. Think of it as a quick way to rule something out, not to rule it in.

The float and density idea

Gold is very dense, much heavier for its size than most metals. The popular version of this is dropping the piece into water to see whether it sinks quickly, since solid gold should not float or drift. In reality this tells you very little on its own, because plenty of other metals sink too. The genuinely useful version of the density idea is the specific-gravity test, which compares the weight of the item in air against its weight in water to calculate density. Done properly with accurate scales, that points to the likely purity, but it is a measured laboratory-style method rather than a kitchen-sink guess.

Skin discolouration and the ceramic scratch

You may have heard that fake gold leaves a green or black mark on the skin, or that rubbing gold across an unglazed ceramic tile leaves a gold streak rather than a grey one. Both have a grain of truth and both come with cautions. Skin reactions depend on body chemistry and on the alloy metals even in genuine gold, so they are unreliable. The ceramic scratch will mark and scuff your piece, which is the last thing you want to do to jewellery you may sell. Avoid anything that scratches, files or otherwise damages an item before it has been valued.

The acid test

The acid test is a step up from the kitchen methods and is genuinely informative, which is why jewellers have used it for generations. A tiny mark is made on the gold and a drop of testing acid, calibrated to a particular carat, is applied. How the mark reacts indicates whether the gold matches that carat. It is reasonably reliable in trained hands. The drawback is that it is a touch destructive, since it involves marking the surface, and it depends on doing it carefully with the right acids for each carat. For these reasons it is best left to someone who tests gold regularly rather than attempted at home on a piece you care about.

Professional electronic and XRF testing

The most accurate and least invasive option is electronic testing, and in particular XRF testing. XRF stands for X-ray fluorescence. The device reads the metal and reports its composition without cutting, scratching or acid, so your piece is returned to you in exactly the condition it arrived in.

Two things make this the gold standard for valuation.

• It is non-destructive. Nothing is filed, marked or dissolved. A delicate antique chain can be tested without losing a single milligram.
• It is accurate. Rather than a yes-or-no guess, you get a reliable reading of the gold content, which is what determines the value.

When the carat is confirmed by electronic testing and the piece is weighed, the value follows directly from the weight, the purity and the live gold price. There is no guesswork and no room to be talked down.

Why a proper buyer tests in front of you

There is a simple reason The Gold Avenue weighs and tests every item in front of the customer: transparency removes the doubt. When you watch your gold go onto the scale and through the tester, and you see the carat and weight on which the offer is based, you are no longer relying on trust alone. You are looking at the same numbers the buyer is.

This is the heart of how The Gold Avenue was built, as a transparent, five-star alternative to the traditional pawn-and-gold-buying trade. Testing openly is also how a reputable buyer protects you from being underpaid. A worn or missing stamp does not cost you money when the metal itself is read accurately, and a faked stamp cannot inflate an offer when the true content is on the screen.

Your quick checklist before selling gold

Before you take any gold piece to be valued, run through this short list. It keeps you informed and makes the visit faster.

• Look for a hallmark (375, 585, 750, 916 or 999) but treat it as a clue, not proof.
• Try the magnet test at home to rule out an obvious fake. Remember that passing it proves nothing on its own.
• Do not scratch, file or acid-test a piece yourself if you intend to sell it. Damage lowers value.
• Separate items by apparent carat and colour if you can, so each is valued correctly.
• Insist that the buyer tests and weighs the gold in front of you and explains the offer.
• Bring your FICA documents, a South African ID or passport and proof of address, so you can sell on the day if you choose to.

How to get your gold tested and valued at The Gold Avenue

Having your gold checked properly does not need to be daunting. The process at The Gold Avenue in Illovo, Sandton is built to be clear and unhurried.

1. Get in touch. Call or send a WhatsApp message with a rough idea of what you have, whether that is a single chain or a drawer full of odds and ends.
2. Bring your items and your FICA documents. Carry your gold along with a South African ID or passport and proof of address.
3. Watch the testing. Each piece is tested electronically and weighed in front of you, so you see the carat and weight for yourself.
4. See the live valuation. Your gold is priced against the live market, based on its purity and weight, with the calculation explained.
5. Decide with no obligation. If you are happy, accept and take same-day payment by cash or EFT. If not, there is no pressure to sell and you simply take your gold home.

To arrange a test and valuation, or simply to ask a question about a piece you are unsure of, reach The Gold Avenue here.

The Gold Avenue
Illovo Point, 68 Melville Road, Illovo, Sandton, 2196
Phone: 010 109 0080
WhatsApp: 076 393 5429

Frequently asked questions

Can I tell if gold is real with just a magnet?

A magnet can help, but only to a point. Real gold is not magnetic, so if your piece is pulled towards a magnet it contains base metal and is not solid gold. The problem is that many fakes and plated items are not magnetic either, so passing the test does not confirm the gold is real. Use it to catch an obvious fake, then rely on electronic testing for a definite answer.

Does a 750 or 916 stamp guarantee my gold is genuine?

No. A stamp such as 750 (18ct) or 916 (22ct) is a useful indicator, but stamps wear off, go missing on older pieces, and can be faked on plated metal. That is why The Gold Avenue tests the metal itself rather than pricing on the strength of a stamp. Accurate testing protects you whether your stamp is worn, absent or false.

Will testing damage my jewellery?

The electronic and XRF testing used at The Gold Avenue is non-destructive, so nothing is scratched, filed or marked. Your piece is returned exactly as it arrived. This is why it is wise to avoid at-home scratch or acid tests on anything you might sell, since those can leave marks that reduce the value.

What do I need to bring to sell my gold?

To sell in South Africa you need to meet FICA requirements, so bring a South African ID or passport along with proof of address. Bring the gold itself as well, and you can have it tested, valued and paid out on the same day if you choose to go ahead.