Yes, if they're real gold or silver. A scrap buyer pays for the metal, so a broken chain or a single earring is usually worth the same per gram as a whole piece of the same karat. Sort the pieces by stamp, weigh each group, and sell them together.
Broken doesn’t mean worthless
Most gold and silver jewelry sold for scrap is melted down. Once it’s melted, it doesn’t matter whether a chain was snapped, a ring was bent or an earring lost its partner. What counts is how much real metal there is and how pure it is.
That’s why many people are surprised by what a drawer of odds and ends adds up to. A few grams here and there from broken chains, single earrings, charms and old clasps can come to a meaningful amount when gold prices are high.
The exception is a piece that could sell as jewelry, such as a signed designer item or an antique. Damage can lower that value, but the metal value stays.
What’s usually worth selling
- Broken chains and bracelets, as long as you keep all the pieces, including the clasp.
- Single earrings, including the back if it’s gold. Earring backs may be gold too.
- Bent, cracked or out-of-shape rings. See how much a gold ring is worth.
- Charms, pendants and lockets with no chain.
- Clasps, jump rings and links left over from repairs or resizing.
- Silver jewelry marked 925 or sterling. It’s worth much less per gram than gold, but it adds up. See sterling silver jewelry value.
Tiny bits still count. A buyer weighs the whole lot, so small pieces add to the total even if each one weighs well under a gram.
Step 1: Sort by stamp
Look for a karat or purity mark on each piece. On broken chains it’s usually on the clasp or a tag beside it. On earrings it’s often on the post or the back. Use a magnifier or your phone’s camera zoomed in.
| Mark | What it means |
|---|---|
| 10K / 417 | 10 karat gold (41.7%) |
| 14K / 585 | 14 karat gold (58.5%) |
| 18K / 750 | 18 karat gold (75%) |
| 925 / Sterling | Sterling silver (92.5%) |
| GF, GP, HGE, RGP | Gold filled or plated, very little gold |
Make a separate pile for each karat, one for silver, and one for pieces with no mark. Sorting helps because a buyer may otherwise test a mixed pile and price it all at the lowest karat they find. See what gold stamps mean.
Under US Federal Trade Commission guides, gold filled means a gold layer bonded to a base metal, and plated items have even less gold. These pieces usually have little or no scrap value. See gold filled vs gold plated.
Step 2: Deal with the unmarked pieces
A missing stamp doesn’t always mean no gold. Small pieces, old jewelry and resized rings often lose or never had a mark. You can test them at home or let the buyer test them. See how to test gold at home and how buyers test gold.
If a piece turns out not to be gold or silver, set it aside. Costume jewelry has no metal value to a scrap buyer.
Step 3: Take out what isn’t metal
Stones, pearls, beads and glue add weight but not gold. Small diamonds and imitation stones usually add little to a scrap offer. If you have a larger stone, have it looked at before you sell. See selling gold jewelry with diamonds or stones.
Steel parts like some watch-band pins and spring clips aren’t gold either. A buyer will usually remove them or allow for their weight.
Step 4: Weigh each group
Weigh each karat pile separately on a scale that reads to at least 0.1 gram, ideally 0.01 gram. See how to weigh gold at home. Then enter each weight and karat in our gold calculator and add the results. For silver, use the silver calculator.
Selling small amounts
- Sell everything together. Some buyers have minimums or flat fees, so a single earring on its own may not be worth a trip, but it’s worth adding to a larger lot.
- Keep piles in separate bags labeled with the karat and your weight, so the buyer’s numbers are easy to check.
- Watch the scale. Ask to see your items weighed, and compare the weight to your own.
- Get more than one offer. See how to tell if a gold offer is fair and where to sell gold.
Before you sell, check with family if any pieces were inherited. A jeweler can usually repair a broken chain if someone would rather keep it.
These values are estimates, not financial advice. Buyers set their own prices.
Last reviewed November 4, 2026. This guide is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice.