Selling gold jewelry with diamonds or stones

How buyers price jewelry with stones

When you sell gold jewelry for its metal, the buyer pays for the pure gold inside. Stones are not gold, so they don’t count toward the gold value.

Buyers handle stones in one of these ways:

Remove them and weigh the gold alone. This gives the most accurate gold weight.
Estimate the stone weight and subtract it. Common when a stone is hard to remove.
Make a separate offer for the stones. Some buyers who deal in diamonds do this. Many scrap buyers don’t.

Always ask which method a buyer uses, and whether they will give the stones back if they don’t pay for them.

Why stones change the weight

Stones can add noticeable weight, especially large ones or pieces with many small stones. A carat, the unit used for gem weight, equals 0.2 gram. So a ring with 2 carats of stones carries about 0.4 gram that isn’t gold. See karat vs carat.

Settings can also hide things that aren’t gold, such as glue, a filler behind the stone, or a white metal head holding a diamond. Some rings mix metals, for example a yellow gold band with a platinum or white gold top. Ask the buyer how they will price each part.

Small stones vs larger stones

Not all stones are worth separate attention.

Small accent stones, such as tiny diamond chips, cubic zirconia, glass or synthetic stones, usually add little or nothing to a scrap offer.
Larger diamonds and fine gemstones can be worth much more than the gold around them. Selling them as part of scrap gold may mean giving them away.

It’s hard to tell a diamond from a look-alike by eye. If a stone looks large or important to you, have it checked before you sell. A jeweler can test it, and some will give an appraisal. An appraisal for insurance is usually higher than what anyone would pay to buy the stone, so treat it as a guide, not an offer.

Should you remove the stones?

You can ask a jeweler to remove stones for you. This has some benefits:

You can get an exact gold weight.
You keep the stones to sell separately, reuse or pass on.
You avoid a buyer guessing at the stone weight.

The downsides: a jeweler may charge for the work, and removing stones from a designer or antique piece can lower what it is worth as jewelry. Don’t try to pry out stones yourself; you can chip the stone or bend the setting.

When the whole piece is worth more than its parts

Some jewelry sells for more as jewelry than as gold and stones. Consider asking a jeweler or a dealer in used jewelry before you sell for scrap if your piece is:

Signed by a known designer or brand
Antique or vintage, with fine detail work
An engagement ring with a sizable, good-quality diamond
In good wearable condition with a grading report for the stone

You may need to try several buyers to find one who pays for the design or stones. See where to sell gold.

Estimate the gold value

Weigh the piece in grams. See how to weigh gold at home.
Subtract the stone weight if you know it from a receipt or grading report (carats × 0.2 = grams).
Find the karat stamp, such as 14K or 585. See what do gold stamps mean?.
Enter the gold weight and karat in the gold calculator.

The result is a melt value for the gold only. For a platinum setting, use the platinum calculator.

Before you hand it over

Take clear photos of the piece and stones.
Ask whether stones are removed in front of you.
Get the gold weight, karat and price per gram in writing.
Ask for any unpaid stones back.

See the checklist before you sell gold jewelry for more.

Quick summary

Question	Short answer
Do stones count toward gold weight?	No, buyers subtract them
Do scrap buyers pay for stones?	Usually little or nothing
How much does a carat weigh?	0.2 gram
When should I get stones checked?	When a stone is large or the piece is signed or antique

These figures are estimates, not offers. What a buyer pays depends on their test and their own pricing.