9ct vs 18ct vs 24ct Gold: What's the Difference and Why It Matters When Selling

"Carat" (sometimes written "karat" outside the UK) describes how much pure gold is in an item, out of a maximum of 24 parts. It's one of the two numbers - alongside weight - that determines exactly how much your gold is worth.

What each common carat actually contains

• 9 carat (375): 37.5% pure gold, the rest made up of alloy metals such as copper, silver or palladium for strength and colour. Popular for everyday rings and chains in the UK because it's more durable and affordable than higher carats.
• 14 carat (585): 58.5% pure gold. Common in the US and increasingly in the UK as a mid-point between durability and gold content.
• 18 carat (750): 75% pure gold. A popular choice for engagement rings and higher-end jewellery, offering a richer colour and higher resale value than 9ct.
• 21 carat (875) and 22 carat (916): 87.5% and 91.6% pure gold respectively. Very common in Middle Eastern and South Asian jewellery designs.
• 24 carat (999): 99.9% pure gold - as pure as gold gets in everyday circulation, typically found in bullion bars and some coins rather than jewellery, since pure gold is too soft for daily wear.

Why this matters when you sell

Because we price gold based on its pure gold content, not its total weight, two rings of identical weight can be worth very different amounts depending on carat. A 10-gram 9ct ring contains roughly 3.75g of pure gold, while a 10-gram 18ct ring contains 7.5g of pure gold - twice as much, and therefore worth significantly more.

How we test carat

Rather than relying purely on any hallmark stamp (which can occasionally be worn, missing, or in rare cases inaccurate on older pieces), our valuers use calibrated testing methods to confirm the actual gold content of every item before quoting a price. This protects you from being under- or over-valued and means the figure we offer is based on fact, not guesswork.

A quick way to estimate value at home

If you know the carat and weight of a piece, you can get a rough sense of value using our online gold calculator - just remember any figure it gives is an indicative estimate, and your final price is always confirmed after an in-person weigh and test.