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Gold Earrings

Unmatched and broken gold earrings are a common site at the bottom of many jewellery boxes. At todays rates, your unworn gold earrings are probably worth more than you think.

We really don’t mind whether your earrings come in pairs or singly. We’re not bothered about their condition either! Providing they’re gold (or silver, or platinum), we can pay you cash.

Earrings that are not gold

These earring studs are not gold

Non-gold earrings

It’s difficult to know sometimes whether an old earring is gold or not. The most common non-gold earrings we see are the type of studs used at the time ears are pierced. There’s a very simple test you can use to help separate the gold from the non-gold earrings. Find a strong magnet and pass it over your earrings. If any stick to the magnet, they can be discarded. When trying this out, remember to first separate the butterfly backs from the studs. Again, if any butterfly backs stick to the magnet, they’re not gold.

Using a magnet can also be useful to separate gold chains. However, please be careful if you have any gold bangles. It is very common to have steel tension wires running through them, which can give you a false result.

If all this information about testing gold and non-gold earrings is too much, please don’t worry. We don’t charge testing fees and anything that turns out not to be gold is always returned, again, for free.

To value your gold earrings, use the calculator in the right-hand column of this page.

4 Responses to “Gold Earrings”

  1. Karen says:
    November 9, 2012 at 4:00 pm

    Yes I’m sure the kind of earring for piercing purposes would need to be stiff and would be surgical steel. But by stud earring I meant any earring with a post as compared to a leverback or french wire. And often it’s not a jump to the magnet (as a surgical steel post would do) but rather a little lesser attraction. But still a definite one. And why are these marked 14K or 10K (and just recently I found a 585 marked one too) when they are not?

    thanks
    Karen

    Reply
    • Phil says:
      November 14, 2012 at 11:22 am

      My suspicion is they are not gold, but the only way to confirm this is to get one tested. We X-Ray everything here to confirm gold content… I think you’re in the US, but if you was to send us a sample we’ll happily test it for you. Alternatively, find a reputable dealer in your area that uses XRF analysis.

      Reply
  2. Karen Griffith says:
    November 6, 2012 at 1:33 am

    I am glad to see your comment about gold bangles having steel tension wires in them, causing them to stick to a magnet. I would not have thought of that.

    I do have a question: I have a rare earth magnet (strong enough to pick up red garnets, thanks to their iron content!) and I now have quite a pile of clasps (non-spring containing) and post earrings and butterfly push on backs ALL OF WHICH ARE MARKED 10K or 14K. Most are newer and I assume are from suppliers cheating by selling small findings at “real gold” prices when they’re actually not solid 10K or 14K. Is this a fair assumption? Is there any possible alternate explanation? Should I be throwing these out?

    thanks
    Karen

    Reply
    • Phil says:
      November 9, 2012 at 3:11 pm

      Hi Karen,

      Stud earrings (the sort that are used when you go to have your ears pierced) are very rarely gold. If they stick to your magnet, you can dispose of them.

      Reply

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