Is Your Gold Real or Gold Plated?

Not all that glitters is gold – even gold. Some pieces that you’ll see may appear to be gold, but are only plated in it.

As its name implies, a gold-plated item is an object made from a different metal, but covered in a thin layer of gold. The underlying metal can vary, but it is always a more economical metal than gold itself.

Now, purchasing gold is quite popular these days due to inflation and the unstable economic environment. A common pitfall, however, is buying a piece of gold or golden jewelry, only to find that it is merely plated in the shiny stuff.

This guide is to help you determine if your gold pieces are real or plated. Let’s get started.

What is Gold-Plated?

As we discussed, a gold-plated item is an object of a certain metal covered with a thin layer of gold. These days, gold plating is achieved by placing the object into a bath of water and gold salt in solution.

Then, an electric current is passed through the bath, and the gold ions in the liquid bond to the introduced metal. Because of the mechanism of action, this process is sometimes called electroplating.

Gold-plated items are commonly used for making jewelry, coins, and accessories. Their primary purpose – and one of the ways to tell if an item is plated – is to reduce the cost to the customer and make it easier to sell.

However, there is no denying that a solid piece of gold is going to demand a higher price. The solid piece of gold is also a purer investment in terms of precious metals investing or heirloom items.

The other major difference is that gold-plated items are much more likely to show wear and distress over time. It makes sense – wearing down a solid gold item will only reveal more gold, but wear on a gold-plated item will begin to reveal the underlying metal.

What is Solid Gold?

Now that we’re clear on gold-plated items, we need to discuss solid gold ones. Their definition may seem obvious, but naming them “solid” is a bit of a misnomer.

The underlying problem with using gold is that pure gold is soft. It doesn’t hold its shape very well. So, the vast majority of products defined as “solid” gold are actually gold alloys, where the metal content is a mixture of gold and other metals.

The exact metals used in the mixture aren’t always the same. There may be silver, copper, zinc, nickel, tin, or platinum – it depends on the designer’s preference and/or the customer’s demand.

However, these items are defined in terms of their gold purity. For this task, gold relies upon the karat system.

In essence, the karat system is a statement about the relationship between the mass of gold in an object and the entire mass of the object itself. The entire mass is expressed as the number 24, so the karat rating is the numerator over the 24 denominator. Thus, 24-karat gold is the purest gold that you can get.

There are several other common karat ratings that you’ll see in jewelry stores or precious metals shops. If it helps, you can use those ratings to determine the percentage of gold within the item as follows:

• 24-karat: 99.9% pure or higher
• 22-karat: 91.67% pure
• 18-karat: 75% pure
• 14-karat: 58.33%% pure
• 10-karat: 41.67% pure

In theory, a gold-plated item could have a karat rating, but nobody really does that. “1-karat gold” is not a terrific flex.

There are a couple of major advantages to buying solid gold items. First, they bear a higher value than the plated items. Not only do they contain more gold, but they are seen as “purer” than a plated item.

The other element of a solid gold piece is its longevity. As mentioned, solid gold pieces are much less-prone to tarnishing and discoloration, as their solid content only wears to reveal more of the gold.

However, don’t be cavalier with a solid gold piece, especially as you ascend the karat ladder. A 24-karat gold item is a delicate item and needs to be treated as such.

Key Differences Between Gold-Plated and Solid Gold

We’ve already touched on some of the differences between gold-plated items and solid gold items. Plated items are usually less expensive. Plated items may begin to wear down. Plated items may show signs of tarnishing.

However, there are a few other differences that are worth mentioning. For one thing, gold-plated items are usually shinier than solid gold ones. Pure gold is actually quite a bit duller than you might imagine, and plated items are usually shined as brightly as they can be.

The other major difference is the weight of the two. Gold is an incredibly dense metal and is surprisingly heavy to the touch.

Gold-plated items, on the other hand, are lighter when handled. Thus, if you’re wondering if an item is plated or solid, the first thing to do is to pick it up.

How to Identify Gold-Plated Items

However, weight alone is not definitive. There are more deliberate methods to distinguish a gold-plated item from a solid gold one.

The first thing that you can do is check the item for wear and tear. Because a plating is, in essence, a layer of wallpaper, you can check the edges or contact points on the item for frays or other indications that the plating is beginning to erode from the underlying metal.

Secondly, it’s not always a secret that a piece is gold-plated. You can look for stamps on the item that say GP, GEP, HEP, or RGP – all abbreviations for different methods of plating the items. You may also see GF, signifying that the item is “gold-filled.”

Third, it’s important to realize that gold is not magnetic. If you hold a magnet close to your piece and it attracts, it’s gold-plated, and the metal content underneath contains iron, cobalt, or nickel.

Finally, you can use gold’s low reactivity to your advantage. Buy some nitric acid, and file down a portion of your item. Then, place a drop of acid in the filed area. If the acid turns green or white, then it’s a gold-plated item. If there is no reaction, it is likely to be solid gold.

How to Verify if Gold is Real

Now, the problem with all of these methods is that all of them are subject to error or inaccuracy. Since most of us are not jewelers or metallurgists, we cannot be certain that a piece which passes our home tests isn’t fake gold.

There are even stories about acid test fails due to improper scratching of the item. For that matter, you may not want to put a scratch on your item or file it down – especially if it’s a sentimental piece of jewelry or sovereign coin.

So, you will need to engage the services of one of the people mentioned above. Pick a trusted jeweler or, if you know any, metallurgist and have them test your item. If you don’t mind melting down the item, you can have them perform the fire assay method to bake off the impurities in the piece.

Another method that a pro might use is X-ray fluorescence. The item is bombarded with X-ray radiation, and its gold content will show differently in the resulting image than the other metals.

No matter how your pro chooses to identify the metal, they need to give you a certificate or some other kind of professional stamp that asserts both their expertise and findings officially. If you are considering a purchase of an investment piece, you should also insist upon that piece coming with a similar certificate of authenticity.

Needless to say, gold plating is a tried-and-true weapon for fraudsters. So, you need to take care and verify that you, indeed, own what you think you own or buy what you think you’re buying.

Related articles of interest: 

• Is my gold real or fake?
• Where does gold come from? 

Conclusion

In short, both solid gold and gold-plated items may look the same at first glance. However, it is critical that you understand the differences between the two before you buy.

That’s not to say that gold-plated items are always unworthy purchases. If you are looking for a lower-cost item with some gold in it for a loved one, a gold-plated piece can be just the thing, and there’s no shame in buying it.

However, if you are trying to start or build a gold-bearing investment portfolio, it is much better to stick to solid gold. Many gold formats, like gold bars or rounds, are primarily valued for their intrinsic gold content alone.

No matter your goals, you need to have a trusted resource for advice about your pieces. There are likely reputable coin shops or precious metals dealers nearby. However, verify their experience, and trust your gut if something feels off about the professional(s) you find.

Of course, we are more than happy to help you with your gold-buying needs. Reach out to JM Bullion today and speak with one of our trained counselors to get started.