They can look identical in a photo. On the wrist, for a few months, they can even feel the same. But solid gold and gold-plated jewellery are worlds apart in what they are actually worth, and the gap only shows once you try to sell, or once the plating starts to wear.
What plated gold really is
Gold-plated jewellery is a base metal, usually brass or copper, with an extremely thin layer of gold bonded over the top. That layer is often measured in microns, thinner than a sheet of paper. It looks like gold because the surface is gold, but the piece is mostly cheap metal. Over time the plating rubs off at the edges, reacts with skin and water, and fades. When it does, there is nothing valuable underneath.
What solid gold is
Solid gold is gold all the way through, mixed with a small amount of other metals for strength. An 18K piece is 75% pure gold by weight. It does not flake, it does not fade, and it holds its value because the metal itself is valuable. Twenty years from now it is still solid gold.
Five ways to tell them apart
- Look for a hallmark. Real gold is usually stamped with its purity, like 18K, 750, 14K, or 585. No stamp is a warning sign.
- Feel the weight. Gold is dense. A solid gold piece feels noticeably heavier than a plated one of the same size.
- Check the wear. On plated jewellery, look at high-contact spots like clasps and edges for a different colour showing through.
- Try a magnet. Gold is not magnetic. If a magnet pulls the piece, it has a lot of base metal in it. (Passing this test alone does not prove solid gold, but failing it is a clear red flag.)
- Ask for the weight in grams. A seller of real gold can always tell you the exact gram weight, because that is what the piece is worth.
Plated is a product. Solid gold is an asset.
Everything we make is solid, hallmarked 18K gold, priced by the gram, so what you pay reflects the metal you own, not a wash on the surface.