How To Know If Gold Is Real: 8 Best Ways

When it comes to investing, Indians prefer gold. This yellow metal is used for investing on religious occasions and family rituals. According to the World Gold Council, India is among the top consumers of gold in the world. The country has buyers across the length and breadth of the country. There is no metropolitan city or a remote rural village in India where gold is of no importance. Every Indian is fond of purchasing gold, and in families, it is passed on to generations considering it as a family heirloom.

Due to the ever-increasing price and demand for gold, there’s a black market for it across the globe. The international standards say: that less than 10 karats or 41.7% of gold is considered fake. So, to know if your owned gold is real, gold-plated, or fake, read this guide.  

Methods to Check if Gold is Real

While buying gold, there are a few tests you can perform to identify if the gold is real or not.

Look for Hallmarks

Whenever you buy gold jewelry, it comes engraved with a hallmark stamp (identifying its content and the manufacturer). It is one of the easiest and quickest ways to identify the purity of the gold.

The standards of the purity scales are based upon “karats” and “millesimal fineness”.

For millesimal fineness, it is the general system of denoting the purity of platinum, gold, and silver alloys by parts per thousand of pure metal in the alloy. This means, an alloy containing 75% gold is denoted as “750”.

In simple words, the fineness of the metal object (bar, coin, and jewelry) represents the weight of the fine metal therein, in proportion to the total weight which includes alloying base metals and any impurities. 

For example – in silver coins, copper is added to make it a durable alloy. 

In the past, silver coins contained 90% silver and 10% copper by mass. 

These are the standard valid purity numbers under the Millesimal Fineness System:

• 333, 375, 417, 500, 583.3, 585, 625, 750, 834, 899, 900, 916, 958, 986, 990, 995, 999, 999.9, 999.99, and 999.999. 

For karats, the higher the karats, the purer the gold. 

The most common karats are: 8k, 10k, 14k, 18k, 22K, and 24k. Here, 8k is the minimum karat for considering the purity of gold, especially in Denmark and Greece. 

These are the standard valid purity numbers under the karat system:

• 8k, 9k, 10k, 14k, 18k, 20k, 22k, and 24k. 

As anybody can engrave any hallmark these days, this testing is not 100% foolproof. Also, if the numbers are different compared to the above-mentioned, then it’s a clear indication of the fakeness of the gold. 

One more thing to take into consideration is that real old gold jewelry doesn’t always need to have a hallmark. It could also be the case where the original markings might have worn off. In this case, it is better to get it checked with an authentic jeweler. 

Look for Letter Markings

After hallmarks or stamps, you can check for the letter markings. This requires a bit of eye for detail while testing. 

The letter markings represent important information related to the gold jewelry, such as its gold plate, country or region, and manufacturer details. 

Here are some of the most common letter markings:

• GP (Gold Plated)
• GF (Gold Filled)
• GE (Gold Electroplated)
• GEP (Gold Electroplated)
• RGP (Rolled Gold Plate)
• HGP (Heavy Gold Plated)
• HEG (Heavy Gold Electroplated)

This means your gold jewelry is not entirely made of gold. The purest form of gold, which is 24k gold with 99.9% purity, and the standard minimum 10k with 41.7% purity is still pure. But, less than that or with the above-mentioned markings, it is “gold plated,” which is made of other metals with a very thin layer of gold. 

Here, the designation “heavy” means there’s a thick layer of gold plate, but still not genuine gold. Any of these markings indicate the fakeness of the gold.  

Rub the Gold on Your Skin

This test is quite simple. All you have to do is take a good piece of your gold jewelry and hold it between your hands for a few moments. 

After sweating, start rubbing it back and forth against your hand’s skin. The gold will either change the color of your skin or leave it unaffected. If it changes the color to black, blue, or green, then it means that the piece of gold is fake. 

Or if it hadn’t affected the skin. It means it’s real gold.   

Note: We recommend removing any makeup beforehand the test for accurate results. 

Water Test

Take a bowl, cup, or container of water and drop a piece of your gold into it. 

Gold is dense in material. So, if the gold sinks into it, it means it’s real.

If the gold kept floating to the top or in the middle of the cup, then it’s an indication of its fakeness.  

Magnet Test

First, bring the strong magnet next to your gold piece and wait for the reaction. Gold is a non-magnetic metal and if you see no reaction, then it means it’s the real gold.

Otherwise, if you see the attraction, you’re having fake gold. Gold-plated metals also tend to be non-reactive in this case. So, this method also isn’t 100% foolproof. 

Vinegar Test

This test only requires you to put a few drops of vinegar over the piece of gold. If gold remains the same (without color change), then it’s real. If it changes its color, then it is fake. 

Test Against a Ceramic Tile

Just take an unglazed ceramic plate or tile, and scrape your gold across its surface. If the gold left a mark, then it’s real. Otherwise, it’s fake. Other metals leave a black mark. 

Checking the Size and Weight of Your Gold

This is one of the standard tests on gold. First, pick up the piece of gold you wish to test with the one (you already know to be real). 

If you see a large piece of gold and its weight is too light for its size, then it’s fake. You can even use the jeweler’s tools such as a set of calipers and Fisch Tester. 

This test works well on the coins and bars of gold.