Materials
How to Tell if Gold Jewelry Is Real (and What "Gold" Can Mean)
· 3 min read
A gold-coloured ring can be solid gold, gold over silver, gold over brass, or gold bonded onto steel. They look identical in a shop photo and behave very differently after six months.
None of them is a scam on its own — the problem is only ever a label that hides which one you bought. Here is how to find out.
1. Look for the stamp
Solid gold is almost always stamped on the inside of a ring or near a clasp. The number is the gold content: 375 is 9 karat (37.5% gold), 585 is 14 karat, 750 is 18 karat, 916 is 22 karat and 999 is 24 karat. You may also see it written as 9K, 14K or 18K.
Plated pieces carry different letters, and they are worth knowing:
| Stamp | What it means |
|---|---|
| 375 / 585 / 750 | Solid gold: 9K, 14K, 18K |
| GP, GEP | Gold plated — a thin layer over another metal |
| HGE, HGP | Heavy gold electroplate — a thicker plated layer |
| GF, 1/20 14K | Gold filled — a thick gold layer bonded to brass |
| 925 with gold colour | Gold vermeil — gold over sterling silver |
2. Check the edges and the inside
Plating wears first where it rubs: the inside of a ring, the edges of a band, the links of a chain. A different colour peeking through — pink-copper, grey or silver — means a layer over another metal. Solid gold is the same colour all the way through, so it can scratch but it can't wear through.
3. The magnet test (and its limits)
Gold is not magnetic. If a magnet grabs the piece firmly, it is not solid gold. The opposite isn't proof, though: silver, brass, copper and most stainless steel jewelry aren't magnetic either. Treat a magnet as a way to rule things out, never to confirm.
4. Your skin will tell you
A green or dark mark on your finger means copper underneath, reacting with sweat — the classic sign of plated brass with the plating worn through. Solid gold of 14K and above doesn't do it, and neither does 316L steel. If a gold-coloured ring leaves a green band, you know what it is made of.
5. Do the price maths
Gold has a public price per gram, so solid gold has a floor. A 14K ring weighing three grams contains about 1.75 grams of pure gold, and it cannot be sold for less than that metal is worth. If a chunky "solid gold" chain costs less than a dinner out, the price has already answered the question.
6. Ask a jeweller
For a piece that matters — an inheritance, a second-hand find — any jeweller can do an acid or electronic test in a few minutes, often for free. That is the only check here that is conclusive.
When "not solid gold" is the right answer
Solid gold is beautiful and expensive, and it is soft: 18K scratches easily and dents if you knock it. For jewelry you wear every day, in the shower and at the gym, the question is less "is it real gold?" and more "will the gold stay?"
That is why we use PVD gold on 316L stainless steel. The gold-coloured layer is bonded into the steel's surface under vacuum rather than painted on top, so it doesn't rub off like ordinary plating, and the steel underneath doesn't turn skin green or rust. It isn't solid gold and we never call it that — it is honest gold colour that survives real life.
FAQ
What does 585 mean on gold?
Does real gold stick to a magnet?
Is gold-plated jewelry fake?
Will PVD gold jewelry turn my finger green?
Real gold isn't the only good answer. Knowing which gold you're buying is.
Gold colour that stays gold.
PVD gold on 316L stainless steel: waterproof, no green fingers, and labelled for exactly what it is.