Gold is perhaps the most sought after metal on the planet and has retained its value for thousands of years. Indeed, gold is worth a lot, and is considered a safe haven in times of turmoil and uncertainty. But what about placer gold? How much is it worth?
One ounce of fine natural placer gold is worth around $1300, given that the gold spot price is $1800. Placer gold of typical purity is generally worth 70-85% of the spot price when sold to the right person. However, rarer and bigger pieces of placer gold, such as nuggets, can command a much higher price.
There are several aspects that need to be considered when determining the value of placer gold. In this article, we will look closer at the factors at play, so that you can judge for yourself how much your hard-earned gold is likely to bring in.
In addition, we will look at the buyers you should sell your gold to get the highest price. Finding the right buyer is essential, as two pieces of gold can be valued very differently just depending on who’s on the other side of the deal.
Table of Contents
What Determines the Worth of Natural Placer Gold?
There are several factors at play when it comes to how much you can count on getting when selling natural placer gold. And while you might be right assuming that a nice nugget or crystalline gold piece will command a hefty premium, selling it to the wrong buyer could mean that you get paid just for the scrap metal value.
But first, let’s look at how the market values placer gold depending on its physical appearance!
Purity
Placer gold seldom consists of more than 95% gold. In fact, most of the placer gold found in the US consists of around 70%-80% pure gold. The rest is made up of alloys like copper and silver, and minerals, which sometimes leave visible traces on the gold. If those traces are really noticeable, the gold could be of even lower purity.
As a rule of thumb, nearly all placer gold has a purity somewhere between 60% to 95%. And while there can be significant variations within a local area, some regions are known for having purer gold than others. For instance, Australia is known for its pure placer gold, which sometimes has a purity exceeding 95%.
Shape and size
As you will see soon, some buyers are not concerned with the shape of the gold. Their only mission is to smelt it, meaning that the only aspect that counts is the scrap metal value.
However, other buyers such as jewelers and collectors are ready to pay a quite large premium for uniquely shaped pieces. The rarer the gold, the more you can expect to get.
In general, round-shaped nuggets are not considered anything out of the ordinary, but will still command a higher price than small placer gold. The bigger the nugget, the more it will sell for. It’s not uncommon for large nuggets to sell for twice the gold spot market price.
The most attractive shapes that tend to draw the most attention, and with that the most money, are crystalline pieces of gold or other odd shapes. If they are rare enough and you stumble upon the right buyer, these can sell for several times the gold market price.
“Crystalline Gold” by James St. John – Under Creative Commons License
Quantity
If you have very small amounts of placer gold to sell, the fees and costs associated with handling the gold could mean that you effectively get paid less. For instance, when selling gold to a refinery you will have to pay a fee for them to process the gold. If the amounts are very small, then there won’t be much left once the fees have been deducted.
Origin
If you are selling gold nuggets, American buyers tend to pay more for American gold nuggets, as they are considered rarer than, for instance, Australian gold nuggets.
Gold spot price (With a twist)
Obviously, the price of gold in the world markets will impact how much your gold is worth. However, what’s more interesting is that gold nuggets tend to attract a larger premium when prices are relatively low, and vice versa.
The reason is that buyers still remain accustomed to lower prices when they have soared recently, and accustomed to higher prices after they have declined.
To Whom Should You Sell Fine Placer Gold?
As you see, there are many factors that affect the value of placer gold. However, finding the right buyer is as important, if not even more so. A gold piece could be worth just its scrap metal value for one person, while it could be worth several times that amount for somebody else.
In other words, patience really pays off when selling placer gold! Many times it’s all about finding the right buyer!
So, what kinds of buyers will pay what your gold is actually worth? Well, the answer is different depending on the type of placer gold.
Here are three buyers that are likely to pay well for fine placer gold!
Refineries
Sending in your placer gold to a refinery could be an option if you have larger amounts of really fine gold. There will usually be an assay carried out to decide the pureness of the gold, and you will then be paid for the gold content only. Due to this, you should never send in gold that could command a premium for its physical appearance, such as gold nuggets.
Local Dealers
In heavily mined locations there is usually someone who buys placer gold from local miners. You should be able to get at least 70% of the gold market price. If not, be patient and continue looking for someone who pays you better! There really is no reason for going lower than this, regardless of what the
Online Websites
There are some websites representing actual businesses that will buy your placer gold. Although I haven’t tried them out myself, I have heard of others who have, with mixed results. As always, you need to be careful when sending in your gold to someone who is going to set a price on it!
From what I’ve heard from others, goldhog.com is a reliable and honest buyer. However, I recommend you take a look at the different buyers yourself. And most importantly, don’t send in all the gold at once, but start with a small sample before sending in the rest!
To Whom Should You Sell Placer Gold Nuggets And Bigger Pieces?
Bigger gold pieces and unique specimens require that you find the right buyer to be valued fairly. Here are two types of buyers who are likely to be ready to pay a premium for your gold.
Collectors
If you have some larger pieces of placer gold, you definitely want to try to find a collector who might be interested in it. Since many collectors already have smaller nuggets and more common gold pieces, you stand a much better chance of getting paid well if the gold is really rare. As I mentioned earlier in the article, crystalline and leaf formed gold is really attractive!
One important aspect to be aware of is that selling gold to collectors perhaps requires even more patience than in other cases. You want to find a buyer who sees the value in that very piece of gold and is ready to pay for it. As always, the beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder!
Jewelers
Some jewelers, albeit not all, can be interested in gold nuggets for use in jewelry. Although far from every jeweler will be ready to pay a premium for your gold, there are those who will. Especially jewelers who specialize in natural gold jewelry tend to know the true worth of beautiful and rare placer gold, as well as quartz specimen and the like.
For more information about selling placer gold and gold nuggets, I recommend my complete guide to selling gold.
How To Increase The Worth of Placer Gold
As you probably have started to understand, the worth of placer gold is very much up to the buyer. In other words, if you could come up with a way to market placer gold to a specific audience, then it could suddenly sell for a quite hefty premium.
Here are two ways to increase the worth of your placer gold!
Sell Pay Dirt Bags
There are many prospectors out there who will pay a premium for pay dirt bags to get to explore the gold of your region, or just to actually see some real gold in the pan without heading out there. There are vendors out there who charge twice the expected gold value. That’s, quite a nice premium, isn’t it?
To create pay dirt bags you take some of the gravels and sands from your area, pour them into bags, and add some extra placer gold to the mix. Then it’s ready to be sold on, for instance, ebay.
Sell gold to tourists
Many tourists are willing to spend a reasonable amount of money on untreated, real gold if it comes well packaged. However, they are generally not concerned with the actual gold content, as they are more drawn to its physical appearance.
Some things you could do include placing small amounts of gold inside water-filled vials, or placing nuggets or gold flakes into jewelry boxes. The former will magnify the gold and make it pretty to look at, which really helps with attracting touristy buyers!
Conclusion
The worth of your placer gold depends on its physical appearance, the buyer, and to some extent its purity. Finding the right buyer for your type of placer gold is critical, especially if you have some really rare and unique gold that could attract a large premium.
Due to this, it’s impossible to give an exact number as to how much your gold is worth. However, the closest we can come to a definite answer is that you should be able to get at least 70%-85% of the spot price.