Selling Gold for Cash or Bitcoin
Express Gold Cash vs SellYourGold vs Gold Guys: Payout Test
By Michael Tanguma, Founder & CEO of Heirfolio. Reviewed by Diana Cruz, GIA Graduate Gemologist. Updated May 25, 2026.
TL;DR. All three are legitimate, regulated, mail-in gold buyers with multi-year track records. Express Gold Cash has the deepest trust stack (25+ years, 11,000+ Trustpilot reviews) and the most operational maturity. Gold Guys has retail locations and a stronger macro/community voice. SellYourGold has the broadest payment options but the thinnest public infrastructure. Published payout percentages are non-existent at all three — the only honest way to compare is to send a real piece, which we did.
A reader asked which of the big three mail-in gold buyers pays the best. The honest answer: nobody publishes the number, so the only way to know is to ship a real piece to each one and compare what comes back.
The failure mode to name first: mail-in gold buyer reviews are dominated by either (a) the operators' own marketing pages and (b) affiliate sites earning commissions on referrals. Both sources have the same incentive to recommend the highest-paying operator regardless of what the data says. The fix is to ship a real piece, document the process, and report the math.
This article is the comparison version of that work. For per-operator full reviews including documented payout receipts, see the Express Gold Cash review and the SellYourGold review.
See what your piece is worth in 60 seconds before you ship anywhere
The three operators at a glance
| Operator | URL | Founded | What they specialize in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Express Gold Cash | expressgoldcash.com | 2001 | Mail-in gold + diamonds, 25+ year family-owned anchor |
| SellYourGold | sellyourgold.com | ~2010 | Mail-in gold + silver + platinum, broad payment rails |
| Gold Guys | goldguys.com | 2009 | Mail-in + retail (Minnesota locations), sister bullion shop |
All three are based in the US, all three ship within the US (some internationally), all three send a free prepaid insured envelope, all three offer free return shipping if you decline.
The full side-by-side comparison
Honest scoring. Where a number is published, we cite it. Where it isn't, we mark "Not disclosed."
| Feature | Express Gold Cash | SellYourGold | Gold Guys |
|---|---|---|---|
| Years in business | 25+ | ~15 | 17 |
| Trustpilot reviews (count) | 11,186 | Not disclosed publicly | Not disclosed publicly |
| Trustpilot rating | 4.9 / 5 | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| BBB rating | A+ (0 complaints) | A+ | A+ |
| Total transacted | $100M+ (claimed) | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| Customers served | 50,000+ | Not disclosed | 650,000+ (claimed) |
| Free shipping (to you) | Yes — FedEx insured | Yes — FedEx insured | Yes — FedEx insured |
| Free return shipping | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Insurance limit per package | $100,000 | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| Payout published? | No | No | No |
| Spread published? | No | No | No |
| Live spot price on site | No | No | Yes — bid/ask across 4 metals, 110+ currencies |
| Payout calculator | No | No | No |
| Buys gemstones | Yes — diamonds, sapphires, rubies, emeralds | Yes — limited | Yes — diamonds |
| Buys silver / platinum / palladium | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Buys dental gold | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Buys watches | Limited | Limited | Limited |
| Payment methods | Check, direct deposit | Check (next business day), PayPal (immediate), direct deposit (1-2 days) | Check, direct deposit |
| Time from receipt to offer | Same day | Same day | 1-3 business days |
| Time from acceptance to payment | 1-3 days | Immediate (PayPal) to next-day (check) | 1-5 days |
| Bonus for same-day shipping | No | Yes — 5% bonus | No |
| Will match competing offers? | Yes (listed in FAQ) | Not stated | Not stated |
| Retail location to walk in | No | No | Yes — Minnesota locations |
| Sister bullion shop | No | No | Yes — goldguysbullion.com |
| Public content / blog | ~22 evergreen articles, dated 2020 with refresh stamps | ~50-100 FAQ pages, no traditional blog | ~180 posts across 18 paginated pages |
| Categories blog covers | Selling gold, identifying gold, military rings, wedding bands | FAQ only | Macro, hard money, mint comparisons, precious metals |
| Content cadence | Low (refreshed annually) | Low | Weekly |
| Multi-author byline | No | No | Yes — Shane Maguire, Joe Beasy |
| Customer service hours | Mon–Fri business hours | Mon–Fri business hours | Mon–Fri business hours + retail |
| TLS / site infrastructure | Standard, working | TLS verification issue observed in our 2026 crawl | Standard, working |
Where Express Gold Cash wins
The longest track record and the deepest trust stack in the category. If "do not worry about whether I will get paid" is the primary requirement, Express Gold Cash is the safest bet.
- 25+ years in business. Family-owned since 2001. They predate most of the modern mail-in category.
- 11,186 Trustpilot reviews at 4.9/5. The largest verified review count of any operator in this comparison. Volume that size is hard to fake.
- BBB A+ with zero complaints on record. Not just rated; complaint-free at the BBB level.
- $100M+ transacted, 50,000+ customers served. Operational scale that implies the business model works.
- Buys gemstones in addition to gold. Sapphires, rubies, emeralds, diamonds — they don't just melt everything.
- Will match competing offers. Listed explicitly in their FAQ. If you have a quote from another operator, they'll review it.
- Ranked #1 by TopConsumerReviews.com. Third-party validation beyond their own reviews.
Recommended for: First-time mail-in sellers who want the safest operator. Higher-value pieces (gemstones, signed items) where you want the operator with the deepest authentication infrastructure. Anyone who values track record over speed.
Not recommended for: Sellers who want the absolute fastest payment (SellYourGold's PayPal option is faster). Anyone who lives near a Gold Guys retail location and prefers in-person.
Where SellYourGold wins
The broadest payment rails in the category. If your priority is getting paid fast in your preferred format, SellYourGold has the deepest options.
- Three payment methods. Company check (next business day), PayPal (immediate after acceptance), direct deposit (1-2 business days). The PayPal option specifically is faster than either competitor.
- 5% bonus for same-day shipping. A real discount lever the others don't offer. If you ship the day you receive the kit, your payout is meaningfully larger.
- Page-per-FAQ architecture. Sprawling FAQ surface area means most basic questions are addressed on the site itself. Less hand-holding required.
- No-risk, no-obligation offer. Same model as the others — if you don't like the offer, the piece comes back free.
Recommended for: Sellers who specifically need PayPal as a payment rail (international beneficiaries, sellers without a US bank account that supports direct deposit). Sellers who can ship same-day and want the 5% bonus.
Not recommended for: Sellers who want the deepest trust stack — neither the Trustpilot count nor the years-in-business is publicly comparable to Express Gold Cash. The TLS issue we observed during our 2026 site audit (certificate verification failure on the root domain) is a soft infrastructure flag worth noting. For inheritance-grade pieces or high-value items, the more established operators feel safer.
Where Gold Guys wins
The only operator in this comparison with retail locations and a content engine. Best fit if you live in the Midwest or value the macro/community framing.
- Retail locations in Minnesota (Maple Grove, St. Paul, others). Walk-in service is available for sellers who prefer in-person. You can still mail in from anywhere; the retail option just doesn't exist for the other two.
- Sister bullion shop at goldguysbullion.com. You can sell gold to them, then buy gold from the same operator's bullion arm — useful if you're rotating between piece types.
- 180+ blog posts across 18 pages. The deepest content surface of the three. Multi-author (Shane Maguire, Joe Beasy) with weekly cadence and macro/hard-money slant.
- Live spot price ticker on site — bid/ask across gold, silver, platinum, palladium in 110+ currencies. Not a payout calculator, but a useful market-data widget that the other two don't have.
- 650,000+ customers served (claimed). Aggressive customer count, though unverifiable.
Recommended for: Sellers in the Midwest who want the option of walking in. Sellers who value reading the operator's editorial perspective before committing. Anyone who's also a buyer (the bullion sister shop is a real convenience).
Not recommended for: Sellers who want the deepest verified trust signals — Express Gold Cash's Trustpilot count is larger and more recently audited. Sellers who don't want to read a macro doomer column before getting their gold valued.
What none of them disclose
This is the section that matters most for honest evaluation.
None of the three publishes the spread. None publishes the payout percentage in advance. None provides a calculator that lets you compute the expected payout for a known weight and karat before shipping.
The industry standard is to send the piece, receive the offer, accept or decline. Pre-shipping estimates exist but are explicitly non-binding. The actual offer is computed after the operator assays the piece and applies their internal pricing formula — and that formula is proprietary.
This is the structural problem with the entire mail-in category. Apples-to-apples comparison requires shipping the same piece to each operator and waiting for the offers. We did that for the per-operator reviews; here we summarize the pattern.
| Implied spread (based on 2024–2025 transactions documented by Heirfolio's payout-test program) | Express Gold Cash | SellYourGold | Gold Guys |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average spread on plain 14k gold | ~22% | ~25% | ~23% |
| Best observed spread | 18% | 19% | 19% |
| Worst observed spread | 28% | 31% | 27% |
| Range | 10 percentage points | 12 percentage points | 8 percentage points |
The differences are real but smaller than most sellers expect. All three pay within roughly 5 percentage points of each other on average for plain gold. The bigger variation is between mail-in (any of these three) and the alternative channels — transparent platforms at 8–15% spread, pawn shops at 40–65%.
For a 28-gram 14k chain (melt value approximately $1,372 as of May 25, 2026):
| Operator | Expected payout (at average observed spread) | Payout range |
|---|---|---|
| Express Gold Cash | ~$1,070 | $988–$1,125 |
| SellYourGold | ~$1,029 | $946–$1,111 |
| Gold Guys | ~$1,056 | $1,002–$1,125 |
| Transparent platform (for reference) | ~$1,166 | $1,098–$1,235 |
The spread between the three is small. The spread between any of them and a transparent platform is meaningful.
Paste any quote into the spread checker — see if it's fair
The customer service question
All three operate Monday–Friday business hours US time. None publishes a guaranteed callback window. None offers 24/7 chat. All three respond to email within 24 business hours in our experience.
| Channel | Express Gold Cash | SellYourGold | Gold Guys |
|---|---|---|---|
| Phone support | Yes — business hours | Yes — business hours | Yes — business hours + retail |
| Email response time | Same business day typical | Same business day typical | Same business day typical |
| Chat | No | No | No |
| Average review tone (Trustpilot, BBB) | Mature, repeat customers, "fair" praised | Mixed; some complaints about offer disputes | Strong, with multi-year repeat customers named in testimonials |
None of the three has a published service-level agreement. All three are responsive enough that delayed offers are rare.
What we recommend
If you've decided mail-in is the right channel for your piece, here's how to pick among the three.
Pick Express Gold Cash if:
- You want the safest operator with the deepest verifiable trust signals.
- Your piece includes gemstones or signed items where authentication matters.
- You prefer a slightly higher average payout in exchange for slightly slower payment (check vs PayPal).
Pick SellYourGold if:
- You specifically need PayPal as a payment rail.
- You can ship same-day to capture the 5% bonus.
- You prefer the deepest FAQ-as-page architecture for self-service.
Pick Gold Guys if:
- You live in Minnesota and want the option to walk in.
- You're also a buyer and want to consolidate with the sister bullion shop.
- You value reading the operator's editorial perspective before transacting.
Pick none of the three if:
- Your piece is over $5,000 in expected value — consignment or auction usually pays more.
- Your piece is signed designer (Cartier, Tiffany, etc.) — consignment or local fine jeweler usually pays more.
- You want to see the spread before you ship — transparent platforms (Heirfolio, Unvault, Mene buyback) publish it.
The bottom line
The three biggest mail-in gold buyers in the US are all legitimate, all regulated, all reasonably priced for the category. The differences between them are smaller than most sellers assume, and the differences between any of them and a transparent platform are larger than most sellers know.
Express Gold Cash wins on trust stack and track record. SellYourGold wins on payment options and the same-day bonus. Gold Guys wins on retail access and content depth.
None of them publishes the spread, which means you cannot compare them apples-to-apples without shipping the piece. The closest you can get is to use a published spot price and a spread checker before you commit, then send to whichever feels right for your specific piece.
For pieces under $1,500 in plain gold, any of the three is a reasonable choice. For higher-value or designer pieces, look outside this category entirely.
See what your piece is worth in 60 seconds before you ship anywhere
Frequently asked questions
Is Express Gold Cash legit?
Yes. Express Gold Cash has been operating since 2001, has an A+ BBB rating with zero complaints, has 11,186 Trustpilot reviews at 4.9/5, and claims $100M+ in transactions across 50,000+ customers. They're family-owned, US-based, and ranked #1 by TopConsumerReviews.com. The trust signals are real and verifiable. For a deeper hands-on review, see our Express Gold Cash review.
Is SellYourGold safe?
Yes, with one note. SellYourGold has been operating since around 2010, holds a BBB A+ rating, and is a regulated mail-in gold buyer with insured shipping in both directions. During our 2026 site audit we observed a TLS certificate verification failure on the root domain, which is a soft infrastructure flag worth noting but doesn't affect the transactional safety of the service itself. For a deeper hands-on review, see our SellYourGold review.
Which one pays the most?
Based on our payout-test data, the three operators pay within roughly 5 percentage points of each other on average. Express Gold Cash and Gold Guys both averaged a slight payout edge over SellYourGold in our 2024–2025 sample (roughly $20–$50 on a 28-gram 14k chain), but the variance within each operator's own payout history is wider than the variance between operators. None of the three is consistently the highest.
How long does the whole process take?
Roughly 7–14 days end-to-end at all three operators. The breakdown: 2–3 days for the kit to arrive after you request it, 2–4 days for your package to arrive after you ship, 1–3 days for the operator to assay and offer, 1–3 days for payment to clear after you accept. SellYourGold's PayPal option compresses the final step to same-day after acceptance. Gold Guys' offer turnaround can run slightly longer (1–3 business days vs same-day for the others).
Will they pay more if I ask?
Sometimes. Express Gold Cash's FAQ explicitly states they will match competing offers — bring a quote from another operator and they'll review. The other two don't publish a match policy but both have honored counter-offers in documented cases. The leverage is real if you have a competing quote in hand. The leverage is much weaker if you've only received one offer and are trying to talk it up.
Can I send rings, chains, broken pieces, and dental gold in the same package?
Yes, at all three operators. They'll separate and weigh by karat and item type during the assay. The total payout reflects the sum of the per-item valuations. Mixed-karat lots are common and well-handled; dental gold is accepted by all three.
What happens if I decline the offer?
The piece is shipped back to you, free, insured. All three operators offer this. The kit pre-pays return shipping; if you decline within their stated window (typically 14–30 days depending on operator), the return is at no cost to you. Past the window, some operators charge return shipping; check the specific terms before you ship.
Should I get an appraisal before mailing my gold?
For pieces under roughly $1,500, no — the cost of an appraisal ($75–$200) typically eats most of the value gained from the negotiating leverage. For pieces over $1,500, yes. A pre-shipping appraisal gives you a number to compare offers against and is essential if you're claiming the stepped-up basis on inherited property for tax purposes. See our estate jewelry appraisal cost guide for the framework.
What to do next
Before you ship anywhere, get a free valuation in 60 seconds. You'll know the melt value, which tells you what 75–90% of melt looks like as a target payout — and that target tells you whether any operator's offer is fair.
If you've already received a quote from one of these three, paste it into the spread checker. The math takes 30 seconds and tells you what the operator is keeping.
For the broader comparison of where to sell gold (online vs local vs auction vs consignment), see our channel-by-channel comparison.
The three operators in this article are reasonable choices for plain gold. Make the choice knowing the spread you're paying.
Michael Tanguma is the founder and CEO of Heirfolio. He previously founded Onramp Bitcoin, a Bitcoin financial services firm focused on multi-institution custody for individuals and institutions. This article was reviewed for accuracy by Diana Cruz, a GIA Graduate Gemologist and Heirfolio's Valuation Lead. Operator data verified against each operator's public marketing site as of May 25, 2026. Payout-test data drawn from Heirfolio's internal 2024–2025 sample of identical pieces sent to multiple operators; full per-operator data in the individual review articles linked above.