Selling Gold for Cash or Bitcoin
Sell Gold Online vs Local Jeweler vs Pawn vs Auction: Payout Comparison
By Michael Tanguma, Founder & CEO of Heirfolio. Reviewed by Diana Cruz, GIA Graduate Gemologist. Updated May 25, 2026.
TL;DR. The four channels for selling gold pay very different amounts for the same piece. Online mail-in buyers pay 55–75% of melt value for plain gold. Local jewelers pay 50–70%. Pawn shops pay 30–55%. Auction houses pay 70–95% — but only on pieces over roughly $5,000 and only after 60–180 days. The right channel depends on the piece, the price you can wait for, and how much spread you're willing to pay for speed.
A customer in Ohio sold a 14k gold chain to a pawn shop for $340 last March. The same chain, weighed and assayed the same week, would have paid $710 through a transparent online platform, $585 through a local jeweler with a fair spread, and roughly $640 through a competing mail-in buyer.
Same piece. Same week. Same spot price. Four payouts that vary by 100% top to bottom.
The failure mode to name first: most sellers pick the channel that's geographically closest, not the channel that's economically closest to fair value. That decision costs the average seller 25–40% of their piece's worth. The fix is not to pick the absolute highest-paying channel for every piece — sometimes the slower, higher-paying channel isn't worth the wait. The fix is to know the rates so you can pick the right one knowingly.
Get a real quote in 60 seconds — no shipping required to see the number
The four channels at a glance
| Channel | Typical payout (% of fair value) | Time to cash | Best piece |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pawn shop | 30–55% | Same day, 30 minutes | Emergency only — almost never the right call for a piece you can wait on |
| Local jeweler | 50–70% | Same day | A piece they can resell whole — designer, signed, gemstones intact |
| Online mail-in | 55–75% | 7–14 days | Scrap-grade pieces, broken chains, plain gold |
| Transparent online platform | 75–90% | 24–72 hours | Spot-price-linked items where you want to see the number first |
| Online consignment | 65–85% (after fees) | 30–90 days | Branded pieces (Cartier, Tiffany, Van Cleef) |
| Auction house | 70–95% (after commission) | 60–180 days | Anything over $5,000–$10,000 expected value |
Read the table this way: pawn is fastest, auction is highest-paying, online platforms are the middle that wins on most pieces under $5,000.
The full side-by-side comparison
The detailed version. Honest scoring, with the trade-offs each channel makes explicit.
| Factor | Pawn shop | Local jeweler | Online mail-in | Transparent platform | Online consignment | Auction house |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Payout (% of melt) | 30–55% | 50–70% | 55–75% | 75–90% | 65–85% (after fees) | 70–95% (after commission) |
| Speed to cash | 30 minutes | Same day | 7–14 days | 24–72 hours | 30–90 days | 60–180 days |
| Shipping required | No | No | Yes (insured, prepaid) | Yes (insured, prepaid) | Yes (insured, prepaid) | Yes (insured) |
| See quote before shipping | Yes (in person) | Yes (in person) | Sometimes (estimated only) | Yes (firm spot-linked) | Yes (listing price you set) | Yes (estimate) |
| Quote binding | Yes (in person) | Yes (in person) | After receipt and assay | Locked at quote time | Until sold | Reserve protects floor |
| Refining fee | Hidden in spread | Hidden in spread | Often hidden | Published | Built into commission | Built into commission |
| Commission | None (they own it) | None (they own it) | None | Published platform fee (typically 8–15%) | 20–40% of sale price | 10–25% seller commission + buyer's premium |
| Return shipping if you decline | N/A | N/A | Sometimes free, sometimes paid | Free | Free | Free (or piece relisted) |
| Insurance during shipping | N/A | N/A | Yes ($10K–$100K typical) | Yes ($10K–$250K typical) | Yes ($10K–$100K typical) | Yes (full value) |
| Best for plain gold | No — payout too low | OK — convenient | Yes | Yes — best math | No — overhead too high | No — minimums too high |
| Best for branded designer | No | OK | No — melted | Sometimes | Yes — retail-adjacent | Yes |
| Best for high-value (>$10K) | No | Sometimes | No | Sometimes | Sometimes | Yes |
| Best for emergency cash | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | No |
| Documentation provided | Receipt only | Receipt | Receipt + assay report | Receipt + spot record + assay video | Receipt + listing record | Receipt + auction record |
| Tax reporting | 1099 if over $10K cash | 1099 if over $10K cash | 1099 reporting standard | 1099 reporting standard | 1099 reporting standard | 1099 reporting standard |
| Audit trail for stepped-up basis | Weak | Moderate | Moderate | Strong | Strong | Strong (best) |
When pawn shops actually make sense
Almost never, for an inherited piece. The math is brutal.
A pawn shop is built to lend, not to buy. When they buy outright, they're pricing in the risk that they'll sit on the inventory for months. The 30–55% range is not because they're dishonest — it's because their business model requires that spread.
The narrow case where pawn is the right answer: you need cash today, you have already exhausted credit options, and the piece in question isn't sentimentally important. Even then, ask the pawn shop for a loan against the piece rather than an outright sale. The loan terms are usually better than the sale terms, and you keep the option to redeem the piece if your situation changes within 30–90 days.
Recommended for: Genuine cash emergencies. Pieces you have no attachment to and won't miss.
Not recommended for: Inherited pieces. High-value items. Pieces you'd consider keeping. Anyone who can wait even 72 hours for an alternative channel.
When local jewelers actually make sense
Local jewelers are middle-of-the-pack on payout but win on three dimensions the online channels can't match: same-day cash, eye contact, and the possibility of a higher offer for the right piece.
If your piece is a signed estate (Cartier, Van Cleef, Tiffany), a designer watch (Rolex, Patek), or a piece with intact GIA-graded stones — a local jeweler with the right clientele may pay you 70–80% of retail rather than the 50–70% of melt that a generic shop offers. The reason: they have a customer who walks in the next week and pays retail-adjacent for it.
The trick is knowing which kind of jeweler you're walking into. A scrap-buying counter inside a strip mall is not the same business as a fine estate jeweler in a boutique district. The first will melt anything; the second will hold for the right buyer.
Questions to ask before handing over a piece:
- Do you have your XRF tester on the counter? (Reputable shops do.)
- What's your current spot price for [karat] today? (They should know within $0.50/gram.)
- Will you offer me both a melt-value price and a resale-value price? (The resale price will be higher if the piece has resale value to their clientele.)
- Can I see the assay live? (Yes is the only acceptable answer.)
Recommended for: Signed estate jewelry, designer watches, GIA-certified pieces. Anyone who wants in-person interaction and same-day cash.
Not recommended for: Scrap-grade pieces (broken chains, mixed-karat lots, dental gold). The math is better online for these.
When online mail-in buyers actually make sense
This is the dominant channel for plain gold jewelry today. Companies like Express Gold Cash (25+ years, 11,000+ Trustpilot reviews), SellYourGold, Cash for Gold USA, and Gold Guys all operate the same basic model: prepaid insured FedEx envelope to you, you ship, they assay, they offer, you accept or they return the piece free.
Payout ranges 55–75% of melt for plain gold. The wide range is the spread variability — some operators run 15% spreads, some run 35%. Most don't publish the number, which is why pre-shipping comparison is hard.
What mail-in does well:
- Convenient — never leave the house.
- Insured shipping in both directions.
- Most reputable operators have multi-year track records and real customer review counts.
- Settlement in 7–14 days.
What mail-in does poorly:
- Pre-quote is estimated, not firm. You don't know your real number until they receive and assay.
- Spread is rarely published. You're trusting the operator to be fair.
- Counter-offers are sometimes a high-pressure moment ("you accept now or it ships back").
- Almost no operator pays brand premium — Cartier, Tiffany, Rolex get melted alongside dental gold.
Recommended for: Scrap-grade pieces, broken chains, mixed-karat lots, dental gold, plain wedding bands. Anything where the piece's value is the metal and the brand is incidental.
Not recommended for: Branded pieces with secondary-market value. Signed estate jewelry. Pieces over $5,000 in expected value (auction or consignment math will be better).
[See our detailed comparison: Express Gold Cash vs SellYourGold vs Gold Guys.]
When transparent platforms make sense
A newer category. Platforms like Heirfolio (us), Unvault, and Mene's buyback program publish the spread before you ship and price items against the live spot price of gold. You see the number, you decide, then you ship.
The math on plain gold typically runs 75–90% of melt — the highest among same-week channels. The structure is fundamentally different from mail-in: the spread is named (Unvault publishes 15–20% platform fees; Mene publishes 10% buyback fees; Heirfolio publishes per-transaction spreads on the calculator), so apples-to-apples comparison is possible before you commit to shipping.
What transparent platforms do well:
- Spread is published. You know what you're paying.
- Quote is locked at the time you accept, not after assay.
- Settlement is fast (24–72 hours after receipt).
- Multi-currency settlement available (cash, additional gold, or Bitcoin) on some platforms.
What they do less well:
- Newer category — fewer years of operating history per platform.
- Not yet the best math for highly-branded designer pieces (consignment beats them there).
- Higher minimums on some platforms.
Recommended for: Plain gold jewelry, dental gold, broken pieces, mixed-karat lots, pieces where the metal is the core value. Anyone who wants to see the spread before shipping.
Not recommended for: Branded designer pieces with strong secondary markets (Cartier Love, Tiffany T, Rolex, Patek) — consignment or auction will usually pay more.
When online consignment makes sense
Worthy, The RealReal, eBay (with fees), 1stDibs, and the rest of the consignment ecosystem are the right channel for branded jewelry with real secondary-market demand. The consignor markets the piece to their existing buyer base; the buyer pays retail-adjacent prices; you net 65–85% after commission.
The trade-off is time. The piece sits in a warehouse for 30–90 days while it lists, gets viewed, and (hopefully) sells. If it doesn't sell in 90–180 days, you usually get it back or the platform offers a "wholesale" payout that's closer to mail-in math.
Recommended for: Cartier, Tiffany, Van Cleef, Bvlgari, Hermès, David Yurman — any house with a robust secondary market. Designer watches. GIA-graded diamonds in popular sizes. Engagement rings with provenance.
Not recommended for: Plain gold. Unsigned pieces. Anything where the metal is the value and the design is incidental.
When auction houses make sense
For pieces over roughly $5,000–$10,000 in expected value, auction is often the best math. Christie's, Sotheby's, Bonhams, and the regional houses (Heritage, Doyle, Skinner, Freeman's) all take consignments. They charge 10–25% seller commission, plus a buyer's premium that effectively widens the spread, plus photography and catalog fees in some cases.
But for the right piece — signed estates, important diamonds, historically interesting works, single-owner collections — the floor is your reserve and the ceiling is whoever's in the room with a paddle. Pieces sometimes sell at 150–300% of pre-sale estimate. Pieces sometimes pass entirely.
Recommended for: Genuinely high-end pieces. Signed estates. Important diamonds (5+ carats, GIA, top color and clarity grades). Historically interesting works. Anything over $10,000 expected value where you have 60–180 days to wait.
Not recommended for: Anything under roughly $5,000 — auction overhead eats the math. Pieces with no provenance or signature.
Paste any quote into the spread checker — see if it's fair
How to decide in 60 seconds
Five questions:
- What's the piece's brand? Cartier, Tiffany, Van Cleef, Bvlgari, Rolex, Patek, Hermès → consignment or auction. Unsigned or generic → mail-in or platform.
- What's the piece worth, roughly? Under $1,500 → mail-in or platform. $1,500–$5,000 → platform or local jeweler. $5,000–$10,000 → platform, consignment, or local fine jeweler. Over $10,000 → auction.
- How fast do you need the money? Today → pawn or local. This week → platform. This month → mail-in. This quarter → consignment. This year → auction.
- Do you have stones? GIA-graded diamonds → consignment or auction. Smaller commercial-grade stones → platform or local.
- Are you OK shipping the piece? Yes → all online channels open. No → local only.
Match the channel to the piece and you'll get within 10% of fair value, sometimes within 5%. Mismatch and you'll lose 20–40% — and you'll never know exactly what you left on the table.
A worked example: same piece, four channels
A 28-gram 14k yellow gold chain (no maker mark, no gemstones), as of May 25, 2026. Spot price for 14k: roughly $49/gram. Melt value: roughly $1,372.
| Channel | Typical payout | Time to cash |
|---|---|---|
| Pawn shop | $410–$755 (30–55%) | 30 minutes |
| Local jeweler (scrap counter) | $686–$960 (50–70%) | Same day |
| Online mail-in | $755–$1,029 (55–75%) | 7–14 days |
| Transparent platform | $1,029–$1,235 (75–90%) | 24–72 hours |
| Online consignment | Not appropriate (unsigned, generic) | N/A |
| Auction | Not appropriate (under threshold) | N/A |
Best math for this piece: a transparent platform. Worst: a pawn shop. The gap is roughly 3× — meaning the same chain pays one seller $410 and another seller $1,235 in the same week.
The difference is not how good the seller is at negotiating. It's which channel they walked into.
The bottom line
There is no universally correct channel. There is a correct channel per piece, and the math is knowable.
- Pawn shops make sense in genuine cash emergencies. Almost never for inherited pieces.
- Local jewelers make sense for designer pieces with retail-adjacent value to their clientele, and for anyone who wants in-person interaction.
- Online mail-in makes sense for plain gold and scrap. Reputable, convenient, but pre-quote is estimated and spread is often hidden.
- Transparent online platforms make sense for plain gold when you want the firmest pre-shipping quote and the highest payout in the same-week category.
- Online consignment makes sense for branded designer pieces where the brand premium is recoverable. Slow but high-paying.
- Auction houses make sense for pieces over roughly $5,000–$10,000. Slowest, highest ceiling.
If you remember nothing else: before you ship or hand over anything, get a published spot price and compute the implied spread of every quote. The math takes 30 seconds and tells you which channel is actually paying you what.
Document your collection in Heir Protocol before deciding to sell
Frequently asked questions
What's the best place to sell gold for the highest price?
For pieces over $5,000–$10,000 in expected value: a reputable auction house (Christie's, Sotheby's, Bonhams, or a regional like Heritage or Doyle). For pieces between $1,500 and $5,000: a transparent online platform or online consignment depending on whether the piece is generic gold or a branded designer item. For pieces under $1,500: a transparent online platform usually wins. Pawn shops always pay the least.
How much should I get for selling gold jewelry?
For plain gold (no gemstones, no significant branding), expect 60–85% of melt value depending on channel. Calculate melt value as (weight in grams) × (spot price per gram for your karat). If you're being offered under 60% of melt for plain gold, the channel is overpriced or the operator's spread is wider than industry standard. The exception is pawn — pawn shops legitimately pay 30–55% because their business model requires that spread.
Is it safe to ship gold through the mail?
Yes, when you use a reputable operator and follow basic precautions. The shipping is insured (typically up to $10,000–$50,000 per package via FedEx or USPS Registered Mail). The receiving company is regulated and tracks every package. To protect yourself: photograph and weigh every piece before shipping; ship pieces individually if any single piece is worth more than the insured limit; only use companies with a BBB rating of A or A+ and 100+ verified reviews. See our is mail-in gold safe guide.
Do pawn shops give fair prices for gold?
Pawn shops pay 30–55% of melt value on outright sales. This is not unfair within their business model — they're pricing in inventory risk — but it is the lowest-paying channel in this comparison by a wide margin. For any piece you can wait 24–72 hours on, almost any other channel pays meaningfully more.
Should I sell my gold to a local jeweler or ship it online?
It depends on the piece. For a branded designer piece (Cartier Love bracelet, Tiffany T bangle, Rolex watch, etc.) that a local fine jeweler could resell whole, local may pay better — 70–80% of retail rather than 50–70% of melt. For plain gold (broken chains, dental gold, generic wedding bands), online platforms typically pay 10–25% more than local scrap counters. Always get both quotes when you can.
How long does it take to sell gold online?
A transparent platform settles in 24–72 hours after receiving the piece. A mail-in gold buyer takes 7–14 days from when you ship. Online consignment takes 30–90 days from listing. Auction takes 60–180 days from consignment. The faster the channel, generally, the smaller the buyer pool and the wider the spread — though transparent platforms have largely closed that gap by publishing their spreads up front.
Do I pay tax on selling gold jewelry?
Yes, in most cases. Gold is taxed at the collectibles rate, up to 28% federally on long-term gains, plus any state tax. For inherited jewelry specifically, your cost basis is the fair market value on the date the prior owner died (the stepped-up basis), so you only owe tax on appreciation between that date and the date you sell. For jewelry you bought yourself, your basis is what you paid. See our inheritance tax on jewelry guide for the framework.
What if I have both plain gold and designer pieces — do I sell them together?
No. Sell them through different channels. The math breaks down because a single channel either melts everything (mail-in) or won't accept the scrap-grade pieces (consignment, auction). Separate the lot into "scrap" (plain gold, broken chains, mismatched earrings) and "resale-grade" (designer, signed, intact sets with stones). Send the scrap to a transparent platform; send the resale-grade to consignment or local fine jewelers.
What to do next
If you're holding a piece and want to know which channel fits it: get a free valuation. The number takes 60 seconds and tells you the melt value, which tells you what 75–90% of melt looks like as a target payout.
If you've already received a quote and want to know if it's fair: paste it into the spread checker.
If you're thinking about more than just this one sale — the rest of the box, the next generation's questions — see our honest guide to selling inherited jewelry and build a free Heir Protocol.
The piece you're holding has a fair price. The channel you pick determines whether you actually get it.
Michael Tanguma is the founder and CEO of Heirfolio. He previously founded Onramp Bitcoin, a Bitcoin financial services firm focused on multi-institution custody. This article was reviewed for accuracy by Diana Cruz, a GIA Graduate Gemologist and Heirfolio's Valuation Lead. Payout ranges based on published 2024–2026 transaction data from Heirfolio, public spreads from Mene and Unvault, BBB and Trustpilot data for major mail-in buyers, and consignment commission schedules from Worthy, The RealReal, Christie's, and Sotheby's. Spot prices as of May 25, 2026.