Why Most Refiners Won't Take Small Gold-Filled Lots
Because only a thin fraction of a gold-filled piece is actual gold — often just 1/20th or 1/40th of the total weight — the pure-gold yield from a small lot can be too little to cover a refiner's processing cost. Many refiners set a minimum lot weight (commonly somewhere in the 5-10 gram range of gold-filled material, varying by refiner) before they'll accept it at all, and some general pawn shops decline gold-filled entirely since it doesn't respond to a standard karat acid test the way solid gold does. If you have a small amount, it's often worth combining multiple gold-filled pieces into one lot, or checking with a refiner's posted minimum before mailing anything in.
Common Gold-Filled Ratios
| Ratio | Fine gold fraction |
|---|---|
| 1/10 (10%) — "10K/10" or "GF" | 10.0% |
| 1/12 (~8.3%) — "12K/12" or "GF" | 8.3% |
| 1/20 (5%) — "14K/20" (most common) | 5.0% |
| 1/40 (2.5%) — "14K/40", thinner/cheaper pieces | 2.5% |
Other Pages
Scrap Gold Calculator
Mixed lot, multiple items
White Gold Scrap Value
Same melt value as yellow gold
Cash for Gold
Single item, buyer estimate
Methodology
Data source & formula
Main Calculator
All karats in one tool
Frequently Asked Questions
No — gold-filled has a much thicker, mechanically bonded layer of karat gold (typically 1/20th or 1/40th of total weight) versus gold-plated, which is an electroplated coating often far thinner than 0.5 microns and usually not worth melting down at all.
It means the item is gold-filled with a 14K gold layer making up 1/20th (5%) of the total weight — the number before the slash is the karat of the gold layer, and the number after is the fraction (as 1/x) of total weight that layer represents.
Some will, often at a lower price than they'd quote confidently on solid gold, since gold-filled doesn't respond to a simple acid test the way solid karat gold does and requires knowing the actual GF ratio to value correctly. A dedicated refiner that explicitly lists gold-filled processing is usually a better bet for anything beyond a token amount.
Look for a stamp like "14K/20", "1/20 12K GF", or just "GF" — if there's no visible ratio stamped, a jeweler or refiner can often identify it, but don't assume a default ratio without checking, since 1/10, 1/12, 1/20 and 1/40 are all common and give very different melt values for the same weight.