Sell to a local pawn shop: A pawnbroker may know something about the value of your items, but they are in the loan and resale business so you cannot expect them to pay top dollar for your gold or any other item your sell to them. Pawn brokers aren't being greedy; they must pay low and sell high in order to stay in business. Many times pawn shops buy gold items to melt them down, so it doesn't matter the condition. Some pawn shops are in "grungy" parts of town and may not be reputable, so do some research first to be sure you are safe and dealing with a professional.

Sell to a local jewelry store: A jeweler may wish to repair your broken jewelry and resell it, or perhaps "repurpose" your pieces into new creations, or perhaps just like a pawn broker they might melt your gold and not use it or resell it in its original form. Retail jewelers mark up jewelry significantly above the value of the precious metals and the labor/overhead involved in creating and selling the jewelry pieces, otherwise they wouldn't be able to stay in business. So again, they cannot pay top dollar for your gold, sterling silver, diamonds, etc. It is best to make an appointment in advance to have your jewelry evaluated or you could be standing in line while a jeweler helps other customers ahead of you.

Send to a refinery: If you have a minimum of two ounces of any mesh size of natural gold, refineries might be the best solution. That might sound like a lot, but if you have recovered all sizes and shapes of gold over time, then sell it all at once, it's probably the most profitable method. Be sure you know exactly how much you have before you send it in. Every ounce of gold equates to 480 grains or 20 pennyweight or 31.104 grams so weigh it carefully on a quality digital scale. Refineries do not care if it's fine gold, pickers, nuggets, or a combination because they melt it all down and resell it by weight. They do not care about the size or shape of your original gold, they only care about the purity. A refiner will not pay you anything extra for beautiful specimens or nuggets, they will simply pay you for the inherent scrap value of your gold. Refineries pay around 95% of assay (gold purity test). That means you get 95% of whatever purity is determined (85% pure is pretty common), minus a refining fee. Search online for a list of refineries near you.

Sell it on Ebay: Lots of people buy and sell gold and other precious metals on Ebay. Beautiful crystalline and leaf gold specimens, large nuggets, and pretty or unusual pieces of gold by itself or mixed with quartz are prized by collectors. Collectors buy prized pieces to add to their collections, and therefore, value the gold they buy differently than businesses that buy gold to resell it. Do your homework first, though, because there is a lot of competition on Ebay. And be sure that you understand all the fees Ebay charges you to list and sell items.

No matter what option you choose on Where to Sell Gold or silver, it is not realistic to expect to receive the same amount for your jewelry or other items that you paid in the store. No one is trying to cheat you, but these are retail prices. No business can both pay retail and sell at retail and stay in business.

Keep in mind that the brand, condition, beauty, or age of your items generally do not play any role in the items' value. Its simply the value of the precious metals that you will be paid for. Selling your scrap gold and scrap silver items is a great way to make extra money now for unwanted, ugly, broken items you don't use or want!