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Selling guide

Gold rings: stones, settings and what is actually weighed

A ring is rarely all gold. This explains how each ring type is handled, which parts of a set piece count towards the payable weight, how stones and settings are treated, and the antique markers worth flagging before anything is sent.

By Rocco Clayfield, trading as GoldPaid; the business incorporated as GOLDPAID LTD (company 17382540) on 5 August 2026 · Published · updated

How is a gold ring valued?On its gold weight, not its total weight. The shank is XRF-tested, stones are weighed out, and the gold is valued on its tested carat against the live precious-metal market. Diamonds of roughly 0.3ct and up, and good sapphires, rubies and emeralds, are quoted on a separate line, and for antique or signed rings, send a photo first and we will tell you how we would value them before you post anything. Selling gold rings by post is part of selling gold jewellery.

Ring types and how each is handled

Every ring type goes on the same prepaid label: plain wedding bands (9ct or 18ct), signet rings (often 9ct with a flat or oval face), eternity rings (a band of small stones set into 18ct or platinum), engagement rings (centre stone plus shoulder pavé), keeper rings (Victorian half-eternities) and dress rings (a single decorative stone or design). If you already know what you have, the service page to sell gold rings covers the label, the timings and the paperwork.

Each of these is offered on its own line, because the gold weight and stone content differ.

Not sure how any of this applies to your own items? Send a photo on WhatsApp and ask, call 07944 014111 (8am to 9pm, 7 days a week), or ask for a free prepaid Royal Mail Special Delivery label. Whichever you pick: nothing is posted until you decide, your parcel is tracked and signed for, the written offer follows the XRF assay, the return is free if you decline, and we aim to pay by Faster Payments within one working hour of your acceptance.

Stones vs gold

Any stone removed is listed on the written offer and returned to you.

Diamonds above roughly 0.3ct with reasonable colour, plus sapphires, rubies and emeralds of decent quality, often pay separately. Paste, cubic zirconia, lab-created stones and surface chips have no separate value and are removed with your permission.

Final offers depend on inspection, item weight, purity, hallmarks, stones, non-gold components, condition and the live precious-metal market. Each ring is offered separately so you can sell some and keep others.

Antique markers worth flagging

Some rings pay more intact than melted. Hand-engraved Victorian half-hoops with old-cut diamonds, Art Deco platinum-and-diamond cocktail rings, early twentieth-century signet rings with sharp engraved crests, and Edwardian "rose-cut diamond" cluster rings are common examples. If a ring came from a great-aunt rather than a high-street shop, send a photo on WhatsApp before you post it.

Hallmark date letters (a single capital or lowercase letter in a shield) tell us the year of assay, and we read them as part of every inspection. You do not need to know what year your ring was made.

How to post rings safely

  1. Photograph each ring straight-on and side-on, plus the hallmark.
  2. WhatsApp 07944 014111 with the photos.
  3. We confirm cover and email a prepaid Royal Mail Special Delivery label.
  4. Place each ring in a small zip-bag so they do not scratch each other.
  5. Pad the box, drop it at the Post Office counter, keep the receipt.
  6. We send a written per-ring offer once each piece has been XRF-tested.

You can also include broken or bent rings: deformation does not lower a scrap offer. The UK-wide postal service handles intact and scrap parcels on the same prepaid label.

Wedding bands, signet rings and carat

Plain wedding bands are usually 9ct, 18ct or 22ct. Older British 22ct bands, usually pre-1970, pay more per gram than 9ct because the purity is higher, and we confirm that purity by XRF before pricing. Modern signet rings are normally 9ct with the family crest engraved or seal-set. Engraved wear on a signet face does not reduce the metal content.

White gold rings (often rhodium-plated 18ct) are tested through the plating. The metal underneath determines the offer.

When a single ring is enough

There is no minimum. GoldPaid buys single rings, including a lone 9ct wedding band. The prepaid label is the same whether you send one ring or twenty. If you only want to test the process before sending more, start with the ring you care about least.

What to do next

If you want to know what your own pieces are worth, start with a photo rather than a parcel. Send one on WhatsApp and we will tell you plainly what can and cannot be judged from an image. If you go ahead, the items are XRF-tested on arrival and you receive a written offer setting out the purity found, the weight and the rate used. Decline it and the tracked return costs you nothing. Accept it and we aim to pay by Faster Payments within one working hour of your acceptance.

Send a photo on WhatsApp

Common questions

Will you melt my late mother’s wedding band?

Only if you accept the offer in writing and confirm in your reply. Up to that point the ring is held intact and can be returned tracked at our cost.

What if I want to keep the stone?

We remove and return the stone in a small bag with the offer. Just say so on WhatsApp before posting.

Can I sell an eternity ring with lots of small stones?

Yes, and you do not need to remove anything first. Eternity and half-eternity bands are weighed with the stones in place, then XRF-tested on a clear section of the shank away from the settings. Small melee stones below roughly 0.10ct rarely carry much value individually, so on most eternity rings the offer is driven by the gold or platinum weight rather than the stones. Where the row is larger, certificated, or a matched set of calibré-cut stones, the stones are valued and shown as a separate line on the written offer. Nothing is unset without your written instruction, and a declined ring comes back exactly as it arrived, tracked and at our cost. Our written diamonds and gemstones policy sets out what happens to every stone.

Are platinum or palladium rings included?

Yes. Platinum and palladium rings are weighed and XRF-tested the same way as gold, and offered in writing. Send a photo on WhatsApp first and we will tell you how one would be offered before you post.

My ring has no hallmark. Is it worth posting?

Yes. XRF reads the actual purity, hallmark or not. Many older or imported rings are unmarked but turn out to be solid gold.

What cover applies to the parcel?

Your parcel travels on Royal Mail Special Delivery, and Royal Mail cover may be available up to £2,500 depending on the postal method and cover level used, built into the prepaid label.

How quickly do I get paid?

By Faster Payments bank transfer. We aim to pay within one working hour of you accepting the written offer.

Can I sell only some of the rings I sent?

Yes. The written offer is per ring. Reply "accept rings 1, 3, 4, return 2" and that is how we action it.

Do you buy engagement rings with certificated diamonds?

Yes. Send the GIA or HRD certificate photo on WhatsApp first. Certificated stones are often quoted separately above the metal value.

I found a gold ring. Can I sell it?

Only once you have taken reasonable steps to trace the owner, because a lost ring still belongs to whoever lost it. Report it, hand it to the occupier where you found it if there is one, and keep a reference number. Our guide to keeping or selling a gold ring you found explains the Theft Act 1968 position (keeping property found by another is theft where the finder does not take reasonable steps to trace the owner). General information, not legal advice.

Not the question you had? The full GoldPaid FAQ covers the rest, from postal cover and ID checks to what happens if you decline the offer.

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Reference pages

Nothing leaves your hands until you have asked every question you want to ask. Send a photo on WhatsApp first, we explain how our X-ray (XRF) test works, how the figure is built from weight, confirmed purity and the live precious-metal market, and what Royal Mail cover may be available for your parcel. There is no obligation at any stage and the return is free if you decline.

GoldPaid is a UK-wide postal gold and silver buying service with no shop: you request a free prepaid Royal Mail Special Delivery label, your items are XRF-assayed in house, and you are paid by bank transfer only if you accept the written offer.

Your prepaid Royal Mail Special Delivery label is addressed to GOLDPAID LTD, Unit 217, Bristol Business Centre, 179 Whiteladies Road, Clifton, Bristol BS8 2AG. That is our Bristol office: your parcel is signed for on arrival and opened there, and each item is weighed and XRF-tested, so you know exactly where it is going before you post it.

Send a photo on WhatsAppRequest a prepaid Royal Mail label

Ask for the label in that chat and we usually send it within 30 minutes during working hours, 8am to 9pm, 7 days a week. No printer? We send a QR code you show at the Post Office counter instead.

Prepaid label, free tracked return

Message us before you post anything

WhatsApp a clear photo and any question you have. Nothing is posted until you say so, and if you decline the written offer your items come back free and tracked.

Send a photo on WhatsAppCall 07944 014111

Free prepaid label, usually sent within 30 minutes during working hours. Free tracked return if you decline. We aim to pay by Faster Payments within one working hour of acceptance.