Selling Your Gold: A Practical Guide
Straight answer
To sell gold without getting ripped off, check the live spot price first, then expect to receive slightly below spot because the dealer keeps a spread. Get multiple written quotes, sell to a reputable bullion dealer (often the one you bought from) rather than a mail-in “cash for gold” service or pawn shop, and never ship metal before you have a guaranteed price in writing. It depends on what you hold: plain bullion sells near spot, while genuine collectible coins should be valued separately and may be worth far more than their melt value.
Selling gold is where most of the round-trip cost of owning it shows up. The buying side gets all the attention, but the moment you sell is when a careless or impatient seller hands money to the wrong buyer. The good news: the rules for a fair sale are simple, and you can learn them in ten minutes.
Know the live spot price before you talk to anyone
Spot is the global benchmark price for one troy ounce of pure gold, quoted continuously during market hours. Before you call a dealer, look it up. A buyer who senses you don’t know the spot price has every incentive to quote you a number that sounds large but is actually well under market.
Do the arithmetic for what you hold. A one-ounce American Gold Eagle is nearly a full ounce of gold; a one-tenth-ounce coin holds a tenth of that. A 14-karat ring is about 58% gold by weight, so its gold content is its weight times 0.583 times the per-gram spot price. Knowing your rough melt value turns every quote into a comparison rather than a guess. For a fuller picture of how dealers mark prices up and down around spot, see our guide to gold premiums over spot.
You will sell slightly below spot — that’s the dealer spread
Here is the part that surprises new sellers: you do not get spot. You get a little less. The gap between what a dealer pays you (the “bid”) and what they charge the next buyer (the “ask”) is the spread, and it’s how dealers make money. This is normal and not a scam.
For common bullion — Eagles, Maple Leafs, Krugerrands, recognized bars — a fair buy-back from a reputable dealer is usually within a few percent of spot, and for popular coins it can be at or even slightly above spot when demand is high. The spread widens for items the dealer has to test, refine, or resell at extra effort: scrap jewelry, off-brand bars, or coins they don’t recognize. A “cash for gold” operation that pays 40–60% of melt is not charging a spread; it is exploiting people who never checked spot.
| Where you sell | Typical payout vs. spot |
|---|---|
| Reputable bullion dealer (recognized coin) | ~98%–101% of spot |
| Local coin shop | ~95%–99% of spot |
| Pawn shop | ~70%–90% of spot |
| Mail-in “cash for gold” | ~40%–70% of melt |
Melt value vs. collectible value — don’t sell a rarity for scrap
Most modern bullion is worth its metal content and little more; you sell it for melt plus or minus the spread. But some gold is worth more than the metal in it because of rarity, condition, mintage, or history. A common-date bullion Eagle trades on its gold. A scarce pre-1933 U.S. gold coin, a certified rarity, or a graded numismatic piece can carry a premium of 50%, 200%, or more above melt.
The mistake to avoid is letting a melt-only buyer weigh a genuine collectible and pay you scrap. If you suspect a coin has numismatic value — it’s old, unusual, in a graded holder, or you simply don’t know — separate it from the pile and have it appraised by a numismatist or submitted to a recognized grading service before you sell. When in doubt, treat unknown old coins as collectible until proven otherwise. The reverse trap also exists: ordinary bullion sold as if it were rare. Verify claims with a price guide rather than the seller’s word.
Get multiple written quotes
One quote is not a market; it’s an opinion. Get at least two or three, and get them in writing — email, a printed offer, or a screenshot from a dealer’s online buy-back tool. Written quotes do three things: they let you compare apples to apples, they lock the dealer to a number, and they expose lowballers who quote one figure on the phone and another when your gold is on their counter.
When you compare, normalize to spot. “We’ll give you $4,000” means nothing until you know spot was $4,150 that morning. A buyer offering 96% of spot beats one offering 90%, regardless of which round number sounds bigger. Quotes move with the live price, so most are good only for a short window — confirm the dealer’s lock period.
Sell to a reputable bullion dealer — often the one you bought from
The safest buyer is usually an established bullion dealer, and frequently the easiest is the dealer you originally bought from. Major dealers post buy-back prices publicly, settle quickly, and want repeat customers, so their spreads stay competitive. Some advertise that they’ll buy back products they sold at favorable rates.
Be wary of the two channels that prey on convenience. Mail-in “cash for gold” services profit on sellers who never checked spot and who feel awkward sending the metal back after a lowball offer. Pawn shops are built around quick loans, not metals expertise, and rarely pay near spot. Neither is automatically fraudulent, but both depend on you not comparing. For how to vet a dealer’s reputation, pricing, and credentials, see where to buy gold — the same diligence applies to who you sell to.
Never ship before a guaranteed written quote
This is the single rule that prevents the worst outcomes. Do not put gold in the mail on the promise of a price “after we evaluate it.” Reputable buyers will give you a firm, written quote — locked for a stated window — before any metal leaves your hands. If a service insists you ship first and trust their post-arrival assessment, stop.
If you do ship, use insured, tracked, signature-required shipping, photograph and document everything, and confirm the insurance actually covers bullion (many carriers cap or exclude it). For high-value lots, an in-person sale at a local dealer removes shipping risk entirely.
- They won’t give a firm written quote until after you ship the metal.
- The offer is a round dollar figure with no reference to the live spot price.
- The phone quote shrinks once your gold is in their hands (“once we tested it, it came in lower”).
- They pressure you to decide today or warn the price is “about to crash.”
- They weigh everything as scrap and dismiss any suggestion a coin might be collectible.
- No physical address, no public buy-back pricing, no verifiable reviews or industry membership.
- They want your gold mailed to a P.O. box, or returns are “subject to a fee.”
Keep your purchase records — they protect you at tax time
Selling gold is a taxable event, and your tax bill depends on what you paid. The IRS treats physical gold as a collectible, so a gain is the difference between your sale proceeds and your cost basis: the original price plus premiums and fees. Without a receipt, you may have a hard time proving basis, and the burden is on you.
Keep invoices, shipping records, and dates from every purchase, ideally in one folder. When you sell, save the dealer’s written quote and the final settlement. These records also matter if any reporting falls to you. Treat the tax angle below as general information, not advice — confirm specifics with a tax professional.
The tax reality: capital gains, the collectibles rate, and possible 1099-B
Because the IRS classifies physical gold and silver as collectibles, long-term gains (on metal held more than a year) are taxed at your ordinary income rate but capped at 28% — higher than the 0–20% long-term rate on most stocks. Short-term gains (held a year or less) are taxed as ordinary income. A loss can offset other capital gains.
Reporting can also be triggered on the sale itself. Certain dealer buy-backs — specific bullion products sold above defined quantity thresholds — require the dealer to file a Form 1099-B. The rules turn on the exact product and amount, not on every sale, so don’t assume a 1099-B is automatic or that its absence means a sale is tax-free; you still owe tax on real gains regardless of paperwork. For the full breakdown of how metals are taxed when you buy and sell, see our guide to gold and taxes.
- You’re reacting to a single scary headline rather than a real need for the cash — gold’s value comes from holding through cycles.
- You haven’t checked the live spot price, so you can’t tell a fair offer from a lowball one.
- You suspect a coin is collectible but haven’t had it appraised — you risk selling a rarity for melt.
- A short-term sale would convert a long-term holding into ordinary-income tax — waiting past the one-year mark can change your rate.
- You’d be shipping high-value metal you could instead sell in person at a local dealer.
A simple, safe selling sequence
- Look up the live spot price and estimate the melt value of what you hold.
- Separate anything that might be a genuine collectible and have it appraised first.
- Get two or three written buy-back quotes, normalized to spot.
- Favor an established bullion dealer — often the one you bought from — over mail-in services and pawn shops.
- Lock a guaranteed written price before any metal leaves your hands; sell in person when you can.
- Save every document for your tax records, and confirm gains and any reporting with a tax pro.
How much below spot should I expect to get when selling gold?
For recognized bullion sold to a reputable dealer, expect to receive within a few percent of spot — sometimes at or slightly above spot for popular coins in high demand. Scrap jewelry and off-brand items sell at wider discounts. Anything paying well under 90% of melt, such as many mail-in services, is overcharging on the spread.
Where is the safest place to sell my gold?
An established bullion dealer with public buy-back pricing is usually safest, and the dealer you originally bought from is often the simplest because they already recognize their own product. Be cautious with mail-in “cash for gold” services and pawn shops, which tend to pay less and depend on sellers not comparing quotes.
Do I have to pay taxes when I sell gold?
Yes, on any gain. The IRS treats physical gold as a collectible, so long-term gains are taxed at your ordinary rate capped at 28%, and short-term gains as ordinary income. Some dealer buy-backs trigger a Form 1099-B. Keep your purchase receipts to prove your cost basis, and confirm details with a tax professional.
Should I ship my gold to a buyer who quotes a price after they receive it?
No. Never ship metal on a promise to price it later. Reputable buyers provide a firm written quote, locked for a stated window, before any gold leaves your hands. If you must ship, use insured, tracked, signature-required mail and confirm the policy covers bullion.