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Gold, Vermeil, Gold-Filled, Rolled-Gold, etc

A Guide through the Gold topography

Creation Date: Feb 2009

This gold guide here will help you better understand and choose among the myriad of gold offerings - helping you make better choices while retaining quality and the looks you are accustomed to.

Though there is no universal consensus, the table below has been arranged in order of desirability & value (in our opinion).

Materials	Base Metal	min. Karatage	min. gold Thickness	min. gold weight¹	process	Example of Marking
Gold	(Gold is the most desirable but it will also depend on the karatage of gold you are considering. Check gold karatages.)
Vermeil	Sterling Silver	14k	2.5 microns	(not specified)	electrolysis (electro-plating)
Gold-filled	usually copper or brass	10k	(not specified)	5% or 1/20^th	heat & pressure	"1/20^th 12k GF"
Rolled-gold	usually copper or brass	10k	(not specified)	(not specified)	heat & pressure	"1/40 12k RGP"
Gold-plated	steel, brass, copper, iron, metal alloy	(not specified)	(not specified)	(not specified)	electrolysis (electro-plating)	none

Footnote:
1. Minimum Gold Weight: the minimum weight of the gold component in relation to the final weight of the item. 5% or 1/20^th means that 5% of the weight of the final item must be pure gold

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