Gold, silver, platinum and other precious metals are measured in a few different measurement systems. It is important to understand the difference between them and how they relate to each other.
For example did you know that there are two types of “ounce” measurements? An uninformed gold seller could easily be taken advantage of by the gold buyer.
When we measure in ounces, it can be in troy ounces or an avoirdupois ounce. An avoirdupois ounce is actually what most of us know as an ounce that we measure with in our day-to-day lives or what I will call a “common ounce”.
Troy ounces are part of the troy weight system that comes from the Roman monetary system which also includes the troy pound. Over the years measurement systems were modified and shifted, just as most of the world now uses the metric system instead of imperial system.
But for certain measurements, the troy ounce system has always stayed. These include gold, silver, platinum and other items such as anything ballistic (gunpowder, arrowheads, etc).
Grams per Troy Ounce Gold
To calculate how many grams in a troy ounce or troy ounces in a gram you need to know the conversion factor:
1 troy ounce (ozt) is equal to 31.103 grams (g)
If you have 6.85 troy ounces of gold, you would have 213.056 grams of gold.
Example
6.85ozt x (31.103 g / ozt) = 213.056 g
Likewise, 1 gram is equal to 0.032 troy ounces(ozt)
If you have 300 grams of gold, you would have 9.645 troy ounces (ozt) of gold.
Example
300 g x (0.032 ozt / g ) = 9.645 ozt
Ounce of gold grams (Avoirdupois Ounce or Common Ounce)
Again the common ounce is different than the troy ounce. It’s conversion factor is:
1 ounce (oz) = 28.349 grams (g)
If you have 6.85 ounces of gold, you would have 194.191 grams of gold.
Example
6.85oz x (28.349 g / oz) = 194.191 g
Likewise, 1 gram is equal to 0.035 ounces(oz)
If you have 300 grams of gold, you would have 10.58 ounces (oz) of gold.
Example
300 g x (0.035 oz / g ) = 10.582 oz
As you can see above the difference between a troy ounce and an avoirdupois ounce is approximately 3 grams.
If you are trying to sell your gold jewelry / gold bullion and did not realize that there were two types of measurement systems, an unscrupulous gold buyer could take advantage of the you and pay you out at a lower rate.
The gold buyer that I use breaks down their prices in all systems of measurement. These include grams, pennyweight, troy ounce, and avoirdupois ounce. They also break the payout pricing down into what carat the gold is.
Quite nice! When I found them it was nice to know that some gold buyers want to play fair.To see their prices click here.
{ 12 comments… read them below or add one }
In the “International Market of Gold’, what type of ounce is it based on?
When we talk about gold and are describing it in ounces it is always measured as a “Troy” Ounce. One troy ounce (ozt) is equal to 31.1034768 grams. The troy ounce is part of the troy weights system derived from the Roman monetary system. It is interesting that still to this day we use troy ounces to measure gold, silver, other precious metals, and even black powder!
Good information for today’s everyday layman.
Let me know if you have any questions on selling gold, silver, jewels or other precious metals.
Very clarifying and useful.
Thank you.
Your welcome.
Can someone tell me how you pronounce this Avoirdupois word? Is this French?
That’s great Dave. Yes you are right, it is a french word. I can’t tell you how to say it since I can only type but a translator in the internet can! Go to IMTRANSLATOR.NET, cut and paste:
Avoirdupois
Set the language to French and hit play. Enjoy!
just trying to figure out how many 1 gram pieces of gold to buy to equal 1 troy ounce of gold? about 32?
You are close Kara. It is 31.1034768 grams of gold for one troy once of gold.
I have a bracelet and necklace of 14 kt gold. together they weigh 24 grams. What are they worth in gold?
Darlene,
The value of gold is always changing, so it is not so easy to tell you what it is worth. About 3 weeks ago gold was $1900 an ounce, but has since dropped. Remember that when you sell your gold to a gold buyer, the are buying it for the material cost so it is important to talk with a couple of dealers and have them quote on it. You can also send it through the mail to a gold buyer. A really reputable buyer is KMG Gold. They pay sometimes 6 times more than the other dealers and don’t have a minimum amount you need to send in. To check out their site CLICK HERE.