What is white gold?

White gold isn't a separate type of gold found in nature. It's created by mixing pure gold with white metals such as palladium, silver or nickel, which lightens gold's natural yellow colour. Most white gold jewellery also gets a final layer of rhodium plating, a bright, hard-wearing metal that gives the piece its crisp, silvery shine.

So when you're holding a white gold ring or bracelet, you're still holding gold. It's simply been alloyed differently to change its colour, in the same way rose gold gets its pink tone from added copper.

How is white gold actually made?

Like yellow gold, white gold is described using the same carat system, which tells you what percentage of the metal is pure gold. The difference lies in which metals make up the rest of the alloy.

Common combinations include:

• Palladium-based white gold: pure gold alloyed with palladium and a small amount of silver. This is increasingly common in modern jewellery, partly because it's better tolerated by people with sensitive skin
• Nickel-based white gold: pure gold alloyed with nickel, zinc and sometimes copper. This was more typical in older pieces and can occasionally cause skin irritation in people with a nickel allergy

Whichever combination is used, the carat stamp still means the same thing it would on yellow gold. An 18ct white gold ring contains 75% pure gold, just as an 18ct yellow gold ring does. The remaining quarter is simply made up of different metals to achieve a different colour.

Why does white gold need rhodium plating?

On its own, a gold and white-metal alloy tends to come out a soft grey or pale champagne colour rather than a bright, bold white. To get that polished, silvery look most people associate with white gold, jewellers apply a thin coating of rhodium over the surface.

Rhodium is extremely hard and reflective, but the layer is thin, and it wears down with everyday contact. This is why a white gold ring that's been worn for years can start to take on a warmer, slightly yellow or greyish tone where the plating has thinned, particularly around the band. It doesn't mean the gold underneath has changed. It simply means the rhodium layer needs reapplying to restore the original shine.

This is worth bearing in mind if you're looking at older white gold jewellery. A duller finish is often just down to worn plating rather than anything to do with the gold content itself.

White gold, platinum and silver: what's the difference?

These three metals are often mixed up because they can look similar at a glance, but they're quite different underneath.

• White gold is a gold alloy, usually rhodium plated, and stamped with the same purity marks as other gold, such as 375, 585 or 750
• Platinum is a naturally white precious metal in its own right, not a type of gold. It's denser than gold, typically more expensive, and doesn't need rhodium plating, since its colour is natural. Platinum is usually marked 950
• Silver is a separate, less valuable metal again. It's lighter than gold or platinum and prone to tarnishing over time. Sterling silver is usually marked 925

If you're unsure which one you have, the hallmark stamp is usually the clearest clue, even if the surface colour looks similar across all three.

Is white gold worth the same as yellow gold?

Generally, yes. For the same carat and the same weight, white gold and yellow gold contain an identical amount of pure gold, and that's what mainly drives value. The white metals used to alter the colour don't typically add or subtract much from that, although palladium-based alloys can occasionally carry a slightly different production cost than nickel-based ones.

Beyond the gold content itself, other factors can affect what a piece is ultimately worth, including its design, maker, age and any stones it might hold. This is true of white gold, yellow gold and rose gold alike, which is why pieces are usually best assessed individually rather than judged on colour alone.

Spotting white gold in an old jewellery box

If you're going through inherited or vintage jewellery, white gold pieces don't always look obviously white, especially if the rhodium plating has worn thin. A few things can help when you're trying to work out what you've got:

• Look for a carat stamp such as 375, 585, 750 or 916, which confirms it's gold regardless of colour
• Don't rule a piece out just because it looks slightly dull, yellowish or grey, as this is often just worn plating
• Keep pieces with unclear or worn markings to one side rather than guessing, since a proper assessment can confirm what they're made from

The World Gold Council has more general background on how different gold alloys and colours are produced, if you'd like to read further into the science behind it.

What this means if you're thinking of selling

Whether a piece is white, yellow or rose gold, the same approach applies when it comes to selling it. Rather than judging jewellery by colour or surface condition, our specialists assess each item individually for its actual gold content, regardless of how worn the rhodium plating might be.

With over 33,000 Trustpilot reviews, we aim to make the process clear and straightforward, whether you're sending a single white gold ring or a full mixed collection.

If you've got white gold pieces sitting unworn because the shine has faded, it's worth remembering that the gold itself hasn't gone anywhere. Requesting a free postage pack is a simple way to find out what they're actually made of and what they could be worth.