Purity is most important. Jewelry stamped 24-karat is 99.9% pure gold and carries the most value by weight. Lesser karats are mixed with other alloys. Gold that’s 14-karat is 58.3% pure ...

The purity of gold is measured in carats or karats (symbol/abbreviation K), with pure gold denoted as 24K. Pure gold, while malleable and ductile, is unsuitable for jewelry due to its softness.