18K gold means that the gold content is 18/24, that is, 75%, and the remaining 25% is other metals, usually copper and silver in gold ornaments. 24K gold means pure gold.
Relatively speaking, consumers in China have higher requirements for the purity of gold ornaments, so in the China market, the more common gold ornaments are 24K and 18K. In Europe and America, people have a greater demand for the beauty of gold ornaments. We can see many low-purity gold ornaments, such as 12K gold and 14K gold. These purities mean that the gold content is 50% and 58.33%.
Extended data:
national standard
According to the Regulation and Naming Method of Precious Metal Purity of Jewelry (national standard GB/T1KLOC-0/887—2002), the minimum purity of pure gold is 990, that is, the purity is not less than 990 ‰; The minimum purity of thousands of gold is 999, that is, the purity is not less than 999‰.
In the standard here, the purity range of precious metals in precious metal jewelry does not include flux components, but the content of finished products shall not be lower than the specified purity range. The national standard on the purity of gold refers to the minimum purity. However, the purity of most pure gold and thousands of pure gold raw materials in the domestic market exceeds this minimum (the purity of pure gold reaches 995‰ and the purity of thousands of pure gold reaches 999.5‰).
shopping guide
First of all, we must choose a brand enterprise with good reputation, and never choose a brand-free manufacturer for cheap. The price of gold is relatively transparent, so beware of those that are obviously lower than the market price;
Secondly, when buying gold products, remember to ask for invoices, which is the core of protecting consumers' rights and interests;
Third, if in doubt, you can find it in time. The gold jewelry testing institutions under the national technical supervision department are located in major cities, which makes it easier to detect the composition of gold jewelry.
Fourth, choose to invest in gold products such as gold bars and nuggets, and choose regular merchants who promise to buy back, and the quality can be guaranteed.
Baidu encyclopedia-gold purity