Carat or Karat (Gold Purity)

Carat to fineness in India

To convert a carat number to purity, divide it by 24. In India the BIS hallmark shows both, for example 22K916 or 18K750, so you do not need to do the sum yourself. Bullion is usually described by fineness alone, such as 999.

In March 2026 BIS said mandatory hallmarking of gold jewellery and artefacts covers 14, 18, 20, 22, 23 and 24 karat, with 9 karat available as a voluntary grade. Each hallmarked piece also carries a six-character HUID code that you can check in the BIS CARE app.

Worked example: how much gold is in your jewellery?

A 20 g chain in 22 carat holds 20 x 0.916 = 18.32 g of gold. The same chain in 18 carat holds 15 g, and in 14 carat 11.7 g. The rest is silver, copper or other metals, which set the colour and make the piece harder. Weigh items without stones, since gems add weight but no gold. The diamond carat is a unit of weight (0.2 g), not purity.

To estimate the metal value, multiply the gold content by the day's rate per gram for pure gold, or use the rate for that purity directly. IBJA publishes daily rates for 916, 750 and 585 as well as 999 and 995. Our gold price per gram in INR shows the pure gold benchmark. A buyer will then deduct a margin, which is a form of bid-ask spread.

Jewellery is not bullion

Jewellery and coins pay the same 3% GST in India (see GST on gold), so tax is not the difference. The difference is what you pay above the metal. Jewellery carries making charges for design and labour, and when you sell, the value that counts is mostly the gold content.

If your goal is to hold gold, 24 carat coins and bars give you more metal per rupee. A 10 g coin at 999 holds 9.99 g of gold; a 10 g 22 carat coin holds 9.16 g. Compare the price per gram of fine gold in our ranking of the cheapest gold coins in India, and see troy ounce for how gram and ounce prices relate.