As a dentist or dental hygienist, you may come across a patient with an old gold crown in need of extraction. Or, you might have had some gold removed from your teeth and you're wondering, where can I sell my gold teeth? Tip: If you're having gold fillings redone, you may ask your dentist for the dental gold scrap. Legally, it's yours.
Gold teeth and caps, gold dental implants, gold fillings, gold bridges, gold inlays and onlays, PFMs and PFGs—over time, this dental scrap can add up to a nice profit.
On average, a gold tooth is worth about $50, and a gold bridge is worth $300+ from a gold buyer — though gold prices are inching toward record highs.
Gold prices surpassed $2,300 in April 2024, as experts grow more confident in a June Federal Reserve rate cut.1
As of , the spot gold value in the United States was trading at $ per ounce, or $ per gram.
Below are different ways you can sell your dental gold, answer commonly asked questions about gold dental scrap, and details on our No. 1 one recommendation for places to sell dental gold:
CashforDentalScrap, whose parent company has an A+ BBB rating, and pays within 24 hours. Free FedEx or USPS shipping. Get a free quote now (no minimum value) >>
Common questions about selling dental scrap:
- Where can I sell dental gold?
- Is dental gold worth anything, and how much are gold teeth worth?
- Where is the best place to sell dental gold?
Where to sell dental gold? 3 options for dental gold scrap buyers
Read more about selling other gold scrap and learn about the best ways to sell your gold for the most money possible, safely:
1. Online dental gold scrap buyers
Online gold buyers purchase gold dental scrap through their websites. They then melt that dental gold down and sell it on to a buyer who will repurpose it into something new.
Online gold buyers tend to pay more for gold than other options (such as pawnshops or gold exchanges) because they have much lower costs. After all, they exist primarily online and do not have physical storefronts. Additionally, online gold buyers must compete with each other nationally, which tends to drive up payouts to customers.
Our number one recommendation for dental gold buyers is CashforDentalScrap.com, because they’re known to pay top dollar, fast. Here are a few of the biggest reasons we we think CashforDentalScrap.com is the best dental scrap buyer:
- A+ rating with the BBB: CJ Environmental, parent company to CashforDentalScrap.com, has been in business for 16 years and has an A+rating with the BetterBusiness Bureau
- Free shipping: Once you request an appraisal for your gold, CashforDentalScrap.com will send you a prepaid USPS or FedEx mailer that you can use to send in your gold for evaluation and sale. You can also print one at home for quicker shipping. Arrange to ship from home, if you prefer.
- Insured shipping: Your shipment will automatically be insured by Jewelers Mutual Insurance for $5,000. Additional insurance is available up to $100,000.
- Fast payment: If you accept the offer that CashforDentalScrap makes for your gold, you’ll be paid fast — in as little as 24 hours if you choose to receive payment via PayPal.
- 10% bonus payment: If you request an appraisal and send your dental gold in for appraisal within 7 days of receiving your mailer, you’ll receive an additional 10% on top of your quote.
- Buys dental gold in any form: Whether you’re selling gold crowns or caps, gold teeth, gold bridges, PFMs — porcelain fused to metal — or PFGs — porcelain fused to gold — CashforDentalScrap will buy it.
- Buys gold, silver, diamonds, or platinum: CashforDentalScrap.com has sister sites that will buy those materials from you, all with the same guarantees.
To sell your dental scrap through CashforDentalScrap.com:
- Go to CashforDentalScrap.com and get a free appraisal.
- Once you receive your pre-paid mailer, send your gold dental scrap in for evaluation.
- Within 24 hours of them receiving your shipment, you will receive an offer.
- If you accept their offer, they’ll pay you fast—within 24 hours, if you choose to receive payment via PayPal or overnighted check.
- If you choose to reject their offer, they’ll send your gold scrap back to you completely free of charge, insured.
Get started selling your dental gold with CashforDentalScrap.com now >>
Other online gold buyers you might consider include:
- Abe Mor
- American Bullion
- APMEX
- CashforGoldUSA (our top choice and sister site of CashforDentalScrap.com)
- Goldco Precious Metals
- Gold Geek
- JM Bullion
- Kitco
- Liberty Gold and Silver
- Luriya
- Money Metals Exchange
- Royal Refining
- SellYourGold.com
- US Gold Buyers
Read more about this family-run company in our review post.
2. Search for: “Dental scrap buyers near me”
If you would specifically like to deal with a local business when selling your dental gold, doing an online search for “dental scrap buyers near me” or “where to sell dental gold near me” will give you a list of local buyers you can consider. This will most likely include pawn shops, gold exchanges, and maybe even jewelry shops.
It’s important to note that not all pawn shops or gold exchanges will purchase dental gold, as it can be more difficult to determine the purity of the gold quickly. If they do buy dental scrap, you can expect them to pay less than an online buyer. Do your research when you are looking for who buys dental gold “near me.”
3. Cash for gold places “near me”
Searching for “cash for gold places near me” will most likely return a similar list to the one above, including pawn shops and gold exchanges. While these businesses can get you cash quickly — usually immediately — you are unlikely to get the highest value for your gold going this route.
However, if you need cash fast, pawn shops are a good place to sell gold:
Is dental gold worth anything?
Ultimately, the dental gold value of your dental scrap will depend on three key factors: Its purity, its weight, and how much work must go into extracting it from the dental component.
Gold buyers, including CashforDentalScrap.com, buy:
- Dental Sweeps
- Gold Crowns
- Gold Bridges
- Silver Crowns
- Silver Bridges
- Platinum Crowns
- Platinum Bridges
- Palladium Crowns
- Palladium Bridges
- Mixed Precious Metal Dental Work
- Bridges
- PFM’s (Porcelain Fused Metal)
- PFG’s (Porcelain Fused Gold)
- Inlays
- Onlays
- Caps
- Gold Partials
- Casting Grain
- Polishings
You can get an idea of the value of your scrap dental gold with CashforGoldUSA's gold calculator, which factors in the current price of gold, before the gold buyer's commission:
Are old gold teeth worth anything?
The purity of your dental scrap is essentially its karat value, which determines exactly what percentage of gold the metal contains. Dental gold is most commonly an alloy of 16K, but can range from 10K to 22K. If you are unsure about the purity of your gold, it’s even more important for you to choose a trustworthy dental scrap buyer who you are confident will be honest with you as they complete their analysis.
Gold is bought and sold based on weight (typically grams or ounces) so you’ll need to know how much your scrap weighs before you sell your dental gold.
Finally, if your gold needs to be separated from other components (such as teeth, porcelain, other metals, etc.) that may impact the value of your gold. Why? Because the buyer will need to put time and energy into separating the components.
Where to get affordable, quality dentures
What karat is dental gold?
Gold is typically considered to be a “soft” metal, in that it’s malleable. If you’ve ever had a 24K gold bracelet or ring, you’ve probably seen this quality in action: They’re prone to dents, scratches, bending, and other damage.
For this reason, you’ll virtually never find pure gold used for dental implants, as that would make the crown/ cap, tooth, or filling too soft and prone to damage.
Dental gold is most often found in 10K, 12K, 14K, 16K, or 18K. You might find some 22K gold dental implants, though that gold is likely to be reinforced with specific alloys to make it stronger.
Is dental gold real? Most commonly, dental gold will be 16 karats.
| Karats | % of Gold Purity | Fineness |
|---|---|---|
| 9K | 37.5 | 375 |
| 10K | 41.7 | 416/417 |
| 12K | 50.0 | 500 |
| 14K | 58.3 | 583/585 |
| 18K | 75.0 | 750 |
| 22K | 91.7 | 916/917 |
| 24K | 99.9 | 999 |
How much is dental gold worth?
Ultimately, the value of your dental scrap will depend on three factors: Its purity, its weight, and how much work must go into extracting it from the dental component.
The purity of your dental scrap is essentially its karat value, which determines exactly what percentage of gold the metal contains. Dental gold is most commonly an alloy of 16K, but can range from 10K to 22K. If you are unsure about the purity of your gold, it’s even more important for you to choose a trustworthy dental scrap buyer who you are confident will be honest with you as they complete their analysis.
Gold is bought and sold based on weight (typically grams or ounces) so you’ll need to know how much your scrap weighs before you sell your dental gold.
Finally, if your gold needs to be separated from other components (such as teeth, porcelain, other metals, etc.) that may impact the value of your gold. Why? Because the buyer will need to put time and energy into separating the components.
Is dental gold worth more than regular gold?
Gold value is based on weight and purity, whether it is dental gold, a necklace, coin, or gold bar. However, sometimes dental gold is worth slightly less than these other assets if the buyer needs to work to extract the tooth from the metal.
How much is a gold tooth worth?
A gold tooth typically weighs about 3 grams, and is 16K gold (approximately 67% pure gold). At a spot price of $2,000, before the buyer's commission, the melt value of a tooth may be:
| 3 gram | 16K / 67% | $128.60 |
| 4 gram | 16K / 67% | $171.47 |
| 5 gram | 16K / 67% | $214.34 |
| 6 gram | 16K / 67% | $257.21 |
How much are gold grills worth?
A grill, or grillz, is a decorative metal fitting across the front of your teeth — they can be fitted with gold, silver or gemstones. Learn more about selling your diamonds. Grillz can be any karat gold, and are weighed based on the number of teeth in the grill x ~1 gram per tooth. Based on a spot price of $2,000 per troy ounce, your 6-tooth grill may be worth:
| 10K | $160.75 |
| 12k | $192.90 |
| 14k | $225.06 |
| 16k | $257.21 |
| 18k | $289.36 |
| 22K | $353.66 |
How much is a gold dental crown or filling worth in scrap?
A typical gold crown will be 2 to 5 grams of alloy at 60% to 85% purity. At a spot price of $2,000, before the buyer's commission, the melt value of a crown or cap may be:
| 2 gram | 16K / 67% | $85.74 |
| 3 gram | 16K / 67% | $128.60 |
| 4 gram | 16K / 67% | $171.47 |
| 5 gram | 16K / 67% | $214.34 |
How much is a gold dental bridge scrap worth?
A typical gold bridge will be 5 to 20 grams of alloy at 60% to 85% purity. At a spot price of $2,000, before buyer's commission, the melt value of a crown may be:
| 5 gram | 16K / 67% | $214.34 |
| 10 gram | 16K / 67% | $428.68 |
| 15 gram | 16K / 67% | $643.01 |
| 20 gram | 16K / 67% | $857.35 |
How much is a porcelain fused metal (PFM) tooth worth?
PFM is very low value, worth only up to $5 per gram and bought in large batches from dentists and dental labs.
FAQs about selling dental gold scrap
What's dental gold, anyway?
Dental gold is typically an alloy, which means it's a mixture of pure gold with another metal such as silver, palladium, nickel or chromium. Dental gold can be used as a crown, filling, or other restorations. In the last couple of decades, some pop culture icons have adopted gold “grills” or “grillz,” which are, basically, dental jewelry.
What do dentists do with gold crowns and dental scraps they remove?
Dentists may offer the gold to their patients and let them know that the gold can be sold for scrap. According to our research, most patients say no thank you. It could be because they don't realize there is no difference between dental gold vs real gold! Many dentists sell the scrap gold back to the labs that make gold fillings, gold teeth, gold crowns and gold dental overlays.
How do dental gold buyers make money?
Dental gold buyers make money using a pretty simple business model.
First, they buy gold dental scrap from dentists and dental offices — or directly from individuals. Then, they process the scrap, if necessary, to separate the metal from any other components (such as teeth, porcelain, etc.). Next, they must melt the dental scrap down in order to separate the pure gold from any other metals which were added to make it stronger, or sell the alloy to a refinery who takes on this step.
What remains is pure gold, which will typically be cast into an ingot, bar, or other form and then sold on to a buyer who will use it to create something brand new with the gold.
Dental gold buyers ultimately make money by reselling the gold that they purchase and process. For this reason, when a dental gold buyer buys your scrap gold, they’ll never pay you the full value of your gold. If they did that, they wouldn’t be able to turn a profit themselves, and there’d be no reason for them to be in business.
The question then becomes: How much money should you expect for your gold? What percentage of the value of your gold is a good deal?
The answer to that question will depend on the buyer you ultimately sell your gold to.
What are dental gold buyers paying?
How much money you’re paid for your dental gold will depend on the current spot price of gold.
Online buyers typically pay more for your gold than other buyers, like pawn shops or in-person gold exchanges. A good deal will pay somewhere between 80% and 90% of the dental gold value.
Bottom line: Sell dental gold online to get the best price from a scrap gold buyer
Online buyer CashforDentalScrap.com is our No. 1 recommendation thanks to:
- Better Business Bureau A+
- In business since 2005
- Get paid within 24 hours of accepted offer
- Free, insured shipping up to $100,000
- Free, no-questions-asked returns
- Buys all gold of any purity and weight
Get started selling your dental gold with CashforDentalScrap.com now >>
CashforDentalScrap and its sister sites CashforGoldUSA, DiamondsUSA and CashforSilverUSA buy all quantities and quality of gold, diamonds, silver, flatware, coins, jewelry and fine watches.
SOURCES
- “Nothing's stopping gold, prices push above $2,300 as Powell strikes neutral tone but still signals rate cuts this year,” by Neils Christensen, Kitco. April 3, 2024. https://www.kitco.com/news/article/2024-04-03/nothings-stopping-gold-prices-push-above-2300-powell-strikes-neutral-tone
You have three options for selling dental gold: online gold buyers, local gold buyers like jewelry shops, and cash for gold shops like gold exchanges.
Most commonly, dental gold will be 16 karats.
Ultimately, the value of your dental scrap will depend on three key factors: Its purity, its weight, and how much work must go into extracting it from the dental component.
How much money you’re paid for your dental gold will depend on the current spot price of gold.
A typical gold crown will be 2 to 5 grams of alloy at 60% to 85% purity.
A typical gold bridge will be 5 to 20 grams of alloy at 60% to 85% purity.
