How does karat purity affect gold value?

One thing that confuses a lot of people when selling gold is karat purity.

Gold jewelry is usually not pure gold. The karat tells you how much actual gold is in the item:

10k gold = lower gold content
14k gold = common for everyday jewelry
18k gold = higher gold content
22k and 24k gold = much closer to pure gold

That means two rings can weigh the same but have very different values if one is 10k and the other is 18k. Weight matters, but purity matters just as much.

This page explains more about general gold value basics for anyone researching how gold is evaluated.

When checking gold jewelry, do you usually look for the karat stamp first?