LemonTrades
TL;DR
- No. Pure gold isn’t magnetic. It’s very weakly repelled by magnets, too weakly to notice, so a magnet won’t pick it up.
- If a piece sticks firmly to a magnet, it isn’t solid gold: it has iron, nickel or steel inside, or under a thin gold plating.
- Passing the magnet test doesn’t prove it’s real: brass, copper, lead and tungsten aren’t magnetic either.
- LemonTrades follows the gold price for you and tells you what moved it, and why, within seconds.
The magnet test is the quickest check for fake gold, and it costs nothing. Here’s what it can and can’t tell you.
Is gold magnetic?
No. Gold is diamagnetic: a magnet pushes it away very slightly instead of pulling it. The effect is so weak you’d need lab equipment to see it. In everyday terms, a gold coin, bar or ring won’t react to a magnet at all.
The metals that stick to magnets are iron, nickel and cobalt (and alloys like steel). That’s why the test works: most cheap fakes are made of, or built on, one of them.
How to do the magnet test
- Use a strong magnet. A fridge magnet is too weak; a small neodymium (rare-earth) magnet from a hardware store works.
- Hold the magnet close to the piece, or put the piece on a table and bring the magnet up to it.
- Watch for any pull. Real gold won’t move toward the magnet.
- Test the clasp separately on jewelry: clasps and springs are often steel even on solid gold chains.
What the result means
| What happens | What it probably means |
|---|---|
| Sticks firmly | Not solid gold. It’s gold-plated or gold-colored steel or iron. |
| Only the clasp sticks | Normal. Test the chain itself. |
| A very faint pull | Possibly a karat gold alloy with some nickel or iron, or a plated base metal. Get it tested. |
| No reaction | Could be real gold, or a non-magnetic fake. Do another test. |
Why the magnet test isn’t enough
Many fakes aren’t magnetic either: brass, copper, aluminum, lead, silver plated with gold, and tungsten. Tungsten is the most dangerous, because it weighs almost exactly what gold does (19.25 grams per cubic centimeter against gold’s 19.32), so it’s used inside fake bars. For anything valuable, follow the magnet test with a hallmark check, a density test, or an XRF test at a jeweler or dealer. All of them are in how to tell if gold is real.
What real gold is worth today
Silver isn’t magnetic either; see is silver magnetic?
Sources
- Royal Society of Chemistry: Gold
- Wikipedia: Diamagnetism
- FTC: Guides for the jewelry and precious metals industries (16 CFR 23)
Education, not financial advice. See our disclaimer.
