The karat number is how many parts in 24 are pure gold: 14K is 58.3% gold and 18K is 75%. 18K has a richer colour but is softer and dearer; 14K is the standard for jewelry worn every day because it resists scratches and dents far better while still looking unmistakably gold.
Pure gold is beautiful and completely impractical. At 24 karat it is soft enough to mark with a fingernail, so it would bend out of shape and let a diamond fall out. Every piece of real jewelry is therefore an alloy — gold mixed with harder metals — and the karat stamp tells you the ratio.
The colour comes from what it is mixed with. Copper and silver give traditional yellow; more copper gives rose; white gold is alloyed with pale metals and usually finished with a thin rhodium plating for that bright, cool shine, which is why it needs re-plating every few years.
Platinum is a different metal entirely, not a grade of gold. It is naturally white so it never needs plating, it is denser and heavier in the hand, and it is hypoallergenic — but it costs roughly twice as much as 14K white gold and shows surface scuffing sooner, developing a soft matte patina.
The karat number is a ratio: how many parts in 24 are pure gold.
Colour is a matter of taste. Durability, upkeep and price are not.
Gold alloyed with white metals and finished with rhodium for a bright, cool shine. The most popular choice for diamonds.
Makes a colorless diamond look even whiter. Suits cool or pink skin tones. Re-plate every few years to keep it bright.
Gold in its traditional colour, alloyed with copper and silver. Warm, classic, and never needs re-plating.
Flattering on warm and deeper skin tones, and forgiving of a slightly warmer diamond colour grade.
Gold with a higher copper content, giving a soft pink blush. The hardest-wearing of the three.
Romantic and vintage in feel; warm against almost every skin tone.
A naturally white precious metal, denser and rarer than gold. Never changes colour and never needs plating.
The most durable choice, and hypoallergenic — but noticeably heavier and roughly twice the price of 14K white gold.
The single most important distinction in jewelry pricing — and the one most often blurred.
| Described as | What it is | How long it lasts |
|---|---|---|
| Solid 14K gold | The same gold alloy all the way through | Indefinitely — there is no layer to wear off |
| Gold filled | A thick gold layer bonded to base metal | Years, then the base metal shows at the edges |
| Gold plated / vermeil | A microscopic gold layer over base metal | Months to a couple of years |
| Gold tone | No gold at all | A finish, not a metal |
Every Privosa piece is the first row. Solid 14K throughout, stamped, never plated and never filled.
14 parts in 24 are pure gold — 58.3% — with the remaining 41.7% made up of harder alloy metals. It is the most common standard for fine jewelry worn daily because it balances rich colour against real durability.
It is purer, not better. 18K has a deeper colour and more gold content, but it is softer, scratches and bends more easily, and costs 30–40% more. For rings and earrings worn every day, 14K is usually the wiser choice.
Solid 14K gold does not tarnish. Very occasionally the copper in the alloy can react with acidic skin or lotions and leave a faint mark, which washes off. Plated or gold-filled jewelry is a different matter entirely — Privosa uses solid gold throughout.
They look nearly identical when new. White gold costs about half as much but needs re-plating every few years to stay bright; platinum never changes colour and is more durable, but is heavier and considerably dearer.
Solid gold is the same alloy all the way through, so it never wears off. Gold plated jewelry is base metal with a microscopic gold layer that rubs away within months to a couple of years, exposing the metal underneath.
Last reviewed August 2026
