Gold Karat Composition

Color of the gold, yellow white or rose, is created by mixing various elements with a gold alloy.
White gold for example, is the creation between 75% pure gold alloys mixed with copper, zinc and nickel elements. The pure gold percentage of 18k jewelry will always remain the same at 75% no matter which color of gold is created.
Refer to the chart below for detailed information.

Commonly used alloys for Yellow Gold, White Gold and Rose Gold

% Composition	Au Gold	Ag Silver	Cu Copper	Zn Zinc	Ni Nickel	Ti Titanium	Pd Palladium	Fe Iron	Si Silicon	B Boron	Co Cobalt
Yellow Gold
23 karat	99.0*						0.8-1.0
18 karat	75.00	13.00	12.00
	75.00	15.00	10.00
14 karat	58.33	4.00	31.24	6.43	0.10			0.05	0.01
	58.33	24.78	26.75	0.14
10 karat	41.70	11.66	40.81	5.83					0.03	0.02
	41.70	5.50	43.80	9.00
White Gold
18 karat	75.00		2.23	5.47	17.80
18 karat **	75.00	15.00					10.00
14 karat	58.33			28.32	4.80	8.55
14 karat **	58.33	32.17					9.50
10 karat	41.66		29.15	12.12	15.05						1.97
10 karat **	41.70	47.42		0.88			10.00
Rose Gold
18 karat	75.00	5.00	20.00
14 karat	58.33	2.08	39.59
10 karat	41.70	2.82	55.48

Difference between 10K, 14K, and 18K.

When we think of gold content (purity) of jewelry, the word carat comes into mind. Carat, also known as Karat, is used around the world in abbreviation as CT, C, KT or K.  There are several different categories of carats available for gold. Carat or ct is also used to measure the weight of diamonds and gemstones. Although the same name is used, the two measurements are measuring different characteristics of jewelry.

?Men's wedding rings are classified into 3 different carat categories; 18k being the highest gold content, 14k being the middle, and 9k being the least. As you might have already noticed, higher the carat rating means higher in price and value.
9kt gold contains 37.5% pure gold (375 parts per thousand parts).

14kt gold contains 58.5% pure gold (585 parts per thousand parts).

18kt gold contains 75% pure gold (750 parts per thousand parts).

The remainders of the metals are made up of a combination of alloys; different metals can help give the metal its unique appearance, such as a different color.

At this point, one might argue that there are higher levels of carat than 18k. Around the world, 10ct, 22ct and 24ct is also used to classify the purity of gold. However, it is generally considered that 22ct and 24ct gold are too soft to be used to make men's wedding rings, and 10ct gold (417 parts pure gold per thousand parts) is very similar to 9kt gold. The reason why some countries use 9kt and other countries use 10ct is due to historical reasons rather than one being superior to the other.

Finished jewelry usually has a stamped marking that label the carat level of the product. For an example, for 9kt gold the stamp will normally be either 375, 9kt, 9kt or 9K, for 14kt gold the stamp will normally be number 585, 14kt, 14kt or 14K, for 18kt gold the stamp will normally be number 750, 18kt, 18kt or 18K.

The stamps only indicate the level of a gold carat and do not indicate the color. So for example an 18kt yellow gold ring would have a stamp of 750 as would an 18kt white gold ring.

As mentioned earlier, 22k and 24k is too soft to be used as men's wedding ring, but 9kt, 14kt and 18kt gold is suitable to be used in jewelry that is worn on an everyday basis because they are relatively hard and durable metal and are suitable for use in all types of fine jewelry.
When choosing jewelry, particularly rings, many people should consider the hardness and durability of gold to be used in their ring in comparison with the wearer. If the wearer uses their hands a lot, it would be most logical to choose a lower carat rings.
One of the methods of measuring the hardness of a metal is called a Vickers scale. Vickers scales give lower number for softer metals and higher for harder metals. For example, 9kt has a Vickers hardness of 120 and 18kt has a Vickers hardness of 125. This shows 18kt as harder, but the difference is so slight that in practical terms, 9kt and 18kt are much the same in hardness.
However, 9kt is more difficult to bend and is little springier, therefore a fine 9kt ring may be less likely to bend out of shape than a fine 18kt ring. Nevertheless, if the ring is of a good sturdy construction, neither metal will be likely to bend out of shape.