White Gold or Yellow Gold – Which Should You Buy?

You are shopping for a diamond engagement ring. And you wonder which gold color will compliment the diamond best. It’s a bit confusing, and you don’t want to make a mistake. Here are some guidelines for you.

What is White Gold?

White gold is real gold. It has different metals in the alloy to give it the whitish color, and it has a coating of white metal (Rhodium) to give its finish a white appearance. If you see the designation 14K stamped on a white gold ring, it has the same amount of pure gold as a 14k yellow gold ring.

Why Would You Prefer to Buy White Gold?

You might just like the white color of the metal better than yellow. Or, and this may be the more important fact, if your diamond is yellowish in its tint, you will probably be better off choosing yellow gold, so as not to bring out the yellow in the diamond. A white setting would emphasize it more. If your diamond is closer to colorless, then the white setting may be preferred.

How Are They Different?

Obviously one is yellow and one is white, or whitish. In addition, different metals are usually in the alloys for each one. Yellow gold has more nickel in it, and white gold has more zinc. The karat values are the same: 14k yellow gold has the same amount of pure gold as white gold.

White gold is often coated with Rhodium, which is a white, hard metal. The Rhodium further enhances the white color of the piece and helps to protect the gold from being scratched or damaged. The coating will wear off after a time so the piece may need to be re-plated.

Yellow gold is softer than white gold, but in the lower karat values, such as 10K and 14K yellow gold is sufficiently hard for most everyday purposes.

White gold is more expensive than yellow gold, largely because of the Rhodium coating.

So, which is better? Now that you have the relevant facts, it will be easier for you to decide. It really comes down to personal choice and your budget.