Convert Your Precious Metal Scrap To Buying Power!

Returning your scrap to us for Rio Grande credit or a direct refund check is as easy as can be and will really help your bottom line. See our frequently asked questions below or download the return form now.

What kind of scrap can I return?

We accept silver, silver-filled, gold, gold-filled, palladium, platinum and PMC® items.

We cannot accept base metal, electroplating solutions, photographic processing materials or sweeps. Please do not send plated non-precious metal jewelry; we cannot recover the precious metal from this type of jewelry.

If you have sweep metal you wish to donate to a good cause, please visit riogrande.com/sweepsforcerf for information.

What is my scrap worth?

Payment amounts are based on market value current on the day we settle your scrap return, regardless of when it was shipped or received. We do our best to process every shipment within two business days; however, please allow a bit of leeway for circumstances beyond our control, such as high volumes or lots that require additional testing.

Please Note: Cleaning your scrap, separating your metals, melting small pieces of like metals together, and clearly labeling your
scrap before shipping significantly speeds the processing time.

Important: Rio Grande reserves the right to physically alter the metal scrap in order to determine its purity. Please be aware that your piece may be damaged or malformed during testing.

Please Note: Rio Grande never charges fees for testing or handling your scrap.

Just enter your scrap weight to see your dollar value calculated based on the daily spot market.

Scrap Weight Unit of Measure Metal Type Payment Rate
Segregated Fine Silver Scrap 85%
 
Sterling silver* and mixed sterling/fine silver scrap. NOTE: Must be cadmium-free. 85%
 
1/10th Silver-filled 65%
 
1/20th Silver-filled 65%
 
Cadmium-bearing sterling silver (requires special refining) 65%
 
Silver dust 40%
 
.999 fine silver medallions, and bars from Rio Grande 98%
 
.999 fine silver medallions, and bars not sold by Rio Grande - with recognized mark. 95%
 
Gold-filled (at least 12/20)
0.0250 purity (12/20); 0.0292 purity (14/20)		 65%
 
24K gold (Jeweler's karat gold scrap)** 85%
 
22K gold (Jeweler's karat gold scrap)** 0.9166 purity 85%
 
18K gold (Jeweler's karat gold scrap)** 0.7500 purity 85%
 
14K gold (Jeweler's karat gold scrap)** 0.5833 purity 85%
 
Pre-Plumb Gold Act 14K** 0.5625 purity 85%
 
10K gold (Jeweler's karat gold scrap)** 0.4167 purity 85%
 
Pre-Plumb Gold Act 10K** 0.3958 purity 85%
 
.999 24KY gold medallions from Rio Grande 98%
 
.999 24KY gold coins or medallions not sold by Rio Grande 95%
 
90/10 Platinum*** 60%
 
95/5 Platinum*** 60%
 
Palladium**** 60%
 
Total:  
$0.00

* Unsorted mixed fine and sterling silver scrap will be processed as sterling silver with the assumption that the batch is 92.5% pure silver. If the silver proves to be less pure than we assumed, the payout will be adjusted accordingly..
** Rio Grande buys 10K, 14K and other purities of karat gold. We pay for the pure gold content within. Prior to the Plumb Gold Act (prior to 1981), US-produced 10K and 14K gold jewelry were 9.5K and 13.5K respectively.
*** Most jewelry-grade platinum is either 90% or 95% pure platinum. Rio Grande pays for the amount of pure platinum present in your scrap.
**** Rio Grande buys alloyed palladium jewelry metal, paying for the amount of pure palladium present.

 

Examples Rio buys gold by the pennyweight (dwt.); 1 troy ounce (ozt.) = 20 dwts.
The examples below are based on a $1600/ozt. daily gold spot market price, which equates to $80/dwt.

 

Gold Example:
You return 10 dwts. of 10K gold scrap.
10 dwts (gross weight) x 0.4167 (gold content of 10K) = 4.17 dwts.of 24K gold.
Rio pays 85% of the gold value; in this case, $68 per dwt.
Your scrap value would be $283.56 (4.17 dwts. x $68), payable as store credit or as a refund check.

 

Gold-Filled Example:
You send in 10 troy ounces (ozt.) of gold-filled scrap.
10 ozts. (gross weight) x 0.0292 (gold content of 14/20 gold-filled) = .292 ozts. of 24K gold.
Rio pays 65% of te gold value; in this case, $30.36 per ozt.
Your scrap value would be $303.60 (10 ozt. x $30.36), payable as store credit or as a refund check.

How do I send in my scrap?


You will need to ship your scrap along with the scrap packing list. Fill out the form completely and accurately to ensure a speedy transaction.


1) Separate scrap by metal type. Package each type separately in plastic bags. Note: Do not use tape or any other adhesive to seal the bag—scrap can get caught or stuck and may be overlooked.


2) Package all bags and your completed scrap packing list in a box and ship it to us. We prefer that you ship USPS and we strongly recommend that you insure your package, regardless of its size, and get a tracking number for the shipment.

Important: International customers! Please declare your parcel as "scrap" to avoid duties and fees on your package.

Send the box to:
Attention: Returns
Rio Grande
7500 Bluewater Road NW
Albuquerque, NM 87121


3) After processing, you will receive a copy of your transaction by email (or USPS, if an email address was not provided). On this transaction invoice, we will list the type and weight of the scrap we received from you, the rate(s) at which it was paid and the total Rio credit or payment. Please note that Rio never charges fees for testing or handling your scrap.


IMPORTANT: Please review your invoice immediately. Any disputes regarding metal purity, weight or payment amount must be reported within 14 days from the date on the invoice.

Refining your scrap metals is an easy way to recycle your materials and recover costs. Please follow the guidelines above to make this process quick and easy and to maximize profitability for your business.


Scrap FAQ


1. What types of metals can I send in?
Sterling and fine silver, gold, gold-filled, platinum, palladium, and fired PMC®. (We do not accept base metal, electroplating solutions, electronic scrap, photographic processing materials or sweeps.)


2. Do I have to separate the metals?
Yes. Please put each metal type (silver/gold-filled/10K/14K/18K/platinum etc.) in a separate bag.


3. Do you accept dental scrap? Yes, provided the metal is free from any organic (non-metal) material.


4. Can you apply my refund to my credit card or checking account? Unfortunately, we can only apply credit to your Rio Account or send a refund check.


5. Can you send me a refund check? Yes.


6. What is the percentage paid for refund and/or credit to account? See the table above.


7. Do you accept sweeps or dust?
We do accept silver dust. We do not accept sweeps for payment, but we are happy to forward these sweeps to CERF as a donation, if you wish. Learn more about our CERF program at www.riogrande.com/sweepsforCERF.


8. How long will it take to process my scrap?
Normal turn-around time is 1–2 days after we receive your scrap.


9. How should I package my scrap?
Please package each metal type in a separate, sealable plastic bag so none of the scrap can fall out. Do not use tape or adhesive on the bag to seal it, as this may capture some of your scrap and cause it to be overlooked. When placing your scrap in a shipping box, make sure all the ends of the box are taped so that if some scrap does happen to spill out of the bags, it will not fall out of the box.


10. What address do I send it to? 
Send your shipment to:
Attn: Returns
7500 Bluewater Road NW
Albuquerque, NM 87121


11. Why doesn’t the shipping weight match what you calculated during processing? 
We weigh our metal in troy ounces. Standard postal scales weigh in avoirdupois ounces. We calibrate our scales monthly.


12. Can you take my scrap if I don’t have a Rio Grande account? 
Yes, you may send in your scrap, and we will create an account for you upon receipt in order to send you a refund.


13. Can you split my scrap payment between credit and refund?
Yes. Please indicate “this scrap is for credit” and “this scrap is for refund” on your scrap packing list.


14. There are gemstones in my scrap. What should I do?
Please remove any gemstones from your scrap that you wish to retain. Rio Grande does not buy gemstones and is unable to return any gemstones present in scrap to you.


15. Do you accept Vermeil?
Yes, Rio Grande does accept vermeil (gold-plated silver) scrap. However, we only pay for the silver content of vermeil scrap. The amount of gold present is not economical to recover.