Dhanteras 2026 gold price calculation: What 24K, 22K and 18K jewellery and coins cost at 5%-18% making charges

While the above rates are the retail prices of gold today, what a buyer actually pays is a different number. This is because making charges and GST are added to the value of the metal. Making charges can vary from one store to another or from one jewellery item to another. Typically, jewellers ask for standard making charges like 5%, 10%, 12% or 18% of the gold rate. The GST is, however, fixed at 3% of the total cost.

Depending on the making charges, the gap between the cheapest and the dearest combination on a 10-gram ornament can be large enough to decide which piece a household can afford.

The initial rate that jewellers quote are only the starting point for the final bill. Let's understand with an example:

For 10 grams of jewellery, the metal value works out as follows:

The final jewellery or coin price calculation involves three steps:

• The base value, which is the day's gold rate.

• The making charge, ranging from 5% to 18%

• The 3% GST

For 10 grams of 22 karat jewellery at ₹13,401 a gram, if the base value is ₹1,34,010, a 12% making charge will add another ₹16,081. The 3% GST of ₹4,503 will then take the total to ₹1,54,594. The following table shows this calculation across the three purities and four assumed making charges:

The table shows that the yellow metal in 10 grams of 22 karat costs ₹1,34,01, but the bill moves from ₹1,44,932 at a 5% making charge to ₹1,62,876 at 18%, which is a difference of ₹17,944, or about 12% of the cheaper bill for the same weight and the same purity. In the 24 karat row, the spread is ₹19,574.

A buyer who negotiates the making charges by a few percentage points, or visits stores offering discounts on making charges, may therefore save more than one who wait for the rate to soften.

Apart from making charges, the choice of purity also matters just as much. At a 12% making charge, 10 grams of 18 karat costs ₹1,26,527 against ₹1,68,633 for 24 karat, a gap of ₹42,106. That is because 18 karat is 75% gold, 22 karat 91.6% and 24 karat 99.9%. But there is a catch. While the saving on 18 karat is real, but it is a saving that a buyer will not recover at resale. This is because buy-back is priced only on the gold content.

If you are planning to make your Dhanteras purchase today, a few other things are worth knowing.

• Making charges are the most negotiable part of the bill and should be asked for in rupees, not only as a percentage, so that two quotes can be compared directly.

• Some jewellers add a wastage charge on top of the making charge, particularly on older designs, and it should be identified separately.

• Rates published online, including this article, are indicative and can vary between showrooms within the same city. So a difference of a few hundred rupees between two stores is normal and worth checking.

• Cash purchases above ₹2 lakh can attract 1% TCS in addition to GST.

• Buyers should ensure that every piece carries a BIS hallmark with a six-digit HUID, and the bill should list weight, purity, making charges and tax as separate entries.

Many buyers overlook the resale arithmetic. It is better to discuss with the jeweller at the time of purchase itself. Jewellers typically buy back on the day's metal value after deducting for melting and purity, and the making charge is never recovered. On a 10-gram 22 karat piece at an 18% making charge, that is ₹24,122 of labour cost lost the moment the ornament leaves the counter, unless the same jeweller offers an exchange against a new purchase.