A 916 payout is the weight of the 916 metal in grams, with stones and non-gold parts taken out, multiplied by the day’s per-gram rate. One gram pays that rate. Ten grams pays ten times it.
That is the whole sum. Everything below explains where the rate comes from, why 916 pays less than 999 per gram, and how to spot a quote that doesn’t add up. I’m writing as the team at Malaysia Bullion Trade, a Kuala Lumpur dealer founded and run by Dean Arif, a former chemical engineer who has worked in precious metals since 2005.
916 purity explained: what the stamp tells you before you sell
916 means 916 parts gold in every 1,000 by weight. The remaining 84 parts are other metals, usually copper and silver, which make the gold hard enough to wear as a ring, bangle or chain. Most gold jewellery sold in Malaysia is 916, so it is probably what is sitting in your drawer.
The number stamped inside your piece is the maker’s claim, not a verdict. A dealer confirms it by testing the piece before any money is quoted, and you should expect to see that test done.
Is 916 the same as 22-carat gold?
Almost. Carat counts parts out of 24, so 22-carat is 22 ÷ 24, or 91.67% gold. Rounded, that is 916, which is why the two labels are used for the same jewellery and priced by the same logic.
You will not usually see a difference in the payout between a piece marked 22K and one marked 916. Both are weighed, tested and paid at the 916 per-gram rate.
For a little market context, the SBMA’s overview of the Malaysian market reports that Malaysia exported gold jewellery worth $1.4 billion in 2019, before the pandemic, ranking 13th in the world. It tells you the trade is large and established. It tells you nothing about what your own piece will fetch.
How the 916 gold price per gram is calculated
Three steps sit behind every 916 quote, and a dealer who can’t walk you through them is not one to sell to. First, the live gold price. Second, that price scaled to 916 purity. Third, a deduction for the dealer’s buying margin.
From the gold price to your 916 per-gram quote
Start with the live gold reference price. Scale it down to 916 parts in 1,000, because only that share of your piece is gold. Then the dealer takes off a buying margin, which is the gap between what it pays you and what it can realistically recover when it sells or refines the metal, since the market can move before it does either.
The margin should be explained to you in plain terms, and the figure should not be a mystery. The SBMA’s Malaysia overview makes the same underlying point: the purchase and resale price of a national gold bullion product is determined by the prevailing market price of gold. Your quote follows the market, and the margin is the only part the dealer controls.
We would rather you understood the margin than took our word for it, so ask any dealer, us included, to state it.
916 gold scrap value: what the quote pays for and what it doesn’t
The 916 rate already allows for purity. So you multiply the grams of 916 metal, not grams of pure gold. If you convert to pure gold first and then apply the rate, you will count the purity discount twice and undersell yourself.
We publish the calculation on our 916 product page: total weight of the gold in grams multiplied by the per-gram quote gives the total value. Here is a worked example, using an illustrative rate of MYR 470 per gram, not today’s rate.
- A pendant weighs 8.0 g in total, and the stone and its setting account for 0.5 g.
- The 916 metal is 7.5 g.
- 7.5 × 470 = MYR 3,525.
The payout covers the metal alone. Stones, non-gold parts, and the making charges and design premiums you paid at retail are not paid back, because the buyer is paying for gold that can be melted and refined. This is the main reason a sale feels lower than the sticker price you remember. A piece bought for its craftsmanship is sold for its metal.
Tax is left out of the example on purpose. See the live 916 per-gram quote for the current rate, and treat anything else as the dealer’s to confirm.
916 vs 999 gold: how the selling price per gram compares
A 999 (or 24k) piece carries more pure gold in every gram, so it pays more per gram. The 916 rate should therefore sit below the 999 rate on the same day. When you check both on our product pages at the time of writing, the 916 rate is around MYR 472 and the 999/24k rate is around MYR 513, a gap of roughly 8%, which is about what the purity difference explains.
Those figures will have moved by the time you read this. The relationship between them should not.
Same weight, different payout
Two pieces of identical weight, one stamped 916 and one 999, will not pay the same, because the 999 piece holds more pure gold per gram. A 10 g bangle in 916 holds about 9.16 g of gold. A 10 g piece in 999 holds about 9.99 g.
That also means a 916 quote and a 999 quote are not like-for-like, and you should not compare them as if they were. If you are weighing up two dealers, make sure both are quoting the same grade.
If the gap between the two rates looks wider than the purity difference explains, ask the dealer why. A straight answer is reasonable to expect. For the pure-gold reference, our 999/24k buy-back rate is on its own page.
This does not make 999 the better thing to own for everyone. It only tells you what each grade pays when sold. The right grade for you depends on why you bought it.
What moves your 916 quote on the day
Gold trades through the day, so a per-gram rate is a snapshot rather than a fixed price. A quote you were given at ten in the morning may not be the one on offer at three in the afternoon, and neither of us controls that.
So ask two things whenever you receive a rate: what time it was set, and how long it holds. A dealer who is straight with you will answer both without hesitation. If you want the reasons behind the swings, we have explained why gold prices move during the day in Malaysia.
If you are not in a hurry, check the rate a couple of times before you commit. We would rather you sell at a rate you are comfortable with than sell at one you later regret.
How to get a fair 916 gold buy-back price in Malaysia
A fair price is not a high number. It is a number you can trace back to the gold price, the purity and the weight, with every deduction visible. If you can follow the sum, you can judge the deal.
Questions to ask before you agree a price
Get the 916 per-gram rate in writing, even if it is only a WhatsApp message. Watch the weight being measured in front of you, and note the figure on the scale. Ask the dealer to name every deduction, whether for stones, solder or a clasp, so that nothing appears at the end that was not mentioned at the start.
Ask how long the quote holds, because a rate with no stated time is not much of a rate. Then take at least one comparison offer. That could be another bullion dealer, or a pawn shop, though the two work differently, as we cover in pawn shop or bullion dealer: which pays more.
A comparison is only meaningful when you give both dealers the same grade, the same weight and the same time of day.
Warning signs: promises that don’t add up
A quote well above the day’s market rate is the first red flag, since a dealer can only pay what the metal is worth minus a margin. If someone offers more, the money is coming back from you somewhere else, in a deduction, a delay or a catch you haven’t seen yet.
Watch for these as well:
- A “guaranteed buy-back” tied to a future date. Nobody knows what gold will be worth then.
- Pressure to decide on the spot.
- Any refusal to show you the arithmetic.
We make no guaranteed-return promises, and we are not a scheme, an MLM or a pawnbroker. We buy gold at a rate we can show you, and we confirm that rate when you sell. If you want to verify any dealer, including us, you can check a dealer’s licence before you hand over gold.
How to sell 916 gold near you in Malaysia
We serve sellers in Petaling Jaya, Selangor, and the sale is straightforward. Bring your piece along with an identity document. We weigh it, test it, and agree a per-gram rate with you before anything changes hands. If you accept, payment is made in cash, which is how our product page describes it.
Before you travel, message us to confirm whether your visit needs an appointment and what to bring. We would rather answer that in advance than have you make a wasted trip.
This approach suits you if you have jewellery in 916 and want a metal-value payout from a person you can speak to. It does not suit you if you want a retail-style price that refunds the making charge, because no bullion buyer pays that. For the wider local picture, see our guide on how to sell gold jewellery near you in Kuala Lumpur.
Get an honest 916 quote before you sell
The next step is simple. Send us the weight and the grade, with a photo of the stamp if you have one, and we will come back with a live per-gram quote. You can message a dealer directly on WhatsApp, or phone the team if you would rather talk it through.
Our 916 product page, Sell Your 916 Gold to Us, Price per gram, is the reference for the arithmetic, and the rate shown there is around MYR 472 per gram at the time of writing.
Be clear on one thing: the quote is confirmed at the time of sale, not promised in advance. Gold moves, so we will not hold a price for you from last week or guarantee one for next month. What we will do is show you the weight, the rate and the sum, and let you decide.
Frequently asked questions
How much can I sell 1 gram of 916 gold for in Malaysia?
One gram of 916 metal pays the day’s 916 per-gram rate, less nothing extra if there are no stones or non-gold parts. Our 916 product page shows a rate of around MYR 472 per gram at the time of writing, but it moves with the gold price. The figure is confirmed when you sell.
Is 22K gold the same as 916 gold?
Nearly. 22-carat gold is 22 parts in 24, or 91.67% gold, which rounds to 916. Dealers price both at the 916 per-gram rate.
What is the price of a gold bar in Malaysia?
It depends on the purity, the weight and whether you are buying or selling, and it changes with the market. For selling, our international 999.9 page shows a buy-back rate of around MYR 514 per gram at the time of writing. Multiply that by the bar’s weight in grams for a rough value, then ask for a live quote.
Can I see a graph of the gold price?
This guide does not carry a chart, because a per-gram quote is a snapshot that goes out of date quickly. For the rate we would pay today, check the 916 product page or message us on WhatsApp. A price chart from a public market data source will show you the longer trend.
Will I get back the making charge when I sell 916 jewellery?
No. The payout covers the weight of the 916 metal alone, so the making charges and design premiums you paid at retail are not recovered. Stones and non-gold parts are also taken out of the weight.