Glossary term
Karat
A measure of gold purity on a 24-part scale; 24K is pure gold.
Karat (K or kt) expresses gold purity in twenty-fourths. 24K is essentially pure gold, 22K is 22 parts gold to 2 parts other metals (91.6%), and 18K is 75% gold. In many markets the equivalent fineness number is used instead: 916 for 22K, 750 for 18K, 585 for 14K.