Gold Making Charges Explained: Rate, Making & GST

The five parts of a gold jewellery price

1. Gold rate - the day's rate per gram for the purity (22K, 18K ...).
2. Weight - the net gold weight of the piece in grams.
3. Making charges - the cost of designing and crafting the piece.
4. Stone value - the price of any gemstones or diamonds set in it.
5. GST - tax charged on the total of the above.

Only the first two move with the market. That is why the same bangle costs different amounts on different days, while the making charge percentage stays the same.

What are making charges and how are they set?

Making charges (sometimes called "wastage" or "labour") pay for the design, the craftsmanship and the small loss of gold during manufacturing. Jewellers quote them in one of two ways:

• A percentage of the gold value - e.g. 10% of (rate x weight). The charge grows with weight and with the rate.
• A flat amount per gram - the same rupees per gram whatever the rate.

Intricate hand-finished designs usually carry higher making charges than simple machine-made ones. Light pieces such as small earrings can show a high making percentage even though the rupee amount is small.

A worked example at today's live rate

Illustrative piece: 10 g of 22K gold with a 10% making charge and 3% GST, at today's 22K rate of ₹13,293.00 per gram. This is a worked example, not a product price.

Rates change during the day, so the figures above update with the market.

How to compare two jewellers properly

• Compare the same purity and similar weight.
• Ask for the making charge as a percentage and in rupees.
• Check that the rate used is the day's rate for that purity.
• Confirm that stone value is listed separately and is not charged at gold rate.
• Ask what exchange or buy-back terms apply: usually the making charge is not returned when you sell gold back.
• Insist on a bill that shows HUID, weight, purity and GST. See our HUID guide.

GST on gold jewellery

Gold jewellery is charged GST at 3% on the total value (gold value plus making charges and stone value). Rates can be revised by the GST Council, so check the CBIC website for the current rate. On our product pages the GST percentage is stored per product and shown on its own line in the Price Breakup table.

हिंदी में: मेकिंग चार्ज क्या होता है?

मेकिंग चार्ज वह रकम है जो ज्वेलर गहना बनाने की मेहनत और डिज़ाइन के लिए लेता है। यह आमतौर पर सोने की कीमत का प्रतिशत (जैसे 10%) या प्रति ग्राम तय रकम होती है।

गहने की कीमत = (आज का सोने का भाव x वज़न) + मेकिंग चार्ज + स्टोन की कीमत + GST। दो ज्वेलर की तुलना करते समय सिर्फ़ फ़ाइनल कीमत नहीं, मेकिंग चार्ज का प्रतिशत और बिल में लिखा वज़न/शुद्धता ज़रूर देखें।

How Narayan Jewellers shows the price

Every product on this site has a Price Breakup table: gold value (with the rate and weight used), making charges (with the percentage), stone value, GST and the total. The same breakup is shown in your cart, at checkout and on your order page, so the number you see is the number you pay. Browse bangles, earrings or mangalsutra, and check today's gold rate in Lucknow.