Worthy
Strengths
- Professionally prepares your jewelry for auction
- Dedicated service agent
- Free shipping and insurance
- Only pay fees if your jewelry sells
- Professional jewelry buyers competitively bid on your item
Weaknesses
- Bids may not meet your desired reserve value
- Lower-end jewelry won't qualify for auction
- Must ship your items for grading and selling
Are you looking to sell your diamond jewelry? The offers can vary wildly depending on the place you go, which is why it’s so important to do the proper research before selling.
For example, an expert selling partner can prepare your piece for sale and reach interested buyers willing to pay more than your local jewelry store or pawn shop (there’s a hidden price to pay for convenience).
Many people are choosing a website called Worthy to sell their diamond wedding and engagement rings, necklaces, bracelets, and designer watches. This online marketplace handles the jewelry selling process from start to finish by preparing your items to sell for top dollar at auction.
In this Worthy Review, I’ll show you how Worthy can help you make money, cover the selling fees, and let you know if it’s worth sending off your valuables for a hands-free selling experience.
Table of Contents
- What Is Worthy?
- How Worthy Works
- 1. Access Worthy Support Prior to Shipping
- 2. Ship Your Jewelry to Worthy For Evaluation
- 3. Professional Grading
- 4. List Your Item for Online Auction
- 6. Get Paid
- Worthy’s Fees
- Is Worthy a Good Place to Sell Jewelry?
- Worthy Jewelry Pros and Cons
- Alternatives to Worthy Jewelry
- FAQs
- Final Thoughts on Worthy Jewelry
What Is Worthy?
Worthy is an online selling partner that specializes in helping you sell fine jewelry. They even clean and prepare your valuable jewelry for sale at no extra cost, and you only pay a success fee if your item sells. It has been in business since 2011 and has helped people sell over $200 million worth of jewelry.
Selling single or multiple items through Worthy’s auction platform to a network of professional buyers sounds appealing. The service offers free return shipping if you decide not to sell your item or if Worthy cannot find a buyer to satisfy your reserve price.
You can sell the following types of jewelry on Worthy:
- Diamond jewelry (engagement and wedding rings, bracelets, necklaces, earrings made from gold or platinum)
- Loose diamonds
- Designer jewelry (Bvlgari, Cartier, Harry Winston, Tacori, and Tiffany & Co)
- Designer watches (Breitling, Cartier, Omega, Rolex, Tag Heuer, etc.)
- Gemstone jewelry, including rubies, emeralds, and sapphires.
Watches must be in proper working condition, although jewelry can be broken or missing items as its appraisal value hinges on the value and weight of the jewels and precious metals. Worth accepts diamond jewelry with at least one diamond of 0.7 carats or above.
In addition to its popular jewelry-selling service, Worthy recently launched an e-commerce platform, The Worthy Shop, where consumers can buy ethically-sourced diamond rings.
How Worthy Works
Here is a step-by-step look at how Worthy can help you sell your jewelry online.
1. Access Worthy Support Prior to Shipping
If you have questions before shipping your jewelry to Worthy, you can get assistance from a Worthy team member. Consider it like having your own personal account executive. By answering your questions, they can provide you with peace of mind before you send away your valuable jewelry.
2. Ship Your Jewelry to Worthy For Evaluation
After agreeing to the initial estimate, you will receive a prepaid FedEx shipping label for free home pickup or drop-off at a shipping partner. For peace of mind, your item is insured up to $50,000 against theft or loss during shipping. (Worthy’s team can arrange free insurance coverage for over $50,000 if you speak to them before shipping.)
All pieces are mailed to Worthy’s New York office for evaluation and selling. It’s also possible to schedule an appointment to visit the physical location. Once Worthy receives your item, they will have it professionally graded and get it ready for auction by taking professional photographs to highlight the piece’s beauty.
You can also view the prices for recently-closed auctions to see how much similar items are selling for.
3. Professional Grading
After receiving your shipment, Worthy has an independent grading laboratory inspect your collection to assess its gemological characteristics and generate a grade to help buyers know the value of what they would be purchasing.
Worthy partners with the Gemological Institute of America (GIA), the International Gemological Institute (IGI), and the GHI Gemological Laboratory to grade your diamond. These grading labs are the leading diamond experts, and their grading reports are universally recognized.
For designer watches, Central Watch will perform the assessment.
4. List Your Item for Online Auction
Prior to the auction, the Worthy team cleans your jewelry and takes high-definition (HD) glamor shots to prepare your item for auction. Your auction listing will include an item description and various attributes regarding the metal and stones.
Worthy uses the grading report to estimate the potential selling price and recommend a reserve price. If you are satisfied with this minimum selling price, you can agree to it to set the reserve price higher or lower than Worthy’s initial recommendation. Worthy then hosts an online auction lasting 48 hours.
Over 1,000 professional industry buyers are invited to place a bid. Like any auction, the final outcome is variable, and you may earn more if a bidding war ensues.
However, there are instances when your reserve price may not be met. If this happens, Worthy allows you to sell the item for the highest bid received or to have the item returned to you free via free shipping and with full insurance coverage. There is no penalty for rejecting bids below the reserve price.
6. Get Paid
Once your item sells, Worthy mails it to the buyer and sends you payment minus a maximum 18% success fee. The fee schedule varies based on the final selling price of your jewelry. But it will never be more than 18%. The full fee schedule can be seen further down in this article.
Your options for getting paid quickly include:
- Bank transfer (ACH)
- Check
- PayPal (only for transactions below $5,000)
It usually takes one to three business days to get paid by bank deposit or PayPal and up to five business days by check. If you sell multiple pieces simultaneously, you will receive a single payment once Worthy settles the transaction with each buyer.
Worthy’s Fees
Worthy only makes money when you successfully sell your jewelry. The platform retains a “success fee” from the final auction price. The fee amount depends on the item value:
| Winning Bid Amount | Success Fee |
| $5,000 or less | 18% |
| $5,001 to $15,000 | 14% |
| $15,001 to $30,000 | 12% |
| $30,000 or more | 10% |
A flat fee of 18% applies for a jewelry box consisting of at least three sold items.
These fees are competitive with standard auction premiums but are a tad high for lower-priced items where the seller premium can be from 10% to 15%.
For example, the final value fees on eBay are 15% for jewelry sales below $5,000 and 9% for sales over $5,000. However, on eBay, you’re responsible for finding a buyer, shipping it, and having to field any buyer complaints if the item arrives damaged or doesn’t meet their expectations (plus, watch out for eBay scammers.)
Is Worthy a Good Place to Sell Jewelry?
Worthy makes it easier to sell valuable jewelry at a competitive price as multiple buyers can compete for your jewelry. If you go to a local jewelry store, you only receive a buyback quote from one outlet, making it harder to compare offers in a timely fashion.
However, it’s important to remember that while Worthy creates a competitive bidding environment, you may get less than market value for your jewelry. In addition, jewelry rarely holds its value, and receiving less than you originally paid can be a tough pill to swallow.
While you could, in theory, make more selling directly to another consumer or a collector as you bypass the middleman, finding the ideal buyer can be challenging, depending on where you live and your personal connections. But, for an easy and trustworthy online selling process, Worthy is one of the best.
You can start by submitting your item’s information through Worthy before sending off your items by clicking the button below.
Worthy Jewelry Pros and Cons
From my research of Worthy, I’ve compiled the following list of pros and cons:
Pros
- Professional preparation of your jewelry for auction
- Dedicated service agent
- Free shipping and insurance
- Only pay if your jewelry sells
- Professional jewelry buyers competitively bid on your item
Cons
- May not reach the reserve price
- You must pay a fee to sell your item.
- Must ship your items for grading and selling
Alternatives to Worthy Jewelry
Before you sign up with Worthy, I recommend checking out the following alternatives to ensure you can earn the most money possible.
Cash for Diamonds USA
Cash for Diamonds USA provides free initial quotes by phone, but like Worthy, you will need to send them your jewelry for an official appraisal. Shipping is free, and the platform advertises guaranteed offers within 24 hours of receiving your parcel.
Your estimate depends on the raw value of the diamonds and any other precious metals or stones. The resale value or artistic value is not taken into account.
If you accept the instant purchase offer, you can receive payment by check or PayPal. Return shipping is also free and fully insured if you decide to sell your jewelry elsewhere.
Abe Mor
Abe Mor is another reputable service based in New York City that buys and sells fine jewelry. You can mail your items free of charge through FedEx and receive an offer within 48 hours. There are no selling fees if you accept the offer, and return shipping is free if you reject the offer.
CIRCA
CIRCA buys diamonds and fine jewelry in person and online. Shipping is free, and you can receive an instant buyback offer. In addition to checks or bank transfer payments, you can earn up to 20% more by getting a store gift card which can be used at Blue Nile.
TheRealReal
TheRealReal is an online luxury goods consignment store that can help you fetch a higher selling price as your audience is individual shoppers instead of professional buyers. You’re also able to earn more as you can sell at a fixed price instead of going into an unpredictable auction.
You may also consider TheRealReal for items that don’t meet Worthy’s criteria. For example, the appraisal value is too low, or the jewelry isn’t made by a qualifying brand.
However, it can take longer to sell your items as you must wait for an interested buyer. The commissions are also high. For branded fine jewelry, the platform retains 30% on sales above $750 and as much as 80% for items below $100.
FAQs
Worthy is a safe place to sell diamond jewelry and other designer brands with gold or platinum. Shipping is free and insured, the fees are transparent, and the staff maintains frequent communication during the selling process to help you easily sell your jewelry for the most money.
Worthy specializes in helping people sell diamond wedding and engagement rings, necklaces, bracelets, and earrings. You can also sell loose diamonds and branded luxury watches. All eligible items sell during a 48-hour auction.
Phone support and live chat are available. You will also have a dedicated advisor that can assist with setting your reserve price and preparing your item for auction.
Final Thoughts on Worthy Jewelry
Worthy is a legit and easy way to sell your valuable diamond jewelry. Its transparent pricing, good customer support, and free shipping make selling your jewelry online less risky and expensive. While you don’t know how much you will earn from an auction, Worthy works hard to get you the highest offer for your jewelry on the market.
