Gold is a valuable commodity, especially these days. The price has risen significantly over the last five years, and now many people are wondering whether it's time to cash in. 

Fortunately, there are plenty of places you can sell your gold, but who should you go to? That's what we explore in this review. Here are our top picks:

Best for selling estate jewelry - Paradigm Experts

If you want to sell estate jewelry or even gold jewelry, then Paradigm Experts is the top choice. The company is licensed and bonded in Northern Virginia and offers private appointment-only evaluations.

What we liked most about the service was the transparent live market pricing shown right in front of you when you go to the counter. You can see the current spot price for precious metals to determine how much your gold, gold jewelry, and other materials are actually worth. All payments are made on the same day, and sellers get up to 90% of the melt value.

We liked the fact that the evaluations are free and there's no obligation to sell. If you're not happy with the offer that's made to you, you can hold on to your jewelry without any financial cost.

Best for selling bullion and large bars - JM Bulliown

If you happen to have some bullion or large bars lying around, then JM Bullion could be a great option. They win this category because they allow you to sell pure investment-grade gold. 

When you're selling pure gold, it's critical to get a price that is close to spot. Otherwise, you could get a better deal elsewhere, especially on investment-grade bullion. We like the fact that JM Bullion has tight spreads, although as a business they still need to make a profit. They understand that customers are looking for competitive prices. They maintain a strict $1,000 minimum for buybacks, meaning that JM Bullion is usually only an option for serious investors looking to liquidate funds in bulk.

Best for selling broken jewelry - Express Gold Cash

Let's say you have a lot of broken jewelry lying around. Where can you sell it? Tangled chains, broken rings, and outdated gold jewelry aren't worth much to most jewellers who are looking to sell premium items in pristine condition.

Fortunately, we found Express Gold Cash. This company understands the value of the underlying metal and isn't afraid to take broken jewelry off your hands for a fair price. If you go to a local pawnshop, they are notorious for paying pennies on the dollar for the actual value of the gold that you want to sell. Most only give you between 40% and 70% of its value because they don't want to melt it down and recover the original material.

With Express Gold Cash, the system is different. They have a more efficient service and understand the value of the underlying gold, so they're able to give 85% to 95% of the melt value. That's why they have a high score on Trustpilot across more than 12,000 reviews.

You can also use the service with relative ease. For example, they will send you a free, fully insured FedEx pack, evaluate your pieces under a camera, and then send you an offer over the internet telling you how much they're willing to pay for your gold. You can then accept or reject the offer. If you don't accept the offer, they can send the items back to you intact, free of charge.

Best for numismatic and collectible coins - APMEX

If you want to sell Canadian maple leaves, American eagles, or even rare vintage coins with numismatic value, then APMEX is a good option. Unlike many gold buyers, they understand the underlying value of the bullion and can tell you if you have a rare coin or something special on your hands.

APMEX is also one of the largest metals retailers globally. They have a huge built-in global buyer network of collectors who can afford to pay premium prices for mint-condition or rare coins. Being able to tap into this network reduces the risk for APMEX and allows them to pay higher prices for coins that they deem to be valuable.

As sellers, we were keen to take advantage of this because we had some relatively rare coins that we wanted to offload. We didn't want to get paid the standard prices for coins of that size and weight.

Best for Selling Gold IRAs - Augusta Precious Metals

Liquidating gold held in IRAs requires you to adhere to strict tax laws. You can't take physical possession of the gold without incurring tax penalties. Augusta Precious Metals says there are ways to liquidate holdings, and it is compliant and uses an education-first approach. It allows people to liquidate their retirement metals and use penalty-free buybacks coordinated with IRS-approved depositories and custodians on your behalf. This means that you can get the proceeds of selling the gold funnelled back into your account without a nasty tax surprise at the end of it.

Best for speed - CashforGoldUSA

Finally, if you're looking to get money fast, you might want to opt for CashforGoldUSA. We like this option because it has historically been one of the fastest ways to get a payout.

Not only does it offer 24-hour appraisals, it facilitates immediate electronic payment transfers via its portal. To achieve this, CashforGoldUSA uses overnight FedEx shipping labels and insures packages for up to $150,000. When gold arrives at its facility, it audits it, appraises it under strict camera coverage, and then provides an offer within 24 hours. You can then decide if you want to sell your gold to the company and choose a payment method to receive funds.

Final verdict

What's the final verdict here? The competition for best gold-buying services is pretty sharp. Many offer live market prices and pay almost entirely the melt value, especially for scraps and jewelry.

Overall, though, our winner is Paradigm Experts because of its live market pricing and lock-in, and the fact that it offers up to 90% of melt value. This combination is incredibly rare to find elsewhere.