Gold is a highly malleable, bright yellow native metal prized for its resistance to tarnish and corrosion. Collectors typically look for unique crystal habits like 'wire' or 'dendritic' growth rather than standard dust or flakes. It is most commonly found in hydrothermal quartz veins or in alluvial placer deposits where it has been weathered from source rock.
Is this gold?
5-step field checkRun through these checks against the specimen in your hand. The more boxes tick, the more confident the ID.
- 1Test the hardnessTry to scratch gold with a known reference. Gold sits at Mohs 2.5-3 — softer than the next harder reference, harder than the previous one.
- 2Check the streakDrag the specimen across an unglazed porcelain plate. Gold leaves a golden yellow streak.
- 3Read the lusterHold the specimen under a strong light. Gold typically shows a metallic luster.
- 4Match the color rangeCompare against the expected color range: gold-yellow, pale yellow, orange-yellow.
- 5Look at form & habitCrystal system: cubic. Typical habit: nuggets, dendritic, wire, leaf, octahedral crystals, flakes.
Often confused with
Gold vs. its common look-alikes — and how to tell them apart in the field.
How to tell apart: Pyrite is the harder of the two (Mohs 6-6.5 vs. 2.5-3); streak differs — Gold leaves golden yellow, Pyrite leaves greenish-black to brownish-black.
How to tell apart: Streak differs — Gold leaves golden yellow, Chalcopyrite leaves greenish-black.
How to tell apart: Streak differs — Gold leaves golden yellow, Mica leaves white; luster reads metallic on Gold and pearly on Mica.
Often found alongside gold
Minerals reported to co-occur with gold. Spotting these in float or country rock is a strong cue you are in the right ground.
All properties
- Chemical formula
- Au
- Mohs hardness
- 2.5-3
- Density
- 19.3 g/cm³
- Streak
- Golden Yellow
- Luster
- Metallic
- Transparency
- Opaque
- Crystal system
- Cubic
- Crystal habit
- Nuggets, Dendritic, Wire, Leaf, Octahedral Crystals, Flakes
- Cleavage
- None
- Rarity
- Common
- Uses
- Investment, Jewelry, Electronics, Collector
- Host rock
- Hydrothermal Quartz Veins, Placer Deposits, Metamorphic Rocks
- Typical price
- $100-500+ for specimen grade, depending on purity and aesthetic form
Where rockhounds find gold
236 mapped spotsClassic worldwide localities
- Witwatersrand, South Africa
- Western Australia
- Carlin Trend, Nevada, USA
- Yukon, Canada
- Berezovsk, Russia
U.S. states with gold
Each link opens a state-specific list of mapped rockhounding spots that produce gold.
- Nevada45 spots
- Utah31 spots
- Montana24 spots
- Idaho23 spots
- North Carolina22 spots
- Washington22 spots
- South Carolina8 spots
- Arizona7 spots
Field-hunting tip
Look in hydrothermal quartz veins, placer deposits, metamorphic rocks country — that is the host setting where gold typically forms. If you start seeing quartz, pyrite, arsenopyrite in float, you are in the right ground. Field specimens usually show a nuggets, dendritic, wire, leaf, octahedral crystals, flakes habit, so train your eye for that shape before scanning the outcrop. In the U.S., the densest reported localities are in Nevada, Utah, Montana — start trip planning there.
Common questions
How do you identify gold?+
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How much is gold worth?+
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Find gold on the map
RockHoundR shows mapped rockhounding spots, access rules, and lets you log every find.
