Counterfeits are very common in various products—especially jewelry. Precious metals are being imitated with low quality material—forgers have become so skilled that they’re able to conceal the imperfections of fake jewelry and make it look “genuine” to the untrained eye.
Among the vast and popular precious metals, silver is among the common counterfeited metals since tons of cheap metals and alloys can be used to replicate genuine silver. 925 sterling silver is a famous type of silver that has lot of buzz going around in both online and offline jewelry shops. If you have been purchasing 925 sterling silver accessories or still planning to buy, you need to have some basic knowledge on determining if what you’re buying is legit or not. Learn how to tell if your sterling silver is real or fake with the help of the guide below.
1. Magnet Test
This is truly an easy way for you to check if your silver jewelry is indeed authentic. Simply put a magnet near your silver accessory; if it sticks or gets attracted to the magnet then its fake. Genuine silver and other precious metals like gold are nonmagnetic.
2. Rub it with a white fabric
Now, this method is on par with the magnet test in terms of difficulty. Get a white and clean cloth and massage it in just a small area of your silver. Rejoice if you find black blemishes on the white cloth since it shows that your 925 sterling silver is legit! Real silver oxidizes which is why it produces black blemishes as it ages.
3. Markings
There are markings such as “S925”, “.925”, and “925”. This gives assurance that the silver is indeed a 925 sterling silver. However, there are some sterling silver that don’t have these marks so don’t directly assume that the silver is fake if it doesn’t have the mentioned markings.
4. Odor Test
Did you smell a bit of brass or copper from your “silver” jewelry? If so, then it’s most likely that your supposed silver accessory is fake. Genuine sterling silver doesn’t produce any odor of some sort.
Check our Awesome Selection of 925 sterling silvers here!
Hi there, I purchased quite a few rings a year ago from a reputable company and I 100% trust that they are sterling silver. However, I recently bought a few rings from palm beach jewelry that are supposedly sterling silver, and they look very different. They have the 925 marking, but the metal isn’t as bright, definitely more grey than the white-ish color that I associate with sterling silver. On all my other rings, I notice they bend easily and tarnish occasionally, but the other ones never do. Can something with the .925 stamp still be fake?
Hi Nicky, the marking of the .925 is not a full proof of the authenticity of the jewelry, unfortunately. That stamp is easy to put on any metal. It is very important to know your source to be able to guarantee authenticity. The tips we laid down on this article can help you determine if your jewelry is fake or real. As for the color, all metals change colors in time. This is why metal polishing materials are available for this purpose. We carry brass that is plated with silver and then lightly coated with lacquer. This process (as long as done properly) prevents oxidation and therefore keeps the shiny silver longer than even .925 silver. I’m just pointing out how plated silver can be recognized from .925 silver. I hope this helps.
I just bought 3 925 sterling silver rings from Wish. The question is if they don’t attract from a magnet and doesn’t turn my finger green does that mean that it is actual sterling silver?
If you do not see any oxidation when you test your ring with a cloth, then your ring may not be .925 sterling silver. 925 silver oxidizes. 925 silver Rings may not leave any mark of discoloration on your finger for a while. So it does not mean that it is not sterling silver.
I bought a pendant marked P.T. 925. Is this sterling silver?
Hi there, I am not sure what P.T. means? Usually it is just .925 marking is used.