Opal Galaxy does not offer any opal appraisal or valuation services. Pricing opals accurately takes a lot of time; hours, sometimes days of research. We just do not have the time to offer this service. It is also inaccurate to value an opal through photos and videos as there are almost always things in opals that you cannot see properly with poorer, non professional quality photos and videos. Below you will find outlined instructions of what to consider so that you can price your opal yourself as best as possible.
Pricing Australian Opals accurately is one of the most challenging things about Australian opals. There are no set guidelines of how to price Australian opals, and the values can range a lot based on the owner of the opals desires vs how much it may actually be worth to buyers in the market. Opals can be compared to real estate, for example, in that it may depend on how much interest there has been in that opal, and how much the buyer is willing to pay. Essentially an opal is only worth what a buyer is willing to pay, however people in the market can be assured they are paying a fair price by buying from a reputable seller with a wide range and variety of stock. Established sellers in the market who work with opals every day know a lot about their values and how to price opals accurately.
Varied prices in the market may be caused by a number of different factors, including peoples’ uneducated opinions. You may have an instance where someone may have been passed down an opal as a heirloom, and a friend has told them that they once saw an opal that looked the same but in reality may be completely different, and it was valued at such a high price. The seller then might price the opal based on this opinion without any further knowledge or research on current opal price. Another instance may be that someone has once got an insurance valuation, which sometimes values opals much higher than they are actually worth. So you can see it is important when considering purchasing an opal to buy from a reputable seller, such as us here at Opal Galaxy. Our pricing consists of over 40 years combined experience in working with and pricing opals. We sell in both the wholesale and retail markets (at wholesale prices) so know current prices of today’s market for all types of Australian opals. We try to price our opals, where possible, at around half of recommended retail appraisal.
Things to consider when pricing an opal
There are many factors to consider when pricing an opal. Look at the opals type, colors, pattern, size, shape, weight, obscurities and discrepancies. These are things to consider that adds or detracts from the value of an opal.
Contributing factors of opals that add value
Type of Opals
The first thing that you should determine about an opal is where it is from. As a general observation of the market, Lightning Ridge black opals are worth the most of any Australian opals. Within Lightning Ridge there are mining areas. Some areas produce higher valued opals than others. For example; a nobby black opal from Allah’s Rush mining field of high grade is viewed very favorably within the market compared to a seam black opal from the Grawin mining fields. Lightning Ridge crystal is usually valued higher than crystals from other regions in Australia such as Coober Pedy, however this is not always the case. If you have a boulder opal, work out which region it’s from, as this is important information to give potential buyers.Â
Colors of Opals
Opals form with a color spectrum much the same as rainbows do. The first colors to form are from the inside of a rainbow, and the same occurs with opal. Violet/Indigo/Blue are therefore the most common colors in opals, and red is the rarest and most valuable.
By following this rule, you can grade your opals’ color rarity. A full spectrum of all colors, or rainbow colored opals, also hold very high values. Some exceptions apply to this rule, for instance a very high quality and well formed blue opal can still hold very high values.
Pattern
A well distinguished pattern contributes a lot towards an opals value. Harlequin, flagstone, chinese writing, chaff, pinfire, ribbon, peacock, mackerel and floral patterns are just some of the popular and rarer opal patterns that you may encounter in the market that hold significant value.
Size
The size of your opal contributes to whether an opal can be used in a ring, pendant, earrings, broach or simply just for collection. Oval cabochon Ring Stones are usually the highest demand in opals, and therefore you may expect a bit higher values in these compared to others such as specimen sized opals.
Shape
The shape of an opal can be a dealbreaker when selling an opal. Ovals and teardrops are the most common, whilst a freeform may be harder to sell. If you have a well shaped opal it will be much easier to sell in the market.
Weight
Opals are measured by carat weight. The heavier the opal is, the higher the value. This is sometimes true when talking about smaller gem black, crystal and white opals. There are some exceptions to this rule however which are outlined below. Also, boulder opals should not be valued too easily by their weight as there is often a lot of excessive, heavy ironstone included in the opal.
Body Tone
With black opals, the body tone of the opal will determine its value to some degree. Black opals are more favorably viewed than dark opals. Crystal opals are often viewed less favorably when compared to black, dark and white opals.
Brightness
How bright is the opal? The brighter and more vibrant the opals colors and patterns are will increase its value. Seldom do people want to buy a dull opal! Your opal may need a re polish if it has been worn for several years to increase its visual appeal to potential buyers.
Settings
Is the opal you want to value set in a ring or pendant or something else? This may add value to the opal if it is a nice setting. The value of the gold or platinum should also be considered.
Contributing factors of opals that hinder their value
Obscurities and Discrepancies
Can you see any dull areas in the face of the opal? This is often potch, or poorly formed areas of opal. There also may be sand marks, scuff marks or rutile areas that hinder the look of your opal. If there are any of these issues with an opal it may detract value from it.
Undulations
Is the face of the opal flat or well domed? You can sometimes find opals that have undulations (uneven areas) on the face of the opal. This will hinder the value of the opal if it is at all noticeable to the naked eye.
Unnecessary potch / ironstone left on the back by cutter to increase weight
This is a common trick used by some dishonest opal cutters in the industry to increase the weight of their opals, trying to make them more valuable. Assess the opal that you have to ensure it does not have any excessive potch left on the back that may cause the opal to be extra large/heavier than it could have been if it were cut properly. Leaving a little bit of extra potch for a higher dome for a ringstone is understandable, however leaving excessive amounts with the pure intention of increasing an opal’s weight should be overlooked.
Unnecessary areas left on the opal to increase weight that should have been cut off
Some cutters may leave extra areas on the face of the opal to increase their weight that should have been cut off. There may be some edge areas that contain potch or discrepancies that are easily cut off but weren’t. The same applies to the shapes that are cut, detailed below.
Undesirable shapes
In our opinion, usually when cutting opals, to achieve a symmetrical shape such as a teardrop or an oval is much more desirable than a larger opal that is left as a freeform shape. Less is usually worth more to potential buyers. Weird freeform shapes are not usually usable with classic designs of jewelry, and by keeping them this way you are limiting your market of buyers to those who are okay with freeform shapes.
Research
If you want to price an opal accurately the first thing to do is take some initiative and spend some time doing some research. We are often asked by people to price their opals for them, when in actuality people can do it themselves if they just spend a bit of time doing some of their own research of the market. If you’re wanting to know the value of your opal to sell it, then how can you expect to sell an opal in the market without understanding it? When you want to sell a car you would usually do some initial research of how much it is worth; the same applies to opals.
Once you have determined all of the characteristics of the opal that you are trying to price, do research on opals currently on the market for sale, and also one’s that have sold. Research several sellers’ opals, including ours on our website here at Opal Galaxy. Find similar pieces with similar characteristics to work out an average price per carat that you feel that the opal should be worth. If you’re checking with a known retail opal priced seller, use this as a benchmark to work out a wholesale price, which should typically be anywhere from 25 to 50% less than the advertised price. If you’re comparing our prices at Opal Galaxy, keep in mind that our prices are wholesale. Pricing your opal at a wholesale price will ensure that it has a better chance to sell within a reasonable time period, opposed to taking a longer time because it is priced too high.
Once you have determined a value for your opal, and if your intentions are to sell it, I would recommend trying on facebook. As an individual that does not have an established company, website, etsy shop, ebay store ect. The best place to sell a single loose opal is probably within some opal groups on facebook. Either that or some classifieds websites, or possibly to someone within the trade like a jeweler or opal dealer.