Rank 4 of 9 · evidence gathered 2026-07-10
Express Gold Cash review
Express Gold Cash scores 59/100 (C) on the Gold Buyer Score. The only major buyer publishing explicit payout rates: 98% of bullion value, up to 90% of refined jewelry value.
Advertised "insured up to $100k" is $5,000 unless you phone first — and silence is acceptance: no response within 72 hours of the offer and the check auto-mails.
Category scores
Payout
65
Proof & Transparency
20
Tracking & Process
80
Client Services
80
Technology
55
Reputation
90
The evidence, line by line
Payout · 30% of total
| Advertised payout rate | 40/50 | 98% bullion / up to 90% refined jewelry, published with daily 'What We Pay' tables. |
| Rate disclosure | 25/25 | Explicit rates on a public page — the only large direct buyer that does this. |
| Price protection | 0/25 | No lock; auto-payment term works against the seller instead. |
Proof & Transparency · 25% of total
| Assay method disclosed | 0/25 | Testing method unstated. |
| Assay on video | 0/35 | None. |
| Itemized offers | 10/20 | Inventory-list verification of received items. |
| Published pricing methodology | 10/20 | Rate tables partially document the pricing math. |
Tracking & Process · 15% of total
| Shipping insurance | 20/40 | $5,000 automatic; $100k banner requires a phone call (FAQ fine print). |
| Status tracking | 30/30 | Real order-status portal (orders.expressgoldcash.com). |
| Payment speed | 30/30 | Payment within 24 hours of acceptance. |
Client Services · 10% of total
| Reachable by phone | 40/40 | 1-877-465-3165, M–F 9–5 EST. |
| Free insured returns | 30/40 | Free returns at their expense; return insurance unstated. |
| Support channels | 10/20 | Email; portal messages. |
Technology · 10% of total
| Live-price calculators | 30/50 | Live daily price page + per-karat pay tables. |
| Pre-ship estimate | 10/30 | Tables give an indication, no estimate tool. |
| Digital offer flow | 15/20 | Portal handles offer flow. |
Reputation · 10% of total
| Independent reviews | 50/50 | Trustpilot 4.9 across ~12,500 reviews (largest base scored); BBB A+. |
| Operating history | 30/30 | In business since 1998. |
| Clean record | 10/20 | 72-hour silence-equals-acceptance term; insurance headline vs fine print. |
Worth knowing
- Strongest published-rate + review-volume combination among the incumbents.
goldbuyer.io is operated by the team behind Offramp, one of the buyers scored on this site. Every buyer, including Offramp, is scored against the same public methodology with cited evidence, and Offramp's weaknesses are shown like everyone else's.