The diamond necklace from an ex, the gold watch that sits in your jewelry box, the ruby necklace that you loved—a decade ago. We all have jewelry that we no longer wear.

Selling your old jewelry is an option, but it can be hard to know how and where to get started. Here are a few tips for getting the most from your rings, earrings, bracelets and necklaces.

Know the worth

You may love your jewelry. It may have been in the family for many years, or been a treasured gift at some point, or something that you saved for a long time to purchase.

Unfortunately, the emotional value you assign to your jewelry often has little to do with the current fair market price of your piece. Many factors go into determining the current value of a piece of jewelry, including any wear and tear, needed repairs and quality of the gems and metals.

However, while an appraiser will certainly give you a thorough look at your piece, the value they assign may not be the price a buyer is willing to pay, especially if they are hoping to resell. That’s why you should…

Be informed

Think through how quickly you want to sell. If you want an immediate sale (i.e. cash in hand today), your options will be limited on where you can sell, and how much cash someone might be willing to pay immediately. Pawn shops can help you with an immediate sale, but you will want to visit several to get a good idea of the range of what these brokers will pay for a piece like yours.

If you are able to wait a bit, researching some other possibilities could net you a better price for your jewelry, or give you some other options, like re-setting stones from your jewelry into a new piece.

Be realistic

Again, we emphasize that the way you feel about your jewelry’s worth may not align with current fair market price. Have a range in mind of what you would accept for the piece and be willing to accept an offer in that range.