Home › What pawn shops buy

What pawn shops buy and sell

Pawn shops take in and sell much more than jewelry. These are the departments we track. A shop is counted under a department only when a customer's Google review mentions it or the shop's own website lists it. Most shops deal in more than one thing, so the counts overlap: 4,999 of the 6,288 shops we list appear under at least one department below.

A drill, a watch, a phone, a controller, sneakers, a laptop and a guitar with price tags on a counter

Departments by number of shops

The departments

Pawn shops that buy gold and jewelry

2,830 pawn shops

Gold and jewelry have their own pages, by state and city. Every shop there has a customer review saying they sold or pawned gold or jewelry there, or its own website says it buys gold.

Pawn shops for tools

3,191 shops in 49 states and DC · 1,584 in customer reviews · 113 where customers sold or pawned tools

Tip: Bring the batteries and charger. A cordless tool is hard to test without them.

Pawn shops for electronics

3,870 shops in 49 states and DC · 2,698 in customer reviews · 468 where customers sold or pawned electronics

Tip: Back it up, reset it to factory settings and sign out of every account. A phone or tablet still locked to an account may be turned away.

Pawn shops for musical instruments

2,197 shops in 50 states and DC · 1,130 in customer reviews · 89 where customers sold or pawned musical instruments

Tip: Bring the case, plus any power supply, cables or pedals that go with it.

Pawn shops for watches

1,340 shops in 47 states and DC · 445 in customer reviews · 54 where customers sold or pawned watches

Tip: Bring the box, papers and any spare links you have.

Pawn shops for coins and silver

1,225 shops in 50 states · 558 in customer reviews · 97 where customers sold or pawned coins and silver

Tip: Don't clean coins. Cleaning can lower a coin's value.

Pawn shops for sneakers

660 shops in 34 states · 159 in customer reviews · 24 where customers sold or pawned sneakers

Tip: Bring the original box and any extra laces.

Pawn shops for designer handbags

1,176 shops in 38 states · 225 in customer reviews · 36 where customers sold or pawned designer handbags

Tip: Bring the dust bag, box, receipt and any authenticity card you have.

Pawn shops for bikes

371 shops in 46 states · 219 in customer reviews · 21 where customers sold or pawned bikes

Tip: Clean it, pump up the tires and check that the brakes and gears work.

How the proof works

We read each shop's Google reviews and its own website. A shop goes under a department only when one of these says so:

A customer review mentions it. On each department page, the top shops show the review sentence word for word, marked “(Google review)”.
A customer says they sold or pawned it there. Those shops are marked, because it means the shop has taken that item in before.
The shop's website lists it. Those are marked “per the shop's website”.

What a shop buys can change from week to week. Call ahead before you bring something in, and bring a government-issued photo ID; pawn shops usually ask for one when they buy or lend.

Sell gold and jewelry · Pawn shops open on Sunday · All pawn shops by state

Independent directory, not affiliated with the shops or chains listed. Details come from public business info, customer reviews and each shop's own website; confirm hours and terms before you go.