On October 21, 2026, IBJA's morning fixing put 24K gold at ₹1,44,060 per 10 grams and 22K (916) at ₹1,31,959. That is ₹2,346 (1.60%) below its last fixing on October 19. Retail sites quote a bit more. Groww lists 24K at ₹1,46,080, 22K at ₹1,33,910 and 18K at ₹1,09,560 per 10g. Below you'll find the full October 21 2026 gold rates by city, the reason sources disagree, what is pushing prices down, and whether waiting for Dhanteras on November 6 makes sense.
Key numbers at a glance:
- 24K (IBJA AM): ₹1,44,060/10g, down ₹2,346 from October 19
- 22K / 916 (IBJA AM): ₹1,31,959/10g
- Silver (IBJA): ₹2,05,850/kg, down 1.73%
- International: December gold futures opened at $4,143.40/oz
- Distance from record: about 18% below the 24K retail high of roughly ₹1,78,850 (January 29, 2026)
- Days to Dhanteras: 16 (Friday, November 6, 2026)
All prices exclude 3% GST and making charges. Retail rates change during the day, so treat the figures below as indicative and confirm with your jeweller before you pay.
October 21 2026 gold rates: 24K, 22K and 18K
The table below puts the IBJA benchmark next to Groww's retail-linked rate. Jewellers usually work from the IBJA number. Apps like Groww show a figure closer to what you'll see on a showroom board.
| Purity | IBJA AM fixing (per 10g) | Groww (per 10g) | Groww (per gram) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 24K (999) | ₹1,44,060 | ₹1,46,080 | ₹14,608 |
| 22K (916) | ₹1,31,959 | ₹1,33,910 | ₹13,391 |
| 18K (750) | — | ₹1,09,560 | ₹10,956 |
On MCX, gold traded at ₹1,46,259 per 10g, with a day range of ₹1,45,525 to ₹1,46,532.
Why every website shows a different gold rate today
If you've checked three apps and got three prices, nothing is broken. Each source measures something slightly different:
| Source | 24K per 10g | What it represents |
|---|---|---|
| IBJA AM fixing | ₹1,44,060 | Wholesale benchmark set in the morning. No GST, making charges or local premium |
| Groww | ₹1,46,080 | Retail-linked national rate |
| Kotak Neo (Delhi) | ₹1,46,220 | City-specific retail rate |
| MCX | ₹1,46,259 | Futures contract price, updated live |
| bullions.co.in (5:45 PM) | ₹1,46,570 | Evening spot snapshot, down 0.16% from October 20 |
| Paytm | ₹1,49,001 | Noticeably higher than the rest. Likely includes a digital-gold spread |
There are three main reasons for the gap. The first is timing: IBJA fixes in the morning, while other sources update through the day. The second is what's included: local premiums, octroi-style city costs and platform spreads. The third is the reference point. The headline "₹2,346 fall" compares today with IBJA's last fixing on October 19. Measured against the October 20 evening session, bullions.co.in shows only a 0.16% dip. Most of the drop happened during the holiday and was simply recorded today.
City-wise gold rate today (24K)
City rates differ by only a few rupees per gram, mostly because of local transport and association pricing. These are Groww's figures for October 21:
| City | 24K per gram | 24K per 10g |
|---|---|---|
| Mumbai | ₹14,608 | ₹1,46,080 |
| Chennai | ₹14,608 | ₹1,46,080 |
| Bengaluru | ₹14,608 | ₹1,46,080 |
| Hyderabad | ₹14,608 | ₹1,46,080 |
| Kolkata | ₹14,608 | ₹1,46,080 |
| Pune | ₹14,608 | ₹1,46,080 |
| Ahmedabad | ₹14,613 | ₹1,46,130 |
| Delhi NCR | ₹14,623 | ₹1,46,230 |
| Jaipur | ₹14,623 | ₹1,46,230 |
| Lucknow | ₹14,623 | ₹1,46,230 |
For 22K jewellery in any of these cities, start from the national 22K rate of about ₹13,391 per gram and expect a similar ₹5–15 city premium. Your jeweller's board rate is the one that counts.
Why there was no gold rate on October 20
Tuesday, October 20 was a Dussehra trading holiday. Bullion markets were shut and IBJA did not publish a fixing. Commodity exchanges ran only an evening session from 5 PM. That makes October 21 the first full trading day after the festival. Two days of global moves were absorbed into one fixing, which is why the drop looks so large. If you're planning around other market closures this season, see our list of bank holidays in October and November 2026.
Why gold keeps falling
Gold has slipped steadily through October. A few forces are working together.
1. The rupee and local market conditions
Comex gold edged up during the day, trading roughly between $4,118 and $4,158 an ounce, yet Indian prices fell. StartupTalky puts the gap down to the rupee and local market conditions. India imports almost all its gold, so when the rupee firms against the dollar, the same ounce costs fewer rupees. Even a small move in the currency can cancel out a rise in global prices.
2. Oil, inflation and the Fed
The Iran war has pushed Brent crude above $110 a barrel ($111.47 on October 20). US September inflation also came in hotter than expected. The US Federal Reserve meets around October 27–28 and is expected to hold rates, but markets are pricing in hikes later in the year. Higher interest rates make gold less attractive, because it pays no yield. That expectation is weighing on prices worldwide. Gold has spent most of October in a $4,090–4,200 band.
3. The rupee-vs-dollar contrast most pages miss
In dollar terms, gold is down 5.2% year on year. Yahoo Finance calls that the biggest annual fall in its daily data series. In rupee terms, gold is still up 14.3% on a year ago (₹1,28,270 on October 21, 2025, per bullions.co.in). The difference comes from the currency. A weaker rupee over the past year protected Indian buyers from the global slide. Now that the rupee has firmed in the short term, they are feeling the slide too.
The 10-day slide in numbers
| Date (2026) | 24K per 10g (Groww) |
|---|---|
| October 12 | ₹1,49,680 |
| October 14 | ₹1,48,260 |
| October 15–16 | ₹1,47,440 |
| October 17–18 | ₹1,47,660 |
| October 19 | ₹1,48,040 |
| October 20–21 | ₹1,46,080 |
That's a fall of ₹3,600 (about 2.4%) in ten days. Over a month the drop is bigger: down 4.7% from ₹1,53,780 on September 21. For context, gold dipped in June–July, jumped about 12% in August to a high of ₹1,58,995 on August 25, and has been easing ever since.
Silver rate today
Silver is falling faster than gold. IBJA fixed it at ₹2,05,850 per kg, down 1.73%. bullions.co.in showed ₹2,10,250 per kg in the evening, down 0.80%. Over the past month silver has lost about 12.2%, more than twice gold's monthly fall. If you're buying silver coins or utensils for Dhanteras, the discount is larger than it is on gold.
Gold price before Dhanteras 2026: buy now or wait?
Dhanteras falls on Friday, November 6, 2026. Bluestone gives the muhurat as 5:28 PM to 7:26 PM. Here's how today's price compares with past Dhanteras rates (Sahi, 24K per 10g):
| Dhanteras | 24K per 10g | Today vs then |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | ₹60,746 | About 2.4x higher |
| 2024 | ₹79,143 | About 85% higher |
| 2025 (October 29) | ₹1,21,164 | About 19–21% higher |
History favours year-on-year gains. Dhanteras prices were lower than the previous year's in only four years: 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2021. 2026 will almost certainly not join that list, because prices are still about ₹23,000–25,000 per 10g above last Dhanteras.
The question that matters is what happens over the next 16 days. Nobody can call that reliably, but here's how to think about it:
- The Fed meeting (October 27–28) is the big swing event. A hawkish tone could push gold lower before Dhanteras. A surprise softening could lift it.
- Festival demand usually firms up local prices in the final week before Dhanteras, as jewellers' premiums rise.
- Staggering your purchase lowers the risk of bad timing. Buy part now and the rest on or before Dhanteras.
- Ask about advance-booking or rate-lock schemes. Many jewellers let you lock today's rate with a deposit, and some honour the lower of the booking or purchase-day rate.
If you're buying for the ritual rather than as an investment, a small coin keeps the cost manageable. Our breakdown of the 0.5 gm gold coin price and premium per gram shows what you really pay on small denominations.
What you'll actually pay: GST and making charges
None of the rates above are what you'll pay at the counter. Here's a worked example for 10g of 22K jewellery at Groww's rate, assuming a 10% making charge (actual charges vary by design and jeweller):
- Gold value: ₹1,33,910
- Making charges (10%): ₹13,391
- Subtotal: ₹1,47,301
- GST at 3%: ₹4,419
- Final bill: about ₹1,51,720
Making charges can matter more than the daily rate move. A 4-point difference in making charges on 10g costs more than today's entire ₹2,346 drop. For a fuller explanation of how jewellers quote, read our guide to Dhanteras gold price, making charges, GST and HUID.
Buying checklist: hallmark, 916 and HUID
- Check the BIS hallmark. Look for the BIS logo, the purity mark (for example 22K916) and a 6-digit alphanumeric HUID on every piece.
- Verify the HUID in the government's BIS Care app before you pay.
- Know your purities. 24K (999) is too soft for most jewellery and suits coins and bars. 22K (916) means 91.6% gold and is standard for jewellery. 18K (75% gold) is common for diamond and studded pieces.
- Avoid KDM jewellery. KDM refers to cadmium-based solder. It was banned because cadmium fumes harm artisans, and BIS-hallmarked 916 jewellery has replaced it.
- Ask for an itemised bill with gold weight, rate, making charges, stone weight and GST shown separately.
- Tola conversion: 1 tola = 11.66 grams. Some sites wrongly say 12g.
Alternatives to physical gold
If you're buying for investment rather than wearing, these routes avoid making charges altogether:
- Gold ETFs: trade on NSE/BSE like shares and need a demat account. Costs are low and pricing is transparent.
- Gold mutual funds: invest in gold ETFs and need no demat account. SIPs are possible.
- Sovereign Gold Bonds (SGBs): new tranches haven't been issued for some time, but existing bonds trade on exchanges, sometimes at a discount.
- Digital gold: easy to buy in small amounts on apps, but the buy-sell spread can be wide (note Paytm's higher quote above), and it isn't regulated the way ETFs are.
Planning a symbolic investment on Diwali itself? Check the Muhurat trading 2026 timings on NSE and BSE to buy gold ETFs in the auspicious session.
The bottom line
Gold fell sharply on October 21 on paper. Much of that was two days of moves arriving at once after the Dussehra holiday. The bigger trend is real, though: down about 2.4% in ten days, 4.7% in a month, and roughly 18% below January's record. With the Fed meeting before Dhanteras, prices could move either way. Staggered buying and keeping making charges down will protect you more than trying to time the exact bottom. We'll keep tracking the rate into the festival season on KyunTrend.