Rhodium: the metal nobody knows about but is worth 10 times more than gold

Did you know there’s a metal more expensive than gold that almost no one talks about? It’s called rhodium, and in 2023 it reached $28,775 per troy ounce, while gold was only around $1,800.

What is it and where is it used?

Rhodium is a silver-colored metal that is ultra-resistant to corrosion. It’s almost invisible in our daily lives but is present in:

• Car catalytic converters (reducing pollutant emissions)
• Luxury jewelry (giving gemstones that extra shine)
• Sustainable technologies and industrial applications

The problem: it’s almost impossible to find

There are no mines that produce pure rhodium. It only appears as a byproduct when extracting platinum and palladium, mainly in South Africa. Its concentration in the Earth’s crust is tiny: less than 0.001 grams per ton of rock.

That explains why it costs so much. The supply is limited, demand is rising (especially for green technologies), and the market is aware of this. While gold prices are relatively predictable, rhodium prices are volatile and depend entirely on how much platinum other countries decide to extract.

The result? A metal that remains more than twice as expensive as gold and will continue to be so as long as the automotive industry relies on it to meet environmental standards.