Gold price in Sierra Leonean Leone (SLE) — Sierra Leone
Today, 24-karat (999) gold costs about 3,322 SLE per gram in Sierra Leone, with 22K around 3,046 SLE and 18K near 2,494 SLE. These prices are derived from the international XAU/USD spot price, converted into Sierra Leonean Leone at Sierra Leone's parallel (black market) exchange rate.
How the gold price in SLE is calculated
Gold trades globally in US dollars per troy ounce. To express it in Sierra Leonean Leone, we take the live XAU/USD spot price, divide by 31.1035 to get the price per gram, apply the purity factor for each karat, and then convert to SLE using Sierra Leone's parallel exchange rate. Using the parallel rate matters: at the lower official central bank of Sierra Leone rate, the local gold price would look artificially cheap compared with what jewellers actually charge.
Gold karats explained (24K, 22K, 18K and more)
Karat measures purity as parts per 24. Pure 24K gold is 999 fineness; 22K is about 916 (popular for jewellery and coins), 21K is 875, 18K is 750, 14K is 585, 12K is 500 and 9K is 375. The price per gram scales directly with these factors — so 18K gold is roughly three-quarters the price of 24K. We publish all seven tiers so you can value any piece.
To value a piece by the ounce, multiply the per-gram price by 31.1035; for a kilogram bar, multiply by 1,000.
Why gold prices track the parallel market in Sierra Leone
In Sierra Leone, the Sierra Leonean Leone trades on a parallel market whenever the street price of dollars drifts away from the official rate. When a currency is under pressure, people often move savings into gold, so the local gold price and the parallel dollar rate tend to rise together. Watching gold in SLE is therefore a useful real-terms gauge of how much the Sierra Leonean Leone is losing — or holding — its value.