I tried a search and came up with zilch. So, why is white gold white and not gold colored?
I think they add nickel to it.
Upon a quick Google, I’m almost right. Apparently they use nickel, silver and palladium.
In other words, white gold is a ripoff.
Explain how it is a ripoff?
18k gold contains a higher (75%) percentage of pure gold than 14k gold (58.3%). Even white gold @ 18k is 75% gold.
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IIRC, white gold is refined down from pure gold with a white metal, usually silver. I think that yellow gold is usually mixed with red lead or some such.
If I get time to check on it, I’ll pop back in and update.
RR
No its just another color which is self evident when you buy it. Its not like they are trying to fool you. Its a nice accent to yellow gold in jewelry like my wedding ring.
You’re not going to see pure gold used in a ring; it’s too soft a metal. A ring is always going to be made of a gold alloy. White gold is one, which happens to have a different color.
I seriously doubt that lead is used. Wouldn’t that be toxic?
And palladium, while not quite as valuable as gold or platinum, is still a respectably precious substance, so it’s hardly a ripoff.
Yellow gold comes out of the ground in that colour.
Of course, it does come in a range of yellows and oranges, depending on the amount and type of impurities, but it’s still, well, gold-coloured. With some experience, it is possible to tell which area the gold is coming from by shade, shape, and size of the nuggets.
Amusing note: Much of the gold nugget jewellery in the North has been plated with 18K or better, because most natural nuggets do not have that deep bright brassy colour. I worked for one of the jewellers that didn’t do it, and you wouldnt believe the number of tourists who asked us if our nuggets were real gold.
I recently had occasion to do some ring shopping, and the salesperson at one shop explained to me that white gold and rose gold (which is more reddish) have the same actual gold content as yellow gold, but that the stuff added to the gold to make it less than 24k varies. Normally, yellow gold is apparently made by mixing silver and copper with the pure gold. To make rose gold, they increase the amount of copper and decrease the amount of silver, so the gold purity stays the same. The same goes for white gold, except they decrease the copper and possibly add other stuff like nickel.
So one consequence you’ll note is that anyone trying to sell you 24k white gold is a crook. 
Beats me, but it appears my memory was faulty, anyway. (Imagine that!) According to this site , yellow gold is alloyed with silver and copper. There is also a link to a page about white gold.
RR
Yes, but as Little Nemo pointed out, pure gold is too soft to use in rings.
RR
So much more than you ever cared to know about Gold Alloys
Doesn’t often come out of the ground in pure 24-karat chunks, either. 
Natural gold ranges anywhere from 5 or 6 k (possibly less, but not in my experience) to as much as 22 or 23 k. The average I’ve seen (and I’ve seen a LOT - buckets and pounds of nuggets and unrefined barstock) is between 10-14 k.
You’re right, stupid me. I was repeating the “ripoff” comment that I heard from this kid I met my freshman year who claimed to be a jewelry dealer.