The conventional method of preparation of sodium tetrachloroaurate involves the addition of tetrachloroauric acid solution to sodium chloride or sodium carbonate to form a mixture. The mixture is stirred at 100 °C, and then subjected to evaporation, cooling, crystallization, and drying to obtain the orange crystals of sodium tetrachloroaurate.
However, more efficient preparation methods have been discovered recently. These are the addition of gold with sodium oxy-halogen salts and hydrochloric acid.