Disclosure: This article contains references to products from our partners. We may receive compensation if you apply or shop through links in our content. This is how we fund our indepth research . (read more)
Which are the top 4 Gold, Silver or platinum gold bars and coins to invest in?
The answer to the question “what gold bars or coins make for the best investments” is dependent on your investment goals.
Suppose you want to invest in gold bullion bars or gold coins within your gold IRA. In that case, there is a more limited selection of coins and bars that the IRS approves for purchasing within a Gold IRA plan. However, if you are looking for gold coins or bars for a general investment, the choice is broader.
Let us first look at some general principles that may apply regardless of your investment goals
Precious Metal coins have a face value and can be traded, whereas bullion bars have no face value. This means largely bars are valued at the spot price of the precious metal they are made from.
Regardless of your investment aims, we recommend having a diverse portfolio for your savings or retirement funds. Many people hold all of their money in one type of asset, for example, holding all of your savings in stocks, bonds, property, art, cash, or in a single bank account, or gold. Having all your money in a single asset type is never a great idea.
Let us say you hold all of your savings in stocks; if the stock market crashes, all of your savings could be radically reduced or wiped out; however, If you were to diversify your savings into many different areas and one area is affected badly, only a portion of your wealth may diminish.
Having some precious metals in your savings or retirement fund is a great way to diversify your portfolio, but do not even consider putting all of your savings into precious metals or any other single asset type. We typically see people investing between 25-35% of their savings in precious metals. Precious metals have always been viewed as a safe place to put your money in the long term. It has historically been an excellent hedge against inflation, which seems to be on a rapid incline currently. Each rise in inflation makes your dollars able to purchase less and can dramatically impact how well you could live in your retirement years.
I switched from talking solely about “gold and gold bars” to using the term “precious metals”. This was a deliberate change in wording. Just as we consider it highly risky to hold all of your money in one type of asset, we also believe it to be as risky to hold all of your savings in one type of sub-asset. We would recommend if investing in precious metals that you include gold, platinum, silver and palladium within your precious metals portfolio. We recommend a mix as the spot price of each of these metals varies independently and adds another layer of risk mitigation and diversity within your saving or retirement portfolio.
Within your Gold IRA, you are allowed to purchase and own specific examples of precious metal coins and bullion bars.
Coins must be a minimum finesse of .995 pure gold or.999 pure silver if you purchase silver coins.
We have found by surveying our top 5 Gold IRA providers, that the most popular gold coin purchases your IRA are the following:
American Gold Eagle Coins
The American Gold Eagle coin was produced by the US Mint in four weights ranging for one tenth of an ounce up to one ounce, all made up of 22 karat gold. The slightly lower karat make the coins tougher and more resilient to scratching.
This coin can be included with a Gold or Precious Metals IRA.
Canadian Gold Maple Leaf Coin
The Canadian Gold Maple Leaf Coin originally released in 1979 was only available in a one once coin, over the years various other years have been added. Since 2014 there have been sizes from one twentieth of an once up to 1 ounce with the addition for the first time of a one gram coin.
This coin can also be included within a gold or precious metals IRA plan.
American Silver Eagle Coins
The American Silver Eagle Coin was first released by the US Mint in 1986 and was at this point only available as a one ounce coin but its purity and weight are guaranteed by the US Mint. From 1986 to 2021, the reverse depicted a heraldic eagle with a shield, grasping an olive branch in the right talon and arrows in the left symbolizing strength and endurance. The composition of this coin is 99.9% silver.
This coin is also eligible for inclusion within a gold or precious metals IRA
The coin is only available in a one ounce coin with a diameter of 1.598 inches or 40.60mm.
American Platinum Eagle Coins
The Platinum American Eagle Coin was created in 1995 and is 99.5% pure platinum. Although there were originally available in four sizes since late 1988 there has only been the one ounce platinum eagle coin produced.
This coin is also eligible for inclusion in a Gold or precious metals IRA plan
We also researched what is the most popular gold bars and bullion bar to bar with a gold or precious metals IRA, again we reached out to the top five providers of gold IRA products and they told us that the ten ounce gold bar and the one ounce gold bars were by far the most popular gold bullion products.
10 ounce gold bars should have a fineness level of 999.9, they are available if various diameters and thicknesses and with a wide range of hallmarks. All hallmarked gold bars of the same size are similar in value.
Top Bullion Bars – 1 ounce gold and silver, 100 ounce silver, gold kilo bars, and gold and silver valcambi bars, 10 ounce gold and silver bars
If you look at the a one once gold bar category PAMP Suisse is a very popular brand and tend to have a slight premium on them on a recent check they were a negliable $15 more then the quiverlant hallmarked brands that is on a bar costs $1,900 at the time of checking.
Other popular brands include Credit Suisse and Royal Canadian.
When it comes to silver platinum and palladium bars Hallmark is a very popular bar in a variety of sizes.
