Best Gold IRA Companies 2023

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As inflationary pressures build from historically low levels, gold IRAs are gaining interest as a way to invest in this popular store of value. A gold IRA is a self-directed retirement account in which you can buy and sell gold, silver and other precious metals. The best gold IRA companies have competitive pricing and high marks for customer service and trust. 

When choosing the best gold IRA to fit your needs, remember that you’ll need to pay a storage fee for your precious metal stash, in addition to the buying and selling costs. Some gold IRA firms also charge account management and other fees. Gold IRAs are suitable as a diversifier for an all stock and bond portfolio and are frequently considered a storage of wealth and an inflation hedge. Unlike many stocks and bonds, precious metals don’t pay any dividends, and thus lack cash flow.

Best Gold IRA Companies 2023

• Best for Transparent Pricing: Augusta Precious Metals
• Best for Customer Satisfaction: Patriot Gold Group
• Best for Customer Support: Goldco Precious Metals
• Best for Smaller Investors: Noble Gold
• Best for IRA Rollovers: Advantage Gold
• Best for Business Account Retirement Investors: Birch Gold

Best Gold IRA Companies View All Best Gold IRA Companies

• Our Top Picks
• Augusta Precious Metals
• Patriot Gold Group
• Goldco Precious Metals
• Noble Gold
• Advantage Gold
• Birch Gold
• See More (3)
• Final Verdict
• FAQs
• Methodology

Best for Transparent Pricing : Augusta Precious Metals

Key Specs

• Account Minimum: $50,000
• Fees: No annual account management fee

FREE GOLD when you open a gold IRA. ZERO fees for up to 10 years (everyone qualifies).

Why We Chose It

Augusta Precious Metals is our top choice for transparent pricing because of its fee structure. The company doesn’t charge overall management fees. In fact, the only fees you pay are account setup and depository storage fees. The lack of an annual management fee can keep ongoing costs to a minimum. 

Pros & Cons  Pros

• Transparent website and pricing

• Live chat

• Comprehensive FAQ and help center

• Money-back guarantee for new investors

Cons

• No online purchases available; must speak with a company representative

• Customer service representatives are paid on commission, which might encourage upselling

• To get complete details, you need to speak with a representative

• Only gold and silver, no additional metals

Overview

Augusta Precious Metals was founded in 2012 by Isaac Nuriani, who continues as the current CEO. The company specializes in silver and gold coins and bars for your IRA. Augusta warrants that all of its metals are 99.0+% pure except the American Gold Eagle coin, which is 91.6% pure. Investors can access the firm's pricing strategy online.  

Prices are set internally, starting with a base price or melt value plus a margin. The prices are continually changing based upon many factors including supply, demand, perceived value, and economic conditions. Augusta is so confident of its pricing that the company encourages investors to compare their prices with other dealers.  New investors have seven days to reverse a transaction. After the initial transaction, purchases and sales are final. For specific fee details, you’ll need to contact the company, including setup and annual storage fees.  

Augusta offers well regarded customer service with high marks from the major review sites. The Better Business Bureau and ConsumerAffairs each report excellent aggregate reviews. Augusta’s Gold IRA provides an extensive frequently asked questions section and a user-friendly website. The main drawback is the lack of online trading. 

Best for Customer Satisfaction : Patriot Gold Group

Key Specs

• Account Minimum: $25,000 for IRA, $10,000 for cash account
• Fees: Zero management fee for accounts worth more than $100,000; $180 per year for accounts worth less than $100,000

Why We Chose It

The Patriot Gold Group makes our list of gold IRA providers because it delivers direct-to-consumer pricing, saving investors typical middle-man fees, all while providing top-notch customer service and consumer satisfaction.

Pros & Cons  Pros

• Competitive wholesale pricing

• High rankings from consumer review websites

• Direct access to owners

• Superb customer service

Cons

• Limited website information

• Must speak with customer service for additional features and information

• Website is overly promotional and sales-oriented

• No FAQ or online help center

Overview 

Founded in 2016, Patriot Gold is highly regarded by clients as demonstrated by its A+ BBB ranking and excellent Trust Pilot and Consumer Affairs ratings. Clients work directly with the firm’s owners for guidance with the Gold IRA. With decades of combined precious metals experience, Patriot's senior partners hail from the largest precious metals firms. The company seeks to improve the gold IRA investing experience by providing education and top level customer service. 

The Patriot Gold Group offers gold and precious metals IRAs. There are various promotions listed on the website. Although you can sign up online, there’s limited detail about the available assets and pricing. For more comprehensive information, you’ll need to speak with a customer service representative.

Patriot Gold Group offers access to gold and precious metals investing with secure vault storage across the U.S. The investor direct wholesale fees yield competitive pricing at Patriot Gold Group. Setup is fast and directed by your customer service representative. One drawback that is common among most gold IRA firms is that you’ll need to talk with a representative during weekday hours for fees and account details.

Best for Customer Support : Goldco Precious Metals

Key Specs

• Account Minimum: $25,000
• Fees: $260 for first year; $180 subsequent years

Why We Chose It

Goldco Precious Metals is our top choice for customer support because of its “white glove” customer service that provides security and support for new and existing customers.

Pros & Cons  Pros

• Wide range of educational resources

• Long history of service, since 2006

• Direct-to-consumer pricing

• 10% free silver promotion with $100,000 investment

Cons

• High minimum investment

• High initial annual management fee

• Must speak with representative for fee breakdown

Overview 

Founded in 2006, Goldco’s cache comes from many well-known supporters, listed on the website. The Gold IRA company sells precious metals directly to the consumer and is known for its excellent customer service. We appreciate the list of available coins on the website, including each coin's history and details. In addition to gold and silver coins and bars, Goldco also offers platinum and palladium.

The excellent customer service begins with direct access to a specialist who guides users through every step of the process. The vast resources provide a thorough education of precious metals investing. Goldco offers e-books, YouTube videos, and articles on a vast array of investing topics. 

Goldco’s reviews on major websites are high, including an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau. Trustpilot’s 1,000+ reviews reward the firm with a nearly perfect score. Goldco reviewers on ConsumerAffairs continue the excellent review trend as well. Similar to most gold IRA firms, to get complete details about the offer, you’ll need to talk with a customer service representative. The only flaw in the firm’s customer service is the AI chat bot, which lacks the human touch. 

Best for Smaller Investors : Noble Gold

Key Specs

• Account Minimum: $2,000
• Fees: $80 per year

Why We Chose It

For smaller investors, the ultra-low $2,000 investment minimum and administrative fee separates Noble Gold from many higher minimum gold IRA providers. The educational portal also ranks among the best with plentiful  articles, downloadable pdfs, and Youtube videos.

Pros & Cons  Pros

• Reasonable fees

• Low minimum

• Gold, silver, palladium, and platinum

• Robust educational resources

Cons

• Fees can be a high percentage of small accounts

• Relatively newer platform

Overview

Founded in 2016, Noble Gold is a welcome addition to the gold IRA market, especially for small investors. Noble Gold’s $2,000 minimum makes this gold IRA provider attractive to new and smaller gold buyers. The company offers gold and silver IRAs with access to bars and coins. Investors can also buy and sell platinum and palladium at Noble. The company has relationships with various precious metals buyers and sellers, which affords the investor competitive pricing. The “no-questions-asked” buy-back program is good for those who want the opportunity to easily sell their precious metals. 

The speedy online account registration is appropriate for digitally savvy investors who like the convenience of online investing. For additional questions, it’s easy to contact a specialist, and downloadable educational guides answer many general gold and precious metals questions as well as Noble-specific questions.

In addition to a low minimum initial investment, the annual fee and storage costs are in the lower tier. Another cost benefit: Noble doesn’t charge an initial setup fee. Secure storage is $150 per year, which becomes a smaller percent of your total investment value as your gold portfolio grows. The robust learning portal includes several comprehensive, educational PDFs and a vast article library with general investment and precious metals articles. The Noble Gold YouTube channel is replete with short explainer videos about gold and general investing topics. 

ConsumerAffairs and BBB present plentiful positive reviews and high ratings. The BBB awards Noble Gold Investments with an A+ rating and near perfect customer review scores. 

Best for IRA Rollovers : Advantage Gold

Key Specs

• Account Minimum: $25,000
• Fees: $80 per year administrative fee

Why We Chose It

We selected Advantage Gold as the best choice for IRA rollovers because of its specialized team of IRA rollover specialists. Customers seem to appreciate the patient and informative customer service representatives, who aren’t pushy or overly promotional. 

Pros & Cons  Pros

• Gold, silver, platinum and palladium available

• Reasonable annual administrative fee

• Can sign up online with direct links on the website

• Education-first user experience

Cons

• For specific pricing, you’ll need to contact customer service

• Among the newer gold IRA companies

Overview 

Advantage Gold was founded in 2014 by Adam Baratta and Kiril Zagalsky. The Advantage Gold IRA homepage impresses with a clear educational focus, including detailed charts and graphs. This stands out against other overly promotional Gold IRA websites. The firm makes a case for gold and explains the various ways to invest in gold and other precious metals within an IRA. Anyone can access educational resources including articles, videos, and downloadable guides. 

Investors can open a new Gold IRA online by completing a brief sign-up form. Those with a rollover can contact the company through the 800 phone number. The fees are comparable with competitors, with a $50 initial setup charge, an $80 annual management fee, and a $100 storage fee. 

Gold is stored with the respected STRATA Trust Company and Equity Trust Company. STRATA, founded in 2008 is a subsidiary of Horizon Bank, established in 1905. Advantage’s overall website focuses on education first, without the salesy focus of many competitors. Advantage has an A+ Better Business Bureau rating and a near perfect customer review score. TrustPilot also reveals over 1,400 superb near-5-star ratings.

Best for Business Account Retirement Investors : Birch Gold

Key Specs

• Account Minimum: $10,000
• Fees: $100 per year administrative fee

Why We Chose It

Birch Gold is our top choice for business account retirement investors because of its wide range of products that includes two types of business retirement accounts, SEP and SIMPLE IRAs. The company also does a fine job of explaining nearly every key aspect of these accounts, including setup, storage, and annual administrative fees. 

Pros & Cons  Pros

• Gold, silver, palladium, and platinum available

• Choice of two storage providers, including Brinks

• Offers SIMPLE and SEP business IRAs 

• Great user experience and easy-to-access website

Cons

• Lacks broad investing blog and explainer articles

• Must call company for buy and sell pricing information

Overview

Founded in 2003, Birch Gold has a staff of former wealth managers, financial advisors, and commodity brokers, ensuring that you’ll receive knowledgeable customer service. The availability of two types of business retirement accounts, SEP and SIMPLE IRAs, in addition to the typical traditional, Roth, and rollover options, opens the door of precious metals investing to a wide range of consumers. The $10,000 minimum, while not the lowest, is in the middle range for gold IRA companies. Additionally, Birch serves all 50 U.S. states and offers precious metals storage with two providers. 

The fees include the annual administrative fee of $100 per year, a one time $50 setup fee and an annual storage fee of $100 per year. This is in the range of most competitors, although there is at least one firm without an annual administrative fee. As your account grows, the fees will become a smaller percent of your account's value. 

Investors seeking broader diversification can add silver, palladium, and platinum to their gold IRA. All available precious metal coins are listed directly on the website. Another benefit to the Birch Gold IRA is the opportunity to remain with the same Birch Gold specialist. The company offers detailed information about most facets of precious metals investing, including tax, storage, and IRA basics. Birch Gold also offers an informational newsletter and a YouTube channel. Unlike some competitor gold IRA firms, Birch lacks a blog and diversified investing articles.  

The Birch Gold IRA, like all of those on our best gold IRA list, has an A+ BBB ranking and top marks on TrustPilot and ConsumerAffairs review websites.

Final Verdict

When choosing the best gold IRA company that fits your needs, the details matter. You’ll need to phone every company of interest to get specific pricing information, as no provider provides these details on its website. For more computer-savvy investors, seek out a precious metals retirement company with online sign-up. Base your decision on your own research and comparisons and less on testimonials. 

Remember that precious metals are commodities and can be interchangeable, so company features matter. Choose the best gold IRA company for you based on factors like price, service, transparency, and investment minimums.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What Is a Gold IRA?

A gold IRA is a self-directed retirement account created to own precious metals. Like a traditional IRA, you can make pre-tax contributions and avoid taxation until the metals are withdrawn from the IRA in retirement. Contribution limits are the same in all gold and traditional IRAs. Precious metals IRAs require the assets to be stored offsite in a specialty storage depository. Gold IRAs must abide by IRS guidelines including parameters for quality of precious metals and gold IRAs. 

Should I Buy Gold Bullion or Gold Coins?

Gold bullion is at least 99.5% pure and is in the form of bars or ingots. Bullion might be kept as a reserve asset by governments and central banks. Gold bullion is typically lower cost per ounce than gold coins. In contrast, gold coins are usually designed by a government approved mint and stamped with a legal tender face value. Coins are minted with a date, face value, and country. Whether you prefer gold bullion or coins depends upon your goals.

Gold bullion doesn’t have a face value and a limited number of bars can be stored in a home safe or safe deposit box. You can also pay to store bullion in an external depository. Buying gold bars is an easy way to build a large gold portfolio. You’ll also pay less per ounce for bullion than for coins. Bullion is easy to value, buy and sell due to its consistency. Coins offer variety in weight and style. Coins are also easier to store at home, which avoids the annual storage fee. Depending upon supply, demand, design and other factors, coins have the potential for appreciation above the intrinsic value of the gold content. Investing in gold bullion is a clear investment in the gold precious metal, while buying coins incorporates the value of gold plus the artistry and appreciation potential of gold coins.

What Is the Difference Between Investing in Gold and Investing in Cryptocurrency? 

Gold and cryptocurrency are two distinct types of investments. Gold is a physical commodity that is mined and sold as coins or bars. Gold bullion is used as a reserve currency for many governments. Although gold coins have a face value, they are rarely used as legal tender. Cryptocurrency is called digital currency, and exists on the blockchain in a computerized ledger. You cannot hold cryptocurrency in your hand. Both gold and cryptocurrency are ultimately valued based upon market supply and demand.

The price of cryptocurrency is typically more volatile than that of gold. Gold has a well established system for trading, weighing, and tracking. Both gold and cryptocurrency are difficult to counterfeit. Both gold and cryptocurrency are investment assets, but due to its long history, gold has greater utility. Cryptocurrency can only be bought online, and it is stored in a digital wallet. Gold is stored in an external secure depository or home safe or bank safe deposit box. They are two completely different types of investments.  

Methodology

There are several factors to consider when choosing the right gold IRA company to fit your needs. Because your future financial security is at stake, the reputation and integrity of the company you entrust to facilitate your gold purchase should be foremost among them. In addition to consumer ratings, we reviewed several of the top gold IRA companies based on their range of products, fees, user experience, and educational resources to determine our list of the top companies in the industry.

Article Sources

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2. Augusta Precious Metals. "Learn More About Physical Gold and Silver in an IRA." 

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4. Augusta Precious Metals. "You Choose Your IRA Eligible Cons." 

5. Augusta Precious metals. "Augusta Transaction Agreement," Page 3. 

6. ConsumerAffairs "Augusta Precious Metals." 

7. Better Business Bureau. "Augusta Precious Metals."  

8. Patriot Gold Group. "Free Investing Kit." 

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15. Crunchbase. "Goldco." 

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21. Crunchbase. "Advantage Gold." 

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25. TrustPilot "Advantage Gold." 

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29. World Gold Council. "Gold Demand Trends Full Year 2022."