11
10 Best Gold IRAs of 2026
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Own physical gold and silver in your IRA—shield wealth from inflation and market chaos.
Work directly with specialists—no high-pressure sales, just clear guidance from real experts.
Discover how a Gold IRA works and how to get started with confidence.
The Best Gold IRA Companies
Silver Gold Bull
Best Rated Gold IRA
Silver Gold Bull
Initial Purchase Requirement
$0
Year Founded
2006
$0
2006
Silver Gold Bull, as its name suggests, specializes in both gold and silver investments. Other precious metals, such as platinum and palladium, are also available. There’s also a wide selection of custodians. The company claims that it will partner with the custodian of your choice.
Sealing the deal as our No. 1 pick: The company received high marks on our Consumer Sentiment Index (CSI), signaling strong customer satisfaction.
- Low gold bar spread
- No account minimum
- No chatbot option
- No disclosures on its website
American Precious Metals Exchange (APMEX)
Best Gold IRA for Flexible Custodian Partnerships
American Precious Metals Exchange (APMEX)
Initial Purchase Requirement
$2,000
Year Founded
2000
$2,000
2000
The American Precious Metals Exchange, or APMEX, partners with multiple custodians to store your gold IRA. This provides additional flexibility, allowing you to choose a custodian with terms and fees that suit your needs. Founded in 2000, APMEX is one of the older firms on this list.
- Flexible custodian partnerships
- 25 years of experience
- Minimum of $2,000 to get started
- Higher gold bar spread
Birch Gold Group
Best Gold IRA for Strong Endorsements
Birch Gold Group
Initial Purchase Requirement
$10,000
Year Founded
2003
$10,000
2003
Former U.S. Rep. Ron Paul, a well-known gold advocate, is the face of Birch Gold Group. Paul is among several conservatives to endorse this gold IRA, joining the ranks of other political figures like Stephen Bannon and Donald Trump Jr.
Where Birch Gold Group shines is in posting disclosures and fees on its website. There’s also flexibility in choosing a gold custodian. Equity Trust and Goldstar Trust are Birch’s primary custodians.
- Multiple custodian options
- Disclosure on the website
- Minimum requirement of $10,000 to fund an account
- High gold bar spread
Monetary Gold
Best Gold IRA for Broad Range of Investments
Monetary Gold
Initial Purchase Requirement
$5,000 to $10,000 (depending on custodian)
Year Founded
2000
$5,000 to $10,000 (depending on custodian)
2000
Monetary Gold has been in the business since July 2000 and offers not just gold, but silver, too. You can purchase metals directly or work with one of four custodians to roll over eligible IRA or 401(k) funds into a gold or silver IRA.
- Favorable gold bar spread
- Very accessible customer service
- Hefty minimum initial purchase
- High gold transaction fee
American Bullion
Best Gold IRA for Rollovers
American Bullion
Initial Purchase Requirement
$0
Year Founded
2009
$0
2009
Founded in 2009 during the height of the Great Recession, American Bullion emerged due to the growing interest in alternative investments. American Bullion specializes in helping those roll over existing 401(k)s or IRAs into a gold IRA.
American Bullion also offers free storage and zero custodian account fees for the first year for qualifying account holders who deposit at least $50,000 in a gold IRA account.
Now the drawback. American Bullion exclusively works with one custodian: Strata Trust.
- Relatively low gold bar spread
- Waives first-year custodian fees with a deposit of $50,000 or more
- Limited customer service
- Only one custodian option
JM Bullion
Best Gold IRA for Precious Metals
JM Bullion
Initial Purchase Requirement
$0
Year Founded
2011
$0
2011
The company does not have a minimum purchase requirement or an account minimum for gold IRAs. But it does charge a higher gold bar spread compared to many of the other providers on our list.
JM Bullion is a good choice if you’re looking for a provider with a wider number of metal options. Included in its metal lineups are gold, silver, platinum, palladium and even copper across coins, bars and rounds.
- No account minimums
- A variety of metals are available
- No live chat or chatbots
- The gold bar spread is on the higher side
Orion Metal Exchange
Best Gold IRA for Buyback Policy
Orion Metal Exchange
Initial Purchase Requirement
$10,000
Year Founded
2017
$10,000
2017
Orion sells precious metals and precious metal IRAs. The company has an in-house department that is completely focused on IRAs. This integration allows Orion to streamline setups, rollovers, storage coordination and account support.
- Competitive gold bar spread
- Multiple custodians available
- Hefty initial purchase requirement
- Offers a buyback policy
Lear Capital
Best Gold IRA for Free IRA Setup
Lear Capital
Initial Purchase Requirement
$0
Year Founded
1997
$0
1997
Lear Capital offers access to a variety of precious metals, not just gold, with no account minimums or purchase requirements. In that sense, it’s more accessible than other gold IRA companies.
When comparing the cheapest gold bar available to the trading price on COMEX, Lear Capital was on the higher end of the scale compared to other IRAs in our rankings.
- Founded in 1997
- No purchase requirements
- Higher gold bar spread
- Lower CSI score
Advantage Gold
Best Gold IRA for New Investors
Advantage Gold
Initial Purchase Requirement
$0
Year Founded
2014
$0
2014
Geared toward first-time gold IRA investors, Advantage Gold requires no account or purchase minimums. There’s also a heavy education focus on its website.
We also noticed that Advantage Gold had higher spreads on both its lowest cost gold bar product and Gold American Eagles.
- No account or purchase minimums
- Multiple custodian options
- High gold bar spread
- No live chat support
Goldco
Best for Customer Service Reviews
Goldco
Initial Purchase Requirement
$0
Year Founded
2011
$0
2011
Tom Selleck from the 1980s television series “Magnum P.I.” is the face of Goldco in its most recent advertorial video. According to its website, Goldco is also endorsed by Dennis Quaid, Chuck Norris and Shawn Ryan, too.
Goldco doesn’t charge an initial purchase requirement or require an account minimum and claims to work with all major self-directed IRA custodians.
- Works with major self-directed IRA custodians
- Leading gold coins are available
- Lower CSI score
- Platinum isn’t available
Compare the Best Gold IRAs
| Company | Forbes Advisor Rating | Initial Purchase Requirement | Learn More |
|---|---|---|---|
|
$0
|
Via partner site
| |
|
|
$2,000
|
On APMEX's Website
| |
|
|
$10,000
|
Via partner site
| |
|
|
$5,000 to $10,000
|
Via partner site
| |
|
$0
|
On American Bullion's Website
| |
|
|
$0
|
Via partner site
| |
|
|
$10,000
|
Via partner site
| |
|
|
$0
| ||
|
|
$0
| ||
|
|
$0
|
Methodology: How We Score Our Products
We evaluated 20 top rated gold IRA companies with more than 25 queries in our evaluation to determine the best gold IRA. Our team verified the data by conducting thorough online research and directly contacting companies to confirm or fill in any missing details.
We also excluded any companies with:
- A Better Business Bureau (BBB) grade lower than an “A”
- An initial purchase requirement greater than $20,000
Here are the factors we used to evaluate top gold IRA companies:
| Decision Factor | Scoring Weight | Details |
|---|---|---|
|
Company profile
|
15%
|
Number of years in the business, as well as the firm’s BBB rating.
|
|
Account minimum and transaction fees
|
20%
|
Scoring factors included initial purchase requirements, account minimums, disclosures on firm websites and gold transaction fees.
|
|
Custodian options
|
10%
|
Number of custodial partners and ability to choose your custodian
|
|
Gold spreads
|
10%
|
Evaluating the spread on the cheapest gold bar available and the spread on the Gold American Eagle
|
|
Coin availability
|
25%
|
Availability of major coins like the Gold American Eagle, Canadian Gold Maple Leaf, etc.
|
|
Customer Sentiment Index (CSI)
|
20%
|
This specialized index includes a sentiment rating incorporating customer service, the product’s user interface, fees, reliability and overall satisfaction.
|
How to Choose a Gold IRA Company
- Evaluate custodian options. A gold custodian is a company that safeguards and manages precious metals for self-directed IRAs like gold IRAs. You’ll likely want to choose a gold IRA that offers more than one custodian option so you’re able to pick between different fee structures and service specialties.
- Assess fees. Each custodian charges a fee schedule, and some may include hidden charges that add up to significant annual fees.
- Determine the markup price. One way to evaluate the best gold IRA is by examining the markup between a firm’s gold product price and the current COMEX spot price. For the Forbes Advisor best gold IRAs rankings, we assessed each company by looking at the lowest priced gold bar offered and calculating the spread from the spot price. The difference between the gold product and the COMEX price is shown in the markup.
How to Open a Gold IRA Account
You can open a gold IRA account fairly easily by following these steps.
- Choose a gold IRA. You’ll want to ensure the IRA firm has good reviews and ratings on BBB and provides clear fee structures.
- Fund your gold IRA. The next step is to fund the account. This can be done in several ways, from transferring funds from an existing IRA, rolling over funds from a 401(k) into the account, or making a cash contribution. Keep in mind that the cash contribution is subject to IRS annual limits.
- Purchase physical gold. Once your account is funded, you then direct your chosen custodian to purchase gold. Coins and bars must be IRS-approved and have 99.5% purity or higher.
- Store gold. Physical gold for a gold IRA needs to be stored in an IRS-approved, insured depository. Your custodian will likely store your gold in a facility like the IDS of Texas or the Delaware Depository.
What Is a Gold IRA?
A gold IRA is a type of IRA that allows you to hold precious metals, like gold, in a retirement account. The physical gold that you purchase through these firms is then held by one of your gold IRA firm’s custodians.
How Does a Gold IRA Work?
A gold IRA lets you buy, sell and hold gold through an individual retirement account. But you’ll never actually touch the gold because of IRS regulations.
So, you’ll set up an account with the gold IRA of your choice. Then, the gold that you buy is held by a fee-based custodian that manages the storing and tracking of your physical gold.
Alternatives to Gold IRAs
There are many alternatives to gold IRAs. It boils down to whether you’re looking for a different type of IRA, investing in alternative assets or adding gold exposure to your regular equity portfolio.
- Non-gold, self-directed IRA. You don’t need a gold IRA to house alternative assets. You can also look at self-directed IRAs (non-gold) that allow investments in real estate, cryptocurrency and more. For example, you can open a bitcoin IRA.
- Traditional or Roth IRA. Standard IRA accounts hold equities like stocks, bonds and funds. You’re unlikely to be able to hold precious metals directly in this type of account. But you can gain exposure to gold through investing in gold stocks or gold exchange-traded funds. ETFs like SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) track the price of gold bullion, for example. You can have exposure without owning physical gold or being subject to the higher fees of a gold IRA.
- Investing in alternative assets. If gold appeals to you as an alternative to equities to mitigate market volatility, then it might be worth looking at other types of investments such as real estate investment trusts (REITs) or Treasurys.
Gold IRA vs. Physical Gold: What’s Better?
Deciding between physical gold or a gold IRA comes down to your investment goals and how you plan to use the asset.
If you want liquidity and personal control, you’ll be better off owning the actual physical asset. But if your reason for investing in gold is for retirement savings, you’ll probably want to look at gold IRAs; these come with tax advantages.
| Physical Gold | Gold IRA |
|---|---|
|
Fewer fees
|
Often comes with high fees
|
|
Less safe, as it could be physically stolen
|
Relatively safe way to hold gold
|
|
Not tax-advantaged
|
Tax-advantaged
|
Read more: How to buy gold
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Is gold a good investment for retirement?
If you have a longer time horizon for retirement, like many millennials or Generation-Z investors, then you’ll likely want a more aggressive growth strategy than gold has historically provided.
During times of market turmoil one always hears talking heads espousing the benefits of investing in gold. One should never consider investing in gold, particularly if you have a long time horizon, as the long-term returns are far below those of equities.
– Robert Johnson, a chartered financial analyst, chairman and CEO of Economic Index Associates and professor of finance at the Heider College of Business at Creighton University.
Johnson further notes that while a small position in precious metals can mitigate some market volatility in the short term, it’s “prudent” for it not to be applied as a long position.
Are gold IRAs taxable?
So long as the assets (in this case, gold) remain in the account, you don’t owe taxes. It’s just like a traditional IRA in that sense. The gains from gold appreciation are subsequently tax-deferred.
Distributions from a traditional gold IRA are taxed as ordinary income. If you make an early withdrawal before age 59½, you’ll be on the hook for a 10% penalty plus income tax.
What is IRA-approved gold?
The IRS allows highly refined bullion in an IRA so long as the physical possession is held by a bank or an IRS-approved nonbank trustee. Highly refined bullion is gold in its purest form—between 99.5% and 99.99% gold; it can be in the form of rounds, bars, coins and ingots.