The spot price loads from our daily price page; you can overwrite it. Results are arithmetic on your inputs, not a forecast or advice. Fees are assumed to be paid from cash outside the metal position.
How to read the results
Gold purchased is the amount you move divided by the price you actually pay, which is spot plus the dealer's spread. A 4% spread on $20,000 means about $769 goes to the dealer and $19,231 buys metal.
Break-even is the figure to focus on. It tells you how far the gold price has to rise, in total and per year, before selling would return what you put in after the spread, the fees and the buyback discount. On a ten-year hold with typical costs the annual hurdle is small. On a two-year hold it is not, which is why a Gold IRA suits long holding periods.
Average cost of ownership spreads every cost over the years held and expresses it as a percentage of the amount invested. Compare it with the 0.1% to 0.4% expense ratio of a gold ETF to see what you are paying for allocated physical metal.
What changes the answer most
- The spread. Moving from a 4% to an 8% spread on $50,000 costs about $1,800 more on day one. Standard bullion coins and bars carry the lowest spreads.
- Account size. Flat fees of $275 are 1.4% of a $20,000 account and 0.28% of a $100,000 account.
- Holding period. One-time costs shrink per year the longer you hold.
- The buyback price. A dealer who buys back at spot instead of 2% below spot is worth $1,000 on a $50,000 position.
More detail: Gold IRA fees explained and company comparison.