Physical bullion
Coins, rounds, and bars you actually own and can hold. Zero counterparty risk — its value doesn't rely on any company staying solvent.
Metals 101
New to precious metals? Start here.
No jargon — just clarity. If you've ever wondered what it actually means to own gold or silver, this is the plain-English walkthrough. We'll cover the difference between holding metal and holding paper, the forms it comes in, how to store it, and how the price really works.
Lesson 1
Physical vs. paper.
"Owning gold" can mean very different things. The simplest version — a coin in your hand — is also the one with the fewest middlemen. Here's how the common options compare.
ETFs
A share that tracks the metal price. Convenient to trade, but it's a fractional claim on a pooled fund — you don't hold the metal yourself.
Mining stocks
Shares in companies that dig metal out of the ground. Leveraged to the metal price — they can swing harder in both directions and carry business risk.
Futures
Contracts to buy or sell metal at a future date. A speculation tool for traders, with leverage and expiry dates — not a way to simply hold value.
Lesson 2
Forms of metal.
Physical metal comes in a few shapes, and the main trade-off is premium — how much you pay above the raw metal value — versus recognizability and divisibility.
Sovereign coins
Government-issued, with guaranteed weight and purity: the American Eagle, Canadian Maple Leaf, British Britannia, South African Krugerrand, and Austrian Philharmonic. The most widely recognized and liquid — at a slightly higher premium.
Generic rounds
Coin-shaped bullion from private mints. Not legal tender, but the same fine metal — typically the lowest premium per ounce, so you get the most metal for your money.
Bars
Rectangular blocks from 1 oz up to 100 oz and beyond. Larger bars carry a lower premium per ounce — efficient for building a position, less convenient to sell in small pieces.
90% "junk" silver
Pre-1965 U.S. dimes, quarters, and half-dollars made of 90% silver. No collectible premium — valued for their silver content and prized for easy, small-denomination divisibility.
Lesson 3
Storage & security.
Once you own metal, you have to keep it somewhere. Each option trades off control, access, and protection. Many owners diversify — a little at home, the rest stored and insured.
Home safe
Immediate access and total privacy — it's in your hands. The trade-off is that security and insurance are entirely on you.
Bank safe-deposit box
Off your property and discreet, but access is limited to bank hours, and the contents are generally not insured by the bank.
Allocated professional storage
Metal titled to you, stored in a high-security facility and fully insured. Best for larger holdings, and offered by some dealers.
Diversify
You don't have to pick just one. Keeping some metal close and the bulk insured spreads your risk and keeps options open.
Lesson 4
How pricing works.
Five terms unlock almost every price you'll see. Once they click, reading a quote is simple.
- Spot price
- The live global market price for one troy ounce of a metal, updated continuously. It's the baseline every coin and bar is priced from.
- Premium over spot
- The amount added above spot to cover minting, distribution, and the dealer's margin. A lower premium means more metal for your money — which is the whole point of buying at cost.
- Bid-ask spread
- The gap between the price a dealer buys back at (bid) and sells at (ask). A tighter spread means it costs less to trade in and out of your metal.
- Troy ounce
- The standard unit for precious metals — about 31.1 grams, slightly heavier than the everyday ounce. All bullion is priced and weighed in troy ounces.
- Fineness & karat
- Two ways of stating purity. Fineness is parts per thousand (.999 = 99.9% pure); karat is the gold scale out of 24 (24k is pure, 22k is 91.67% gold mixed with a little alloy for hardness).
One important note: Precious metals are subject to market risk and price volatility — the value of gold and silver can rise or fall, and you may lose money. Nothing on this page is investment, tax, legal, or financial advice. It is general education only. Consult a licensed professional before making any purchase or retirement-account decision.
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Decode every term you'll ever run into in the glossary, or jump straight to the live shop and browse real metal at member cost.