*We (HowToInvestGold.com) may receive a referral fee from some of the companies featured in this article. This is not a financial advice article. Refer to a professional for financial advice.
A recession can be a difficult time for anyone, but it can be especially challenging for those who are trying to protect their wealth and retirement savings. First and foremost, it’s important to have a diversified investment portfolio.
This means not putting all of your eggs in one basket, but rather spreading your investments out across a variety of different assets. This can include stocks, bonds, real estate, and even precious metals like gold or silver. By diversifying your portfolio, you can reduce the overall risk of your investments and protect yourself from potential losses.
Why Is Gold a Good Investment?
Gold is often considered a good investment because it is a valuable commodity that has been sought after for centuries. It is considered a store of value and a proven hedge against inflation.
It can protect your savings in case of a recession and is an excellent diversifier for an investment portfolio because it is not highly correlated with other assets such as stocks and bonds.
Gold also has a number of industrial uses, which can contribute to its value. However, like any investment, there are also risks associated with investing in gold. For example, the price of gold can be volatile but history has shown a 30-year growth of 360%.
What Is a Gold IRA?
When it comes to protecting your retirement account against market volatility, inflation, and a pending recession, a gold IRA or precious metals IRA may be one of the best options at your disposal.
A gold IRA is a type of Individual Retirement Account (IRA) that allows the account holder to hold physical gold as part of their investment portfolio. With a gold IRA, investors can invest in physical gold, silver, platinum, and palladium, in the form of coins or bars, in addition to more traditional investment assets like stocks and bonds.
The primary benefit of a gold IRA is that the physical gold it holds provides a hedge against inflation and market volatility, as the value of precious metals tends to increase during times of economic uncertainty. And just like traditional IRAs, a gold IRA allows pre-tax contributions, meaning that the investment earnings can accumulate tax-deferred.
Opening up a precious metals IRA account has many benefits and can help you:
- Hedge against a weaker dollar and increasing inflation
- Limit exposure to economic uncertainty
- Mitigate the effects of geopolitical instability
- Diminish negative fallout from the coronavirus economic crisis
- Diversify your portfolio
- Take real ownership of your financial future
Best Gold IRA Companies in 2023 (For IRA Investments and Regular Purchases)
In this article, HowToInvestGold.com has reviewed and rated the top 5 precious metals IRA companies in the industry to help you identify the best option to protect, secure, and grow your wealth in the coming year.
We have rated each precious metals company on a variety of factors including BBB/BCA ratings and complaints, customer reviews, annual fees, storage options, custodians, precious metals selection, promotions, and buy-back programs.
Let’s start with our #1 recommendation of a gold IRA company, Goldco.
#1. Goldco: Best Overall Gold IRA Company
Goldco is our top choice for the best gold IRA company in the United States.
With almost two decades in the business and close to a spotless track record, we believe that the company has earned its spot as the leading and most trusted provider of precious metals IRAs in the US.
Founded by Trevor Gerszt in 2011, Goldco’s mission is to help Americans protect and secure their retirement savings accounts from stock market volatility and inflation with the use of precious metals, which they have successfully been doing for 16 years now.
The company’s specialty has always been the sale and delivery of premium gold and silver coins that are IRA-approved and in helping investors identify which precious metals are right for them.
Goldco offers unmatched customer service and their Precious Metals Specialists make it a seamless process to start a new gold IRA account, where they hold your hand pretty much from start to finish.
Their low annual fees, A+ rating by the Better Business Bureau and AAA rating by the Business Consumer Alliance and thousands of 5 star reviews on popular watchdog sites, makes them the best and safest option to open up your gold IRA account.
Additionally, Goldco was honored as the Company of the Year in the 2021 American Business Awards. And was also endorsed by the talk show host and conservative political commentator Sean Hannity and American radio personality Stew Peters.
They support the company’s growth initiatives to educate people about the benefits of buying gold and silver, as well as protecting their IRA, 401(k), TSP, or pension accounts with physical precious metals.
Plus, Goldco offers the highest buy-back guarantee on the market in case you want to liquidate your precious metals.
Reasons To Choose Goldco As Your Precious Metals Company
To give you a quick overview, here are reasons why we recommend you choose Goldco as your precious metals company:
- You can get $10,000 or more in FREE silver (if opening up a qualifying IRA)
- Unmatched customer service
- No high pressure sales tactics
- Outstanding ratings & customer reviews
- Free and easy IRA & 401(k) rollovers
- A+ BBB rating and AAA BCA rating
- Highest buy-back guarantee in the industry
- Free storage for non-IRA precious metals
- 2021 Company of the Year Award
Goldco’s Recent Verified Customer Reviews
As mentioned, customers can’t stop giving praise to Goldco and their knowledgeable Precious Metals Specialists.
Here is a sample of some recent, verified customer reviews:
Goldco Fees And Investment Minimums
| Annual Fees | $180 |
| Storage Fees | $100 (Non-Segregated / $150 (Segregated) |
| Investment Minimums Gold IRA | $25,000 |
| Investment Minimums Cash Deals | $3,5000 |
| Preferred Custodian | Equity Trust |
For more information, read the full Goldco review.
#2. Augusta Precious Metals: Money Magazine’s Best Gold IRA
Next on our list of the best gold IRA companies comes Augusta Precious Metals. The company truly lives up to being the most trusted gold IRA company in the US.
Since opening its doors in 2012, the company has an excellent track record with thousands of top ratings.
They have an A+ BBB rating and a AAA rating with the BCA, and Augusta Precious Metals has also been named:
- “Most-Trusted Gold IRA Company” by IRA Gold Advisor,
- “Best Overall” Gold IRA Company in 2022 by Money Magazine
- and received “Best of TrustLink” 6 years in a row.
Then there’s the fact that Augusta is endorsed by the hall-of-fame quarterback and multimillionaire Joe Montana. He asked his personal financial team to find the best gold IRA company, and they found Augusta for him.
He attended the company’s unique one-on-one web conference and became a customer. Joe loved the company’s mission so much that he also became the company’s paid corporate ambassador.
What also stands out is that the company offers the most unique approach to customer education via its personal one-on-one web conferences designed by on-staff Harvard-trained economist Devlyn Steele.
Overall, Augusta Precious Metals has a well-oiled process for making your gold IRA rollover or transfer stress-free and easy together with IRA Specialists you can trust.
Reasons To Choose Augusta As Your Precious Metals Company
Here are some reasons to choose Augusta as your precious metals company:
- Thousands of top ratings — plus hundreds of top reviews with the BBB, BCA, TrustLink, and others
- Unique, free one-on-one educational web conference designed by Augusta’s on-staff, Harvard-trained economist
- Endorsed by hall of fame quarterback and multimillionaire Joe Montana and his personal financial team
- Up to 10 years of fees reimbursed to your IRA in premium silver coins (ask what you qualify for)
- Educational, no-pressure sales approach
- Easy and stress-free IRA setup, with a streamlined process
- Buy-back program
Augusta Precious Metals Fees And Investment Minimums
| Annual Fees | $0 For Up to 10 Years (Every Customer Qualifies) |
| Storage Fees | $100 (Non-Segregated / $150 (Segregated) |
| Investment Minimums Gold IRA | $50,000 |
| Investment Minimums Cash Deals | $50,000 |
| Preferred Custodian | Equity Trust |
For more details, read the full Augusta Precious Metals review.
#3. American Hartford Gold: Most Personalized Gold IRA
Third, on the list of our best gold IRA companies of 2023 comes American Hartford Gold. The company is the highest-reviewed gold dealer on the Better Business Bureau and a family-run business that puts its clients at the forefront.
Despite “only” being in business since 2016, the California-based company has processed over $1 billion in transactions. A massive figure that is corroborated by the sheer amount of reviews they have compared to even some of their top competitors.
American Hartford Gold’s President Scott Gerlis comes from a family with an interest in numismatics, coin collecting, and the like.
We don’t need to tell you that such a background is going to go a long way when it comes to how products are treated, and indeed, as we gloss over the inventory, we’ll see that Gerlis’ claims of being a coin aficionado are very much valid.
The company’s personalized customer support, 100% free IRA rollover, transparent and competitive fee structure, a remarkable palette of gold and silver bullion, plus the fact that they are rare coin collectors and enthusiasts make them a great choice of gold IRA company.
Additionally, the company is ranked #1 for Inc 5000 in the Precious Metals Vertical and is also endorsed by longtime Fox News television host and political commentator Bill O’ Reilly. Not to forget, “America’s Mayor” and Donald Trump’s former lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, is also a client and sponsor of American Hartford Gold.
Reasons To Choose American Hartford Gold As Your Precious Metals Company
Here are some reasons to choose American Hartford Gold as your precious metals company:
- 100% free IRA rollover – free maintenance storage & insurance for up to 3 years
- Remarkable palette of gold and silver bullion, especially for a gold IRA company
- Transparent and competitive fee structure
- Family oriented company
- An exceptional amount of positive reviews
- Price match guarantee and buyback commitment
- $1,500 in free silver
- Ranked #1 for Inc 5000 in the precious metals vertical
- Endorsed by Bill O’ Reilly, longtime Fox News television host and political commentator
- “America’s Mayor” and Donald Trump’s former lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, is a client and sponsor of American Hartford Gold
- Free insured shipping
American Hartford Gold Fees And Investment Minimums
| Annual Fees | $0 (First Year With a Minimum Account Purchase of $50,000) |
| Storage Fees | $100 (Non-Segregated / $150 (Segregated) |
| Investment Minimums Gold IRA | $10,000 |
| Investment Minimums Cash Deals | $5,000 |
| Preferred Custodian | Equity Trust |
For more details, read the full American Hartford Gold review.
#4. Birch Gold Group: The Gold IRA Specialist
Fourth on our list of the best gold IRA companies comes Birch Gold Group.
Founded in 2003 and headquartered in Burbank, California, Birch Gold Group’s executive team of former wealth managers, financial advisors, and commodity brokers have helped thousands of Americans diversify their savings with physical precious metals, including gold, silver, platinum, and palladium.
Like the previous gold IRA companies, Birch Gold Group has an A+ rating with the BBB and an AAA rating with the BCA.
They’ve also managed to earn thousands of 5-star reviews, with more than 12,000 clients across the US.
The company’s educational, no-pressure sales approach and easy and stress-free gold IRA setup, makes them an excellent choice for a gold IRA company.
In addition, Birch Gold Group has been endorsed by Ben Shapiro and featured regularly in major news and media outlets.
This partnership allows the public to learn more about their retirement savings options since Mr. Shapiro’s thoughts are that, “it is foolish not to have some assets in the one area of human activity that has never been worth zero.”
Mr. Shapiro even helped bring to the fore the option to rollover an IRA or eligible 401(k) into an IRA backed by physical gold and silver.
Also, Birch waives all setup fees for new accounts over $50,000, plus shipping fees on all cash purchases of $10,000 and more.
Plus, their buy-back program makes it easy to liquidate your metals when it is time to sell.
Reasons To Choose Birch As Your Precious Metals Company
Here are some reasons for choosing Birch Gold Group as your precious metals company:
- With 20 years in business, BGG is an established gold IRA company
- A+ rating by the BBB and AAA rating by the BCA
- Great customer reviews
- Educational, no-pressure sales approach
- Easy gold IRA setup
- $10,000 investment minimum (less than most competitors)
- Waives shipping fees on all cash purchases
- Offers a buy-back program
- On-going promotions
Birch Gold Group Fees And Investment Minimums
| Annual Fees | $150 |
| Storage Fees | $100 (Non-Segregated / $150 (Segregated) |
| Investment Minimums Gold IRA | $10,000 |
| Investment Minimums Cash Deals | $10,000 |
| Preferred Custodian | Equity Trust |
For more information, read the full Birch Gold Group review.
#5. Noble Gold Investments: Most Personalized Service
Last but not least on our list of best gold IRA companies is Noble Gold Investments.
Making a name for yourself in the precious metals retirement investment sphere in just 5 years is not easy. And making a good name is that much harder, but Noble Gold Investments has done just that. Despite their relative freshness as a brand, they consistently pop up as one of the top gold IRA companies available.
Noble Gold, based in Pasadena, California was established in 2017. Just like the other precious metals companies in this article, they focus on shielding Americans’ retirement savings from any number of economic calamities.
The company has an A+ rating with the BBB and an AA rating with the BCA, as well as remarkable customer reviews, practically spotless despite being in business for only 5 years.
They also offer the best minimum IRA requirements in the sector, with $2,000 to open an IRA and a $5,000 rollover minimum.
Additionally, one of the stronger points of the company is the availability of IRA-eligible coins in numerous denominations. Likely due to their focus on precious metals dealership, they are able to offer IRA-eligible bullion in denominations that you simply will not find with most other gold IRA companies.
Reasons To Choose Noble Gold Investments As Your Alternative Assets Company
Here are some reasons why we recommend choosing Noble Gold as your alternative assets company:
- One of the best minimum IRA requirements in the sector, with $2,000 to open an IRA and a $5,000 rollover minimum
- Joined by a low and transparent annual custodial fee of $80 and an annual storage fee of $150
- A+ rating with the BBB and AA rating by the BCA
- Remarkable customer reviews and reputation, practically spotless despite being in business for only 5 years
- A website and company that functions just as strongly as a gold IRA provider as it does a precious metals dealer
Noble Gold Fees And Investment Minimums
| Annual Fees | $80 |
| Storage Fees | $100 (Non-Segregated / $150 (Segregated) |
| Investment Minimums Gold IRA | $2,000 |
| Investment Minimums Cash Deals | $2,000 |
| Preferred Custodian | Equity Trust |
For more details, read the full Noble Gold Investment review.
Gold And Precious Metals IRA FAQs
Even though you have come this far to look for the best gold IRA companies to open a gold IRA account with, you may still have questions.
To hopefully answer all of them, we have listed some common questions and answers about gold IRAs.
What Are the Different Types Of Self-Directed Gold IRA?
There are 2 types of gold IRAs available:
1) Traditional-Based Gold IRA
With a traditional IRA, the contributions you make are tax-deductible (subject to income limitations).
When you start taking distributions from your gold IRA, the amounts withdrawn are taxable as ordinary income. And you can start taking distributions without penalty when you are age 59½.
Traditional IRAs may be good choices for those individuals who anticipate finding themselves in a lower tax bracket once they reach retirement.
That way, they can realize tax benefits from their contributions during higher-bracket working years and pay taxes at a lower rate on withdrawals once they retire.
Note that a traditional IRA – including a traditional gold IRA – comes with a required minimum distribution (RMD) mandate.
This means that you must begin taking annual distributions from your IRA starting at the age of 72.
2) Roth-Based Gold IRA
In contrast to a traditional IRA, with a Roth gold IRA, the contributions you make are not tax-deductible.
This means there is no tax benefit generated from your account contributions that you will enjoy during your working years.
However, when you make withdrawals from your Roth IRA, you do not have to pay taxes on the distributions as you do with a traditional IRA.
Roth IRAs may be a prudent account choice for those individuals who believe the tax bracket they are in during their working years is lower than the one they’ll be in once they retire.
They will not receive a tax benefit from their contributions while they are still working, but they won’t pay taxes at all on their withdrawals during retirement when they are in a higher tax bracket.
Additionally, there is no required minimum distribution feature for a Roth IRA.
Something else to be aware of: As of 2022, your modified adjusted gross income must be less than $144,000 in order to contribute to a Roth IRA.
Please be aware that the guidelines presented here for both traditional and Roth IRAs are very broad.
Before choosing between a traditional and Roth IRA, you should consult with your tax advisor to ensure that you are making the best decision on behalf of your own particular tax profile.
What About Taxes?
By investing in a gold IRA, you will diversify your retirement portfolio on a tax-deferred basis and maintain the tax preferential treatment.
For this reason, transferring or rolling over a portion of your existing IRA account into a gold IRA will not trigger any tax implications.
In other words, you do not have to pay taxes on your contributions until you withdraw them.
However, there are limitations on how much you can contribute to these accounts each year, but these limits can change year to year. Your gold IRA company will be updated on these rules.
What Are the Fees Associated With a Gold IRA?
A precious metals IRA or gold IRA often comes with higher fees than a traditional or Roth IRA that invests solely in paper assets. Typically, there are 3 sets of fees charged with a gold IRA:
1) Account Setup Fee
The one-time account setup fee is around $50 to $100. Additionally, some companies waive this fee if the account size is big enough.
To give you two examples, Augusta Precious Metals has a promotion where they waive all fees up to 10 years of fees (for all customers).
And Birch Gold Group waives all setup fees for new accounts over $50,000, plus shipping fees on all cash purchases of $10,000 and more.
2) Admin/Custodial Fee
Except for the setup fee, there is also an annual administrative or custodial fee, ranging from $80 to $150 depending on the account’s size.
3) Storage Fee
Lastly, storage fees are also charged by the depository ranging from $100 to $150 annually, depending on the amount of gold being stored. Plus, if you prefer segregated storage or non-segregated storage.
Is It Best to Buy Gold Bars Or Gold Coins?
When purchasing gold for your gold IRA, you can choose between bullion bars and sovereign coins.
The IRS has established guidelines for metal “fineness” standards to determine whether gold or silver in the form of bullion bars or coins is acceptable for a gold IRA.
This means that the IRS only allows specific gold and silver coins and bars, such as:
- Gold or Silver American Eagles
- Gold or Silver American Eagles (Proof coins)
- Gold or Silver American Buffalos
- Gold or Silver Canadian Maple Leafs
- Gold or Silver Austrian Philharmonics
- Silver America the Beautiful Coins
- Gold or Silver Bullion Bars
- American Silver Eagles
- And more.
No matter what bullion or coins you choose, a reliable gold IRA company knows what is and what is not acceptable for a gold IRA.
While both are essentially valued in the same way—per ounce based on the spot price of gold, coins may be easier to trade and tend to sell at higher premiums than bullion bars.
Besides, the markups are often higher on small bullion bars. And large bars might be more suited for institutional investors.
All the gold IRA companies (listed above) offer favorable buy-back programs for both coins and bullion.
How do I Fund my Gold IRA?
Opening a gold IRA is great, but having it funded with an existing plan is even better. There are several types of retirement accounts that allow you to roll over funds into a gold IRA, including traditional IRAs, Roth IRAs, SEP IRAs, and SIMPLE IRAs.
All gold IRA companies listed in this article can assist with performing rollovers of various kinds, including:
- Full or partial rollover of a 401(k) or similar retirement account
- Full or partial rollover of a 401(k) or similar inactive retirement account
- Rollovers of less common plans and accounts, such as SIMPLE or SEP IRA
- Transfers of all of the above
In general, any retirement account that allows for the rollover of funds into a different type of IRA can be rolled over into a gold IRA.
When working with any of these gold IRA companies, rollovers are not as troubling as they may seem.
The rollover is handled by a specialist on behalf of the custodian company, as well as any administration that the gold IRA company may employ.
Also, the new gold IRA can be funded by several IRAs or receive only part of the funds that would go into another IRA.
Where Should I Store the Gold in My IRA?
IRS regulation has mandated that the bullion in your IRA rests with a certified depository, an entity separate from the custodian who will manage your daily paperwork.
Needless to say, you cannot keep your IRA gold in a home safe, safety deposit box, or under the mattress.
Most gold IRA companies partner with different custodians that are carefully vetted and will make sure your metals are stored safely.
But if none of them are what you find suitable, you can introduce a depository of your own to the mix, provided it is compliant with regulations.
For example, Brink’s, the Delaware Depository, and IDS are fairly similar. While only IDS among the three offers segregated storage, all three have a similar set of bonuses:
- A standalone facility where the bullion is processed
- Both the facility and its vaults are managed using the best technology available to the depository
- They have security measures like high-defense vaults and electronic systems
- Adding to that, their assets are insured with a multi-fold policy
Generally, the company handles transportation logistics as well as insurance coverage.
Note: It is up to you to confirm that any company you invest with has all the required licenses, registrations, insurance, and bonds to protect your investment. So, ask for verification of those licenses and other information.
When Can I Take Distributions?
If you are at the qualified age to start getting disbursements from your account (usually 59 ½ ), you can choose to take funds in cash value. Or you can have the actual metals shipped to you directly.
But be aware that you will be taxed accordingly and be responsible for any liability to the IRS for early withdrawals.
Your best option is to treat a gold IRA as a long-term investment for retirement and hold it to maturity. Also, you will then have to start taking payments at 70 ½.
How to Start a Gold IRA
To begin the process of opening a gold IRA is simple, especially when you partner with precious metals experts who know the ins and outs of this type of IRA.
Here are the 3 easy steps when opening a gold IRA:
Step 1: Create your new IRA with your choice of precious metals IRA’s preferred self-directed IRA custodian.
Step 2: Fund your account with dollars from your existing retirement account.
Step 3: Buy gold, silver, or other precious metals. You simply choose your metals and order from your gold IRA company’s order desk and they will send it to their preferred storage facility that meets IRS requirements.
Conclusion
When it comes to recession-proofing your IRA, physical gold and other precious metals can help you diversify, protect, and grow your retirement savings account, as well as help you hedge against a weaker dollar and inflation.
Even though your current investment situation and future goals are all unique, each of these gold investment companies has the expertise and knowledge to help you achieve the retirement of your dreams.
*This article is provided by an advertiser and not necessarily written by a financial advisor. Investors should do their own research on products and services and contact a financial advisor before opening accounts or moving money. Individual results will vary. Foreign companies and investment opportunities may not provide the same safeguards as U.S. companies. Before engaging with a company, research the laws and the regulations around that service, and make certain the company is in compliance. For comprehensive guidance on U.S. investments and financial regulations, visit the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)’s Investor.gov.
