Buying precious metals involves more complexity than most financial purchases. Pricing structures vary between dealers, retirement-account transactions often require coordination with custodians and storage providers, and purchases frequently involve direct interaction with company representatives.
Because pricing structures and resale policies vary widely between dealers, not all providers offer the same value—even for identical products.
To help readers compare companies more confidently, USA TODAY developed a weighted scoring methodology focused on transparency, investor protection, pricing clarity and customer experience. Because pricing transparency and business credibility are especially important in precious-metals transactions, our methodology places greater weight on cost clarity, compliance signals and customer experience than on product selection alone.
Our rankings are based on independent company research, publicly available information and customer feedback from third-party review platforms. Each dealer receives a composite score based on the following categories.
Pricing transparency and value (26%)
Because precious metals dealers set their own premiums and buyback prices, the difference between what you pay and what you can later sell for — known as the spread — is one of the most important factors affecting your total investment cost. Dealers that clearly disclose pricing and maintain competitive spreads receive higher scores.
We evaluate:
- Premiums over spot price
- Buy/sell spread transparency
- IRA setup, storage and administrative fees
- Minimum purchase requirements
- Buyback pricing clarity
Compliance, trust and reputation (22%)
Precious metals dealers operate differently from banks or brokerages, making credibility indicators especially important. This category evaluates the company’s business practices, transparency and long-term stability. Dealers demonstrating strong credibility signals and responsible business practices receive higher scores. We also consider whether companies use high-pressure sales tactics or promotional offers (such as “free” metals) that may obscure true pricing.
We evaluate:
- Years in business
- Industry memberships
- Legal history
- Marketing practices
- Risk disclosures
- Business transparency
Buyback program strength (16%)
Buyback policies are a critical but often overlooked part of precious metals investing. Companies with clear, investor-friendly buyback programs receive higher scores.
We evaluate:
- Whether a buyback program exists
- Clarity of buyback pricing policies
- Ease of selling metals back to the dealer
- Processing transparency
Customer experience, support and satisfaction (14%)
This category evaluates how easy the dealer is to work with and how customers rate their experience throughout the purchase and account setup process. Because precious metals purchases often involve direct interaction with company representatives, responsiveness and service quality are important indicators of reliability.
We evaluate:
- Responsiveness and accessibility of customer support
- IRA account setup guidance
- Order tracking and delivery communication
- Overall purchase process clarity
- Better Business Bureau ratings and complaint history
- Trustpilot, Google and ConsumerAffairs reviews
- Complaint resolution patterns
Companies that provide clear communication and responsive support, and receive consistently positive feedback, get higher scores.
Product selection and services (14%)
This category evaluates the investment options available to customers. A broader range of services and products increases a dealer’s score.
We consider:
- IRA-eligible metals
- Gold, silver, platinum and palladium availability
- Direct delivery options
- Storage partnerships with approved depositories
- IRA account-setup assistance
Investor education and transparency (8%)
Precious metals investing can be complex, particularly when retirement accounts are involved. Companies that clearly explain processes and risks rank higher.
We evaluate whether dealers:
- Explain gold IRA rules clearly
- Distinguish dealer, custodian and storage roles
- Provide accessible educational resources
- Disclose risks appropriately
- Avoid misleading investment claims
Methodology note
Precious metals dealers are not banks, broker-dealers or investment advisors. Rankings evaluate dealer transparency, services and customer experience, not investment performance or future metal prices.
All data is verified through dealer websites, customer-review platforms and publicly available business information and reviewed periodically for accuracy.
While this methodology applies to both gold and silver dealers, we adjust our evaluation to reflect how these metals are typically bought and sold. For example, we place greater emphasis on premium consistency and bulk pricing for silver products, and on IRA compatibility and spread efficiency for gold.
