The Best Performing Top 3 Gold IRA Companies 2023
Last updated on June 1st, 2023 at 10:28 pm
You’ve worked hard for many years to gather the retirement wealth that you’ve accumulated. Don’t you want to protect it now more than ever?
For that matter, you didn’t just work hard in accumulating it and saving it. You also made sure you left it alone to grow over time without spending it or wasting it. Doesn’t that make you really want to keep it around now?
A gold IRA can do just that, and we can help you explore your options in using such an account to accomplish several benefits. Putting some of your overall investment portfolios into a precious metals IRA (individual retirement account) can help you diversify your assets, hedge against inflation and economic upheaval, and even enjoy some growth in value.
You’ll need to set up your gold IRA account. Then, you’ll need a broker who buys your gold and precious metals for the account. We’ve reviewed the entire industry and determined the top three best gold IRA companies that you should consider.
Checking out these reviews of the top 3 gold ira companies below will help you get to know each of them and what they do well. Sometimes, you’ll even see what their potential weak points are. After that, we cover some frequently asked questions you might have about gold IRAs.
The Top 3 Gold IRA Companies of 2023
If you’re going to trust a gold IRA company, or broker, with a significant amount of your wealth, then you should choose someone who is one of the best gold investment companies. We know that there’s not always one company that’s best for everyone, since everyone’s needs can vary. However, we have assembled a list of the top three options in the industry, and we think it likely that at least two or more of them could be very viable options, depending on your needs.
1. Augusta Precious Metals
While many consider Goldco to be the best in the industry, that consensus is far from unanimous. We know plenty who swear by Augusta Precious Metals. We’re certainly impressed with them enough to highlight them in our top three even if we don’t pick a definitive number one in the entire sector.
Augusta Precious Metals started in 2012. Their mission since then has been educating clients. They want to empower the broader retirement community in protecting their retirement funds by incorporating gold and silver in their investment portfolios.
Simplicity and transparency are two words that we can use to describe Augusta Precious Metals quite well. Their customer support lasts a lifetime instead of just for each transaction. Count on them to be there for you the entire time that you have an account with them.
This company is actually known for having distinct departments that focus on individual services so that each team can specialize in its unique functions. They also streamline their process for gold IRA accounts. Each customer is assigned a personal agent for their account.
Augusta’s operational efficiency doesn’t just help them serve customers well. They also save money on their operating expenses. In fact, they pass these savings on to their clients.
Augusta Precious Metals also has a partnership with the Royal Canadian Mint. They use this partnership to offer clients purer coins at lower prices than you would get from many other mints. Augusta Precious Metals makes it easy to buy IRA-approved metals in your gold IRA.
Joe Montana, the Hall of Fame NFL quarterback, was looking for a place to invest in precious metals. His anonymous search resulted in a meeting with the lead analyst for Augusta. That convinced him to become a client and later an official spokesperson.
Quoted prices for precious metals don’t include any commission fees. Liability insurance and shipping costs are handled by Augusta until you assume delivery of your metals. Custodian fees average about $100 per year.
Your minimum deposit has to be $50,000 or higher for a gold IRA. That’s a high level for many investors. If you only want to put 5% of your portfolio into a gold IRA, then you’d need around $1 million in overall wealth to work with Augusta for the precious metal portion.
Reviews on many different platforms speak very highly of Augusta’s reputation in their decade-plus of operations. In fact, it’s hard to find any complaints whatsoever among those that have decided to work with this company.
Augusta Precious Metals Pros and Cons
August Precious Metals is largely a great company to deal with, but they don’t work out for everyone.
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2. Birch Gold Group
Birch Gold Group is a leading dealer in the precious metals industry. They do what they can to help their clients find a strong footing for safe retirement investments. Precious metal IRAs through Birch Gold Group typically have far less volatility than paper asset classes, and we know how that stability can be a
source of comfort as your retirement date closes in.
Putting some of your portfolio into the trustworthy hands of Birch Gold Group can help you avoid the roller coaster that happened to earlier investors of the last two decades. The dot-com bubble burst, the Great Recession, and the pandemic were all very unkind to many investors. Birch Gold Group educates its
clients on how to navigate financial uncertainty.
They work hard to educate their clients and work with them. You’ll know where your money is at all times. However, you’ll also understand why your money is where it is and see what the best options are for you.
To do this, Birch Gold Group has a library of content available through its website. You can log into your account and access that at any time. You can also do this via desktop, laptop, or mobile device.
However, they don’t stop there. The creators of that content are active on social media channels on a very regular basis. They also contribute appearances to podcasts quite frequently.
All of these educational opportunity is your chance to learn all about them. You can also learn what’s going on with current market conditions and potential instability. However, they also take a step back regularly to talk about larger cycles of growth and not just the day’s headlines.
Birch Gold Group has extensive industry experience. Founded in 2003, they’re one of the oldest players in the industry. They’ve been doing things a decade longer than many peers on this list.
Their team consists of professionals from multiple backgrounds and disciplines in order to serve you the best. Of course, you would expect to find financial advisors. However, we’re impressed by how they also have former commodity brokers and wealth managers on their team.
Birch Gold Group Pros and Cons
Birch Gold Group can be a great choice for many reasons. Yet, there are a few things to consider as well.
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Birch Gold Group has several strong points making it a great company
| Many investors do well with Birch Gold Group, but you should know a few things to watch out for
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3. Advantage Gold
Advantage Gold is a gold IRA business with quite a few positive reviews. If you’re a new investor in precious metals, then you should know that the biggest benefit with them is customer education. They’ve got a big selection of approved coins, but they don’t always make pricing for them obvious.
This company started in 2014 and climbed the industry ranks to join the leaders. They claim to be the actual leader in doing rollovers into precious metals. We’re not sure they’re the actual top dog just yet, but they make a strong enough argument to warrant inclusion on our list. Their IRA department is fully staffed with specialists who have the expertise and experience necessary to convert existing IRAs and other qualified retirement accounts into new gold IRA accounts.
Advantage Gold commits itself to educating prospective clients about all the precious metal options that are available. They then help customers establish their accounts and handle the details of making the rollover actually happen. Their commitment to customer service lasts for the duration of the account.
This company truly believes that their best clients are educated ones. That’s why they commit themselves to client education. Through them, you can learn about the various kinds of coins you can invest in, how they conduct their transactions, and the gold and precious metal industry as a whole.
We like how their commitment to customer education is a form of customer service itself. Their experienced account reps will guide you through the entire process of precious metal investing. Their IRA department is full-service.
Their ratings through TrustLink, Trustpilot, and Facebook are all 4.7 or better out of 5.0 stars. They have an A+ rating from the BBB. The BCA rates them as AAA.
You can choose your own custodian if you wish, but Advantage Gold does have two partnerships of its own. You can have your precious metals stored in the Delaware Depository in Wilmington, DE. You can also go with Brinks Global Services locations in Salt Lake City or Los Angeles.
Advantage Gold is listed as a United States Mint dealer. They’re also a verified member of the American Numismatic Association. They deal in both coins and bullion.
Advantage Gold’s website is simple and easy to use with lots of information you can use to learn about them and the broader market. You can contact them through the website, via email, or through a toll-free phone number. They also have an informative weekly newsletter you can subscribe to.
Advantage Gold Pros and Cons
Advantage Gold is good enough to make our top three list because they have many more things going for them than not.
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This company has a lot to like about them
| Advantage Gold does have two notable drawbacks that we’ve noticed turn off some investors
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Frequently Asked Questions
Even after reading these reviews, we know you probably still have questions about gold IRAs. We’ve heard many questions before, and we have answers to the most common ones. Hopefully, these frequently asked questions will cover some of your current concerns.
Who Is Eligible for a Precious Metals IRA? If you’re younger than 70 1/2 and have earned income, then you can start a precious metals IRA. You can also possibly roll over a current traditional or Roth IRA or your 401(k) or 403(b) retirement investment account.
How Do I Go About Rolling Over an Existing Account Into a Gold IRA? Any of these brokers can help you open up a precious metal IRA account by funding it with assets from a previous account. You can do this without penalties, nor do you need to invest any extra money. Once you finish the transfer, your broker can help you choose a custodian and buy the precious metals that work best for your financial objectives.
How Long Does the Gold IRA Process Take? Depending on the broker, you might get it done in anywhere from five business days to three weeks. The IRS gives you 60 days for both direct and indirect transfers without penalties, so any of these brokers can get you established in plenty of time to avoid taxes and fees from the government.
Are There Potential Penalties From Putting an IRA or 401(k) Into a Gold IRA? There can be, but not if you stay within the IRS guidelines. These brokers can assist you with doing the process free of penalties, taxes, and fees in a manner compliant with IRS rules and regulations.
How Do I Ensure the Safety of My Precious Metals When They Are in the IRA? When you set your account up, the broker and custodian will help you select, buy, and then move your precious metals into one of several secure vaults that the IRS deems an approved depository.
Does a Gold IRA Have to Be Just Gold? No. Gold IRAs could hold gold and silver from the start. Additional legislation just a few years later expanded this to include palladium and platinum. Just beware that not all brokers deal in all four precious metals.
Can I Take Actual Possession of My Precious Metals? When it’s time to withdraw your account, you might have the option of taking physical possession of your precious metals. Holding on to them yourself while they are in a gold IRA is a rare and cumbersome set of circumstances that the IRS rarely approves of, so plan on using an approved depository until then. The safety of your precious metals is much higher in a depository than in your own home anyway.
Do I Have to Take Physical Possession? No, you can choose to take a distribution instead and have your precious metals sold or liquidated for cash. Many brokers offer buyback programs to simplify this for their clients.
How Much Should I Invest In A Precious Metal IRA? Your personal financial advisor or team can answer that best. Everyone’s portfolio, timeline, objectives, and risk tolerances are different. We can provide you with some general rules of thumb, however. Going under 5% might not be worth it just because it’s not enough exposure to benefit from precious metals. Many investors choose to go between 10% and 15% in order to better capitalize on the historically consistent upward growth in value of these four precious metals.
I Can’t Decide Who Among These Top Three to Pick From. What Do I Do? First of all, rule out anyone whose minimum investment levels are more than you can afford. Second, if you want to diversify within precious metals across all three, then you might not want to do business with a broker who only deals in gold and silver. If this is all so new to you that it feels scary and you want the best treatment, then Augusta Precious Metals is the way to go.
Key Takeaways
You spent years accumulating your wealth and protecting it. Now is the time to let it protect you. Putting it into a gold IRA is a great way to let it do that.
Picking the right gold IRA company is crucial to your success. We’ve listed who we think the top-rated gold IRA companies are, and we’ve also listed reasons why they’re great. We even pointed out a few potential downsides that might help you narrow down just the right one.