How to Buy Gold Bars: Sizes, Dealers, Real Costs and Storage

A gold bar is the cheapest way to own physical gold per ounce. You pay less over the spot price than for coins, and you hold the metal itself, with no fund or token issuer in between. What you give up is flexibility: a bar is harder to sell in part, it needs storing, and buying and selling it costs a few percent.

This guide uses prices from October 2026, with gold at about $4,190 an ounce.

1. Choose the bar size

Bar	Gold in it	Typical price over spot	Who it suits
1 gram	about $135	5–10%	Gifts; not a good way to invest
1 troy ounce	about $4,190	2–4%	Most buyers
10 troy ounces	about $41,900	1–2%	Buying $40,000 or more at once
1 kilogram (32.15 oz)	about $134,700	0.5–1.5%	Large holdings, usually vaulted
400 oz Good Delivery	about $1.68 million	n/a	Banks and institutions

The 1 oz bar is the default. The premium is close to the 10 oz bar’s, and you can sell one ounce at a time. A 10 oz bar saves perhaps 1% on the way in, but if you later need $5,000 you must sell all $41,900 of it. Gram bars look affordable but carry the highest markup.

Coins such as the American Eagle or Krugerrand usually cost a point or two more than a 1 oz bar. Some buyers pay that for easier resale.

2. Buy from a refiner the market accepts

Fake 1 oz bars exist, and the best-known brands are the most copied. Three habits remove most of the risk:

• Buy bars from refiners on the LBMA Good Delivery list, such as PAMP Suisse, Valcambi, Argor-Heraeus, Perth Mint or the Royal Canadian Mint. These are the bars every dealer will buy back.
• Keep the bar sealed in its assay card. The card carries a serial number that should match the bar. Several refiners let you check the serial number online. A bar out of its card is harder to resell and easier to fake.
• Test larger purchases. Many coin shops have a Sigma Metalytics verifier or an XRF analyser and will test a bar for you.

3. Pick where to buy

Large online dealers usually have the lowest premiums. In the US that means names such as APMEX, JM Bullion, SD Bullion and Kitco. Shipping is insured and often free above an order threshold. Elsewhere, look for a dealer with a long record and a published buy-back price.

A local coin shop costs slightly more but lets you inspect the bar and leave with it the same day, with no shipping.

Banks sell bars in some countries. Premiums are seldom competitive.

Avoid marketplaces such as eBay, Amazon third-party sellers and social media, and any seller without a verifiable address and buy-back price.

4. Pay the cheap way

Bank transfer or check is the cheapest. Cards and PayPal usually add 3–4%, which can double the cost of a 1 oz bar. Dealers lock the price when you order, so a bank transfer does not expose you to gold moving while the money clears.

In most US states, gold bullion is exempt from sales tax, but not in all. Check your state, or your country’s VAT rules, before ordering. Investment gold is VAT-free in the EU and the UK.

5. Know the round-trip cost

Buying two 1 oz bars at spot $4,190:

Item	Cost
Gold at spot (2 oz)	$8,380
Dealer premium at 3%	$251
Insured shipping	$0–$40
You pay	about $8,630–$8,670, 3–3.5% above spot

When you sell, dealers usually buy recognised 1 oz bars at or a little below spot. So the round trip costs roughly 3–5%. Gold has to rise by that much before you break even. That is fine for a holding you keep for years, and expensive for one you might sell in six months.

For comparison, a gold ETF costs a yearly fee (GLD 0.40%, IAU 0.25%), and a gold token such as XAUT has traded close to spot (a typical daily gap of −0.03% since late September 2026) plus network fees. The holding cost calculator compares the three over your own holding period.

6. Decide where it lives

Plan this before the bars arrive.

• Home safe: a one-off cost. Pick a rated safe bolted to the floor, and tell nobody. Check your home insurance: many policies cover only a low amount of bullion, often a few thousand dollars at most, unless you add a rider.
• Bank safe deposit box: around $50–$200 a year. The contents are not covered by deposit insurance, and you can reach them only in branch hours.
• Professional vault: allocated storage with insurance, typically 0.1–0.5% of value a year. Sensible for larger holdings.

The trade-offs are set out in self-custody gold vs bank vault storage.

Taxes when you sell (US)

The IRS treats gold bullion as a collectible. Long-term gains are taxed at up to 28%, against 20% for stocks. Gains on bars held for a year or less are taxed as ordinary income. Keep your invoices: date, price and dealer.

When a bar is the wrong choice

A bar suits money you want out of the financial system and plan to hold for years. If you want to buy small amounts regularly, sell quickly, or keep gold next to crypto you already hold, the round-trip cost and storage work against you. A gold ETF or a gold token may fit better: see physical gold vs gold ETF vs tokenized gold, or how to buy gold without a brokerage account if you don’t have one.

Frequently Asked Questions

What size gold bar should I buy first?

A 1 oz bar from an LBMA Good Delivery refiner. It costs about $4,190 of gold plus a 2–4% premium, and you can sell it one ounce at a time.

What is the cheapest way to buy gold bars?

Buy 1 oz or 10 oz bars from a large online dealer and pay by bank transfer. Larger bars cost less over spot, and card payments add 3–4%.

How much over spot will I pay for a gold bar?

In October 2026, roughly 2–4% for a 1 oz bar, 1–2% for 10 oz, and 5–10% for a 1 gram bar, depending on dealer and brand.

How do I know if a gold bar is real?

Buy from a recognised dealer, choose a refiner on the LBMA Good Delivery list, keep the bar in its sealed assay card and check its serial number with the refiner. Have larger purchases tested with a verifier or XRF analyser.

Do I pay tax when I buy or sell gold bars?

Most US states exempt bullion from sales tax, and investment gold is VAT-free in the EU and UK. When you sell at a profit in the US, gains are taxed as collectibles at up to 28% if held over a year.

Where should I store gold bars?

Small amounts in a rated home safe with insurance that actually covers bullion; larger amounts in an allocated vault, which costs about 0.1–0.5% a year. A bank box is cheap but uninsured and open only in branch hours.