Gold IRA Fees Explained: Spreads, Custodian Fees, Storage, and What You Actually Pay
The IRS does not charge a fee to move retirement money into a gold IRA or to hold eligible metal in one. The bill comes from three private parties: the dealer who sells the coins or bars, the custodian of the gold IRA account, and the depository that stores the metal. If you only compare annual fees on a marketing page, you will miss the spread over the spot price of gold.
This page explains that fee anatomy. It is not a second ranking of gold IRA companies, and it does not reprint the tables on our gold IRA companies comparison. Sean Webster, CPA, reviews these precious metals guides for accuracy. I have completed a gold IRA rollover myself, and I still ask about price versus spot first.
The four parts of the gold IRA fee stack
Almost every gold IRA quote can be sorted into four buckets.
A one-time account setup fee. This is what the custodian charges to open the self-directed IRA. It is usually a modest, fixed amount, sometimes waived, and rarely the expense that decides the account.
An annual custodian or administration fee. This covers IRA reporting, statements, and trustee work, including tax forms such as Form 5498. It may be a flat dollar amount or, less often, a percentage.
An annual storage fee. The depository charges to vault and, typically, insure the metal. Segregated storage usually costs more than commingled storage. Our storage guide explains the difference. Some quotes bundle custody and storage.
The dealer’s premium or spread. This is the difference between the spot value of the metal and the price you pay to buy it, and later the difference between spot and the buyback price. You will always buy above spot and sell below it. The question is the size of the gap, and whether a fee-waiver promotion is being financed by a wider spread.
Those four items are the stack. Wires, shipping, per-trade fees, and a termination or transfer-out fee still belong in the written quote.
The spread is where gold IRA fees hide in plain sight
In March 2024, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, working with FINRA, published investor material on gold and silver IRA sales. The CFTC’s “Lies Versus Facts” flier states that dealers charge more than the current spot price when you buy and pay less than spot when you sell.
It also warns that in abusive cases the spread can run from 30 percent to 300 percent or more, and that storage and administrative fees can pile on top. The companion “10 Things to Ask” bulletin notes that some dealers may charge less than 20 percent, and it describes a $300,000 IRA rollover in which the dealer allegedly took $150,000 in fees and commissions. Those are regulator warnings about fraud, not a “typical fee” I am assigning to the industry.
The practical test should happen before any precious metals are purchased. Multiply the fine weight by the current spot price and compare that melt value with the invoice. Ask what you would receive if you sold the same metal back tomorrow, whether the salesperson’s compensation is inside the spread, and get every number in writing.
If a company will not put the purchase price, the spot reference, and the buyback policy on paper, I would not fund the account. That is also a scam-and-red-flag issue. The CFTC has pointed out that “semi-numismatic” is a marketing term, and that collectible coins generally do not belong in an IRA.
Annual fees and the fee schedule
I will not invent a universal “average” gold IRA fee. Custodians change their schedules. What I can do is open a published fee schedule, date it, and treat it as that custodian’s numbers — not as typical industry fees, and not as a ranking of the five firms we review.
Published fee schedule examples
I opened two public custodial schedules on November 10, 2026 (America/New_York).
Equity Trust’s Precious Metals Fee Schedule, form FS-0004-05, Rev. 081726 (August 17, 2026), lists these ENTERPRISE amounts for accounts that “May hold Precious Metals Only”: $50 setup; $125 annual maintenance; $160 segregated storage or $110 non-segregated; $250 full termination; a $30 wire; $30 per metals liquidation; $125 for an in-kind or transfer-out; coin shipping at cost plus $10 (minimum $50); and $60 for paper statements.
The schedule says fees run January to January, are not prorated, and are subject to change.
STRATA Trust’s public fee page, reviewed the same day, lists a Precious Metals-tier annual IRA fee of $150; commingled storage of $115; and segregated storage of $175 for gold, platinum, and palladium, with depository exceptions possibly applying. Setup is waived on electronic applications or $50 otherwise. The page also lists a $35 outgoing wire and a $250 account-closure fee, and it says fees are not prorated and are subject to change. I am not citing a per-trade buy or sell fee, because that line was not clear enough in the text I reviewed.
Those figures are annual fees and account fees for two named custodians as of that date. They are not a survey, and they do not include the dealer spread — usually the larger of the gold IRA costs.
Gold IRA companies
Confirm the current fee schedule in writing before you send money. Firm-level disclosures for the partners we review still belong on the companies hub.
Account fees
Account fees on a fee schedule are not the dealer premium, and they are only one part of what you pay to hold precious metals in the gold IRA.
A written quote should still show setup, annual fees, storage (segregated or commingled), wires and termination, the exact products and the spot used for the premium, and the buyback formula. IRAInvesting.com may earn a referral fee if you work with one of the companies we review. That does not change the fees you are quoted. See our affiliate disclosure.
How gold IRA fees compare with a gold ETF
A physically backed gold ETF, such as SPDR Gold Shares (GLD), publishes an expense ratio — 0.40 percent on the State Street fact sheet as of September 30, 2026 — plus ordinary trading costs. That is a different product, compared in gold IRA vs gold ETF. A 0.40 percent annual expense is easier to see than an undisclosed buy spread on coins, but the holdings are not the same.
If your only goal is gold-price exposure inside a retirement account you already have, the ETF’s visible expense ratio will often be the lower ongoing cost. If your goal is to hold eligible physical precious metals, expect to pay gold IRA costs for custody, storage, and a dealer spread, and insist on seeing all three.
Fees, promotions, and minimums
Fee waivers and free-silver promotions are common. A waived annual custody fee can be real savings if it is contractual and not offset by a wider product spread. A “free” ounce of silver is not free if you paid for it in the gold price. Account minimums are a dealer or custodian policy, not an IRS rule. A flat annual fee on a small gold IRA is a higher percentage cost than the same fee on a large one.
Who charges what: dealer vs. custodian vs. depository
People often think they are paying “the gold IRA company” as if it were one institution. The dealer, custodian, and depository are separate roles.
The dealer sets the metal price. The custodian sets account fees. The depository sets storage. Sometimes one quote packages all three; you still want the components. If the numbers differ, believe the custodian’s written fee schedule before you fund.
Annual fees on a gold IRA account
On a gold IRA account, ask whether a line for annual fees is administration, maintenance, storage, or a bundle. A flat fee can be easier to compare than a percentage of account value, but easier is not always cheaper. Setup fees are not the dealer premium.
Transaction fees, wires, and the dealer premium
Transaction fees can appear when you buy, sell, or transfer physical precious metals. Wire fees are small next to a wide spread. The dealer premium often is not a separate line; it lives in the invoice. Get it in writing.
Other precious metals in the same self-directed IRA use the same cost categories. A Roth gold IRA and a traditional gold IRA use the same operational fee stack.
What gold IRA costs are — and are not — good for
Gold IRA costs, and IRA costs more broadly, are usually higher, and less liquid, than stocks or funds in a regular retirement account. You also cannot hold physical gold at home inside the IRA; the metal must stay with a trustee, typically at an IRS-approved depository.
The advantage, if it is one for you, is holding those precious metals in a retirement account with that account’s tax advantages. Compare gold IRA costs — including annual fees — against the tax treatment you actually need. Do the arithmetic on the written quote.
A short process for comparing gold IRA fees
- Get a written, itemized quote from the dealer and the custodian’s current published or emailed schedule.
- Convert the metal invoice into a premium over spot, in dollars and as a percentage of melt value.
- Add first-year setup plus first-year custody and storage.
- Add the estimated cost to sell the same metal back at today’s buyback price. That is the round-trip friction.
- Compare that design, honestly, with leaving the money in securities or with a gold ETF inside a brokerage IRA.
- If the quote is oral, incomplete, or pressure-dated “today only,” walk away.
Gold IRA fees FAQ
What fees do gold IRAs charge?
Typically a setup fee, annual fees for custody and storage, and a dealer spread over spot, plus smaller transaction charges. The spread is usually the largest of the gold IRA costs.
Does the IRS charge gold IRA fees?
No. The IRS does not charge a fee to hold eligible precious metals or to complete a proper direct rollover.
Are gold IRA storage fees separate from custodian fees?
Often yes, though some quotes bundle them. Ask whether the figure is custody, storage, or both, and whether storage is segregated or commingled.
How do I know if a gold IRA spread is too high?
Compare the invoice with melt value at current spot, ask for the buyback price, and get both in writing. There is no official “fair” percentage I can invent for every product.
Do fee waivers mean the gold IRA is free?
No. A waived administrative fee does not remove the dealer spread. Read the invoice.
The bottom line
Gold IRA fees are a stack, not a single annual number. The dealer’s spread over spot is where most of the money usually moves. Add custody and storage, get the quote in writing, and use our companies hub for firm-level disclosures.
The same anatomy applies if the invoice is for a silver or platinum and palladium purchase, or if you are still checking eligibility. If a caller wants you to focus on anything except the price you pay and the price you would get back, you are having the wrong conversation.
Written by Tim Schmidt and reviewed for tax and account accuracy by Sean Webster, CPA. Last reviewed November 10, 2026 (America/New_York). This guide is for general education. It is not tax, legal, or investment advice, and it is not a recommendation to buy or sell any metal or to open any account. IRAInvesting.com is not a custodian, dealer, broker-dealer, or investment adviser. Before you act, talk with a licensed tax professional or adviser who can review your situation. Investing in precious metals involves risk, including the possible loss of principal. Metals can be volatile, and they do not pay interest or dividends. Past performance does not guarantee future results.