Gold IRA Company Contracts Compared: Markup Caps, Cancellation Windows, Arbitration and Claim Deadlines (17 Sellers, 2026)

A gold IRA contract is the purchase agreement you sign with the dealer, and only 5 of 17 sellers SafeOunce checked publish theirs (October 2, 2026). One of the five, Goldline's, is an older 2022 copy. The published ones allow markups up to 59.99%, give 24 hours to 15 days to cancel or return coins, and about 1 year to bring a claim. So what are you agreeing to when a salesperson sends you a form to sign?

A gold IRA is an IRA that holds physical gold through a custodian. The dealer is the company that sells you the metal, and its purchase agreement holds the terms that matter most. This page compares the contracts of the gold IRA companies SafeOunce checks, using the documents each one publishes, read between September 29 and November 6, 2026. It reads 20 sellers clause by clause, then turns markup caps into dollars and deadlines into calendar dates.

The eight numbers below summarize what SafeOunce found in 17 operating sellers' documents, each dated.

What Is a Gold IRA Contract?#

A gold IRA contract is the dealer's purchase agreement, and it sets your price limits, your cancellation right, where disputes go and how long you have to bring a claim. It is often titled a Shipping and Transaction Agreement. American Hartford Gold (AHG), Preserve Gold and American Bullion use the title "Shipping and Transaction Agreement". Goldline calls it an "Account Agreement", and Lear Capital publishes its contract as "Terms and Conditions".

Why does the document title matter? The binding terms often sit in a form with a harmless-sounding name. The four documents a gold IRA company may give you are listed below.

1. Purchase agreement (Shipping and Transaction Agreement, transaction agreement, account agreement): the binding sale contract.
2. Website terms: the rules for using the website; some also cover purchases, as at Advantage Gold, Freedom Gold USA and Thor Metals Group.
3. Policy pages and FAQs, such as a refund page or a buyback policy: statements by the company, not a signed contract.
4. The invoice and trade confirmation: the price, the quantity and, at Lear, the spread for your order.

The spread is the gap between what you pay and what the metal costs the dealer, as a share of your price. Lear's terms (December 2025) say: "Customer's exact Spread will be specified and confirmed during the transaction voice confirmation process and included in Customer's invoice." In plain English: you learn your exact markup on the call or on the invoice, not before. Most purchase agreements also require arbitration, a private hearing instead of a court case.

The "Shipping Agreement" Is the Purchase Contract#

The Shipping and Transaction Agreement is the sale contract itself, and a court held a buyer to it although he said he was told it was a formality. In Patterson v. Lear Capital, Inc., the buyer used $377,375 of retirement savings to buy Lear coins in October 2017. He alleged that the DocuSign form was described to him as "just a shipping agreement and nothing more than a mere formality".

That form was the purchase contract, and it held an arbitration clause. On October 15, 2020, the U.S. District Court for Utah dismissed his claims "without prejudice to being asserted in arbitration" (Patterson v. Lear Capital, D. Utah No. 2:20-cv-00251). His statements are allegations, not court findings, and the outcome of any arbitration is not public.

Three Contracts in One Gold IRA: Dealer, Custodian and Depository#

A gold IRA involves three separate contracts: the dealer's purchase agreement, the custodian's account agreement and the depository's storage terms. The custodian is the trust company that holds the IRA and sends your statements. The depository is the vault that stores the metal.

Gold IRA custodians do not check the dealer for you. A joint SEC and NASAA investor alert says: "Self-directed IRA custodians generally do not evaluate the quality or legitimacy of any investment in the self-directed IRA or its promoters." What each of the gold IRA custodians charges and signs is compared on our custodians page.

Federal law also gives you 7 days to revoke a new IRA (Treas. Reg. 1.408-6(d)(4)). That right sits with the custodian. It does not cancel the dealer's metal order, which follows the dealer's own contract.

Which Gold IRA Companies Publish Their Contract? 5 of 17#

Only 5 of 17 operating gold IRA sellers SafeOunce checked publish the purchase agreement an IRA buyer signs, as of October 2, 2026. The other 12 publish website terms, policy pages or nothing you can read before the call.

The table sorts 17 operating sellers by the contract document they publish (read September 29 to October 2, 2026).

Augusta's FAQ says: "Before any purchase, Augusta provides a written Transaction Agreement." So an agreement exists, but it is not public. A public contract is a point in a company's favor even when its terms are strict: you can read it before anyone calls you.

Ask for the agreement by email before you fund the account. The FTC's Telemarketing Sales Rule requires a seller to disclose the total cost and quantity before you pay (16 CFR 310.3(a)(1)(i)). A seller that will not send the contract before payment leaves you to read it under time pressure.

Contracts Change: AHG's 2023 vs 2026 Agreement and Goldline's Older Copy#

Gold IRA contracts change without notice to the public: American Hartford Gold's top markup cap rose from 34.99% in its 2023 agreement to 59.99% in its September 2026 agreement. The table puts the two versions side by side.

AHG's 2026 agreement also lets it change the terms: "AHG may amend this agreement at any time solely by written notice." In plain English: the version on the website today may not be the one you signed.

Goldline shows the same gap. Its public copy is the Account Agreement Ver. 20220601. In a BBB reply dated July 8, 2025, Goldline named "our 07/01/2023 version" and a February 24, 2025 version. SafeOunce has not read either newer version.

Same Template, Different Logos#

Several gold IRA contracts share the same wording, so a clause that sounds like one company's special promise is often industry boilerplate. The three shared passages SafeOunce found are listed below.

• The buyback example: a coin sold at "$40 with a 20% Spread", costing the dealer $32 and bought back at "approximately $30.50". It appears in Lear (December 2025), Preserve (June 2025) and Rosland (January 2024).
• The buyback sentence: the law prohibits the company "from guaranteeing to repurchase". It appears in AHG, Lear, Preserve, Goldline and American Bullion, and in failed Oxford's 2023 agreement.
• The shipping sentence: "5-14 business days after receipt of good funds", and "up to 45 business days". It appears word for word in the Goldco and Noble Gold website terms.

The 10 Major Gold IRA Sellers' Contracts, Clause by Clause#

Only 3 of the 10 major gold IRA sellers SafeOunce compares publish an agreement with a markup range, giving 24 hours to 7 days to cancel and about 1 year to claim. These 10 are the comparison group SafeOunce uses across its company reviews; the group is ours, not a ranking by sales. Two terms in the table need a definition. A class action waiver means you give up joining a group lawsuit, and a liability cap is the most the company says it can owe you.

The table compares the contract terms of these 10 sellers, from each company's own documents (dates in the first column).

Seven of the 10 do not publish the agreement you sign. For those seven, the most important clauses can only be read on the day you are asked to sign. Each company's review, linked in the table, has its own contract section.

Seven More Sellers, and What Three Failed Sellers' Contracts Said#

Seven more operating sellers show the same pattern: arbitration, mostly in a company-chosen forum, a one-year claim deadline in three of the seven documents and few published markup ranges. Two of the seven publish a real purchase agreement, and five publish only website terms.

The table adds seven operating sellers, from documents read September 29 to October 2, 2026.

Every purchase agreement SafeOunce read has an arbitration clause. Goldco's and Noble Gold's website terms are the exceptions, and their purchase agreements are not public.

The table shows what three failed gold IRA companies' contracts said; each customer signed one of these.

A range in a contract is not a cap in practice. The CFTC's consent order of October 25, 2023 found Safeguard's silver coin markups averaged 71% over its cost, against a stated maximum of 23%. The SEC's 2022 complaint put the average at 64%, and both figures sit above the 42% ceiling in Safeguard's later online agreement. What happened to customers of failed gold IRA companies is tracked on our failures page.

Markup Caps: What the Spread Clauses Allow#

Published gold IRA contracts allow spreads of 1% up to 59.99% of your price, and none states your own spread before the confirmation call or invoice. Four published contracts give a markup range: AHG, Lear, Preserve and American Bullion. Gold IRA markups and spreads are measured differently. A markup is measured over the dealer's cost, and a spread as a share of your price, so a 100% markup equals a 50% spread.

AHG's agreement (September 2026, para 4A) says your spread "may be different than" in past or future orders, or than "the Spread charged others in similar transactions." It adds: "The Spread may be negotiable."

A cap is a ceiling, not a price. Lear's own 2022 average spread was 23.4%, with a maximum of 33%, as Lear stated in its court-filed Chapter 11 plan (Bankr. D. Del. No. 22-10165, Doc. 694, June 5, 2023). Lear's reputation FAQ says fees tied to the metal type "start at 1%", while its contract range starts at 2% (October 2, 2026). How each seller's markup compares with a plain bullion dealer's is on gold IRA markups and spreads.

What a Markup Cap Means for $100,000: Break-Even and Day-One Value#

At AHG's 19.99% bullion cap, gold must rise 31.1% before $100,000 of coins sells back for $100,000; at its 59.99% cap, it must rise 162.2%. Break-even is the rise needed to sell back at what you paid. The bid is the price the dealer pays you when you sell.

The table turns each contract cap into the rise needed to break even and the day-one sale value of a $100,000 purchase, with the metal price flat.

Goldline's agreement (June 2022) teaches the same arithmetic correctly. A $500 coin it would buy back at $400 has a 20% spread, and the coin "will need to increase by 25% in order to breakeven". Goldline's contract is the only one SafeOunce read that states the percentage rise needed to break even. Test your own quoted spread in the gold IRA break-even calculator.

IRA Orders Can Carry a Higher Markup Than Cash Orders#

Two contracts allow a higher markup for the same coin when it is bought inside an IRA: Preserve Gold's and the failed Safeguard Metals'. Preserve's agreement (June 2025, para 4C) caps bullion at 20% for cash buyers. For IRA orders it says: "IRA transactions cost more to process ... PGG's Spread for bullion, semi-numismatic/semi-bullion and numismatic bars and/or coins was generally up to thirty-four point ninety nine percent (34.99%)."

Safeguard's agreement put bullion at "typically five percent (5%) for cash, and twelve percent (12%) for IRA purchases". On $100,000, that gap meant $5,952 to $7,000 less metal for the IRA buyer (SafeOunce computation; the range depends on whether the percentage is a markup or a spread). Other contracts treat both the same. Oxford's 2023 agreement said its pricing was "the same whether Precious Metals are purchased for direct possession or placement in an individual retirement account". AHG's 2026 agreement applies its ranges "for cash and IRA transactions".

Cancellation Windows: 24 Hours to 7 Days, and When the Clock Starts#

Most gold IRA cancellation clauses give you between 24 hours and 7 days to cancel an order, and the clock often starts before your IRA money even arrives. A few run outside that range: American Bullion allows 15-day returns on premium coins, Priority's refund page gives up to 14 days in some states, and failed Oxford's agreement gave none. Some states add more time on top of the contract, which this page calls a state-law window.

The table lists each seller's written cancellation window, what starts the clock and what it covers, from the documents named.

A 24-hour clock can close before your money moves. A Lear order confirmed Monday at 3 p.m. can close for cancellation Tuesday at 3 p.m., often before a 401(k) transfer has arrived. AHG's 7 days run from signing, even if the IRA is not yet funded, and do not cover bullion at all.

Delivery deadlines are written down even less often. Goldco's and Noble Gold's website terms say "5-14 business days after receipt of good funds", with delays "up to 45 business days". American Bullion's agreement (October 2024) promises depository delivery within 28 days after funds are verified, and Thor's FAQ says the same 28 days. Failed Oxford's 2023 agreement set no IRA delivery deadline, and in Clark a customer alleged her $200,000 Oxford trade was never filled.

Your separate 7-day right to cancel the IRA account itself, and how to cancel a gold IRA in writing, are explained step by step.

What Cancelling Costs: Market Loss, Restocking and IRA Processing Fees#

Cancelling after the window usually costs you any drop in the metal price, and some contracts add a fee even if you never buy. The four cost types SafeOunce found in these contracts are listed below.

• Market loss, with any gain kept by the seller. Advantage Gold's terms say: "Any market gain on order cancellations shall vest in and remain the property of Advantage Gold"; its cancellation fee rate is left blank on the page. USMR's cash agreement says "the transaction price is locked in and any corresponding market risk is transferred to you". If an AHG buyer defaults, AHG keeps any excess "as liquidated damages".
• A flat fee on unpaid orders. Oxford's 2023 agreement charged "a flat 4% restocking or liquidation fee", which is $4,000 on a $100,000 order (SafeOunce computation).
• An IRA processing fee if you open the IRA but do not buy. American Bullion (October 2024) charges the greater of $250 or 0.50% of transferred funds, and failed Safeguard Metals' agreement charged the same. That is $250 on $30,000, $500 on $100,000 and $1,000 on $200,000 (SafeOunce computation).
• A restocking fee on returns. American Bullion may charge 3% on premium-coin returns within 15 days, and failed Safeguard's agreement charged 3% on semi-numismatic returns.

In plain English: once the window closes, a falling gold price is your loss, and a rising one is often the seller's gain.

Arbitration Clauses: Where Disputes Go, Who Pays and Whether You Can Opt Out#

Every gold IRA purchase agreement SafeOunce read sends disputes to private arbitration, most often in Los Angeles, and only four sellers' documents let you opt out of it. Those four are USMR (cash), Advantage Gold, Lear and GoldenCrest (website terms updated October 8, 2026); American Bullion's opt-out covers only its class waiver. Among the bullion dealers further down, JM Bullion's terms also allow one. JAMS and AAA (the American Arbitration Association) are the two main private arbitration services. Joinder means combining your claim with other customers' claims.

The table compares the arbitration clauses in 12 sellers' documents (dates as in the two seller tables above).

An arbitration clause does not stop you from complaining to a regulator, such as your state securities regulator, your state attorney general or the CFTC. Those complaints sit outside the contract, and a regulator can sue on its own. What each route can recover is explained in our guide to cancellation, arbitration and restitution.

Arbitration Opt-Outs: 15 and 30 Days at Dealers, 65 Days at Equity Trust#

Four sellers let you opt out of arbitration in writing within 30 days, and Equity Trust's custodial agreement allowed 65 days, as quoted in an October 2024 court order. American Bullion's 15-day opt-out covers only its class waiver. An opt-out is a written notice that keeps your right to go to court. Each window counts from a different start date, so the calendar below uses one signing day.

Lear's opt-out comes with a condition. If you opt out, its terms (December 2025, para 2.5) say "LC also will not be bound by them". Lear then "shall have the right to rescind Customer's purchase transaction for a full refund." It "must exercise such right and inform Customer of its decision within 15 days of notice" (re-read November 6, 2026).

The custodian's clause matters too. In Clark v. Equity Trust Co., D.N.M. No. 1:24-cv-00845, a customer alleged that her $200,000 Oxford Gold trade was never filled. On October 29, 2024, the court sent her claims against the custodian to arbitration because she "did not opt out" within 65 days. The 65-day figure is as quoted in that order. Equity Trust's fees and agreements are reviewed on our Equity Trust page.

Who Pays for Arbitration#

Consumer arbitration rules cap your filing fee at $225 (AAA) or $250 (JAMS), but three contracts change who pays. Birch splits fees, American Bullion excludes the consumer standards and Preserve makes each side pay its own lawyers. JAMS Consumer Minimum Standard 7 says that, where the standards apply, "the only fee required to be paid by the consumer is $250". Five fee clauses are listed below.

• Birch Gold Group (website terms): "Subject to the JAMS Rules and any applicable JAMS minimum standards, the arbitration fees ... shall be divided equally".
• American Bullion (October 2024): "JAMS CONSUMER STANDARDS WILL NOT APPLY BECAUSE YOU ARE NOT ACQUIRING OUR PRODUCT FOR PERSONAL, FAMILY OR HOUSEHOLD PURPOSES" (capitals in the original).
• Preserve Gold (June 2025): "Each party will pay the fees and costs for his, her or its own attorneys".
• Orion Metal Exchange (December 4, 2025): it reimburses a filing fee above $200, and pays "the amount of the award or $5,000, whichever is greater" if the award beats its last written offer.
• Freedom Gold USA (December 22, 2025): "If such costs are determined by the arbitrator to be excessive, we will pay all arbitration fees and expenses".

Courts Usually Enforce These Clauses: 5 Enforced, 1 Refused, 1 Recommended for Denial#

Courts enforced the arbitration clause in 5 of 7 gold IRA cases SafeOunce found and refused it once, over a contract too small to read. In the seventh case, a magistrate judge recommended refusing it because the buyer never accepted the terms. The buyers' claims in the table are allegations unless a ruling says otherwise.

The table lists every court ruling or recommendation SafeOunce found on a gold IRA company's or custodian's arbitration clause.

Clear form and signatures kept clauses alive. In Mathys, the court relied on normal type size, bold capitals and the buyer's initials. A clause the buyer could not read did not survive (Dennison), and one she never agreed to drew a recommendation against it (Kagan). The Dennison court also counted one-sided terms against Rosland: one-sided attorney fees, a damages cap and a shortened claim deadline. All three are still common in 2026 contracts.

Arbitration is not a dead end. In McGuire v. Safeguard Metals, C.D. Cal. No. 2:23-cv-05874, an AAA arbitration filed November 22, 2021 ended in a settlement award of $183,962 plus $48,232.80 interest on June 26, 2023. On September 28, 2023, the court turned it into a federal judgment for $232,194.80. That took about 2 years and 10 months from loss to judgment, and collecting the money is a separate step.

Regulators are not bound by any arbitration clause; every case SafeOunce tracks is in our list of precious metals IRA enforcement actions.

Claim Deadlines and Liability Caps: How Long You Have and the Most You Can Recover#

Most gold IRA contracts give you 1 year to bring any claim and cap what the company can owe you, often at what you paid or less. Why does one year matter? Problems such as a low first statement or a buyback below spot often surface later than a year after you buy.

One Year, or One Year and a Day: When the Clock Starts#

AHG's agreement gives 1 year from when a claim arises, Lear's and Preserve's give 1 year and 1 day, and Goldline's gives 1 year from the transaction date. Accrual is the date a claim legally arises. Preserve's agreement (June 2025, para 12) says: "ANY CLAIM OR LEGAL PROCEEDING HEREUNDER SHALL BE FILED WITHIN ONE YEAR AND ONE DAY OF ITS ACCRUAL. THE PARTIES ACKNOWLEDGE THAT, BUT FOR THIS WAIVER, HE, SHE, OR IT MIGHT HAVE A LONGER TIME PERIOD TO INITIATE A CLAIM UNDER STATE OR FEDERAL LAW."

The website terms of Freedom Gold USA and Thor also say 1 year. GoldenCrest's website terms said 1 year when read on September 29, 2026; its version updated October 8, 2026 states no deadline. USMR's cash agreement (March 2026) states no deadline. Rosland's and Oxford's agreements said 1 year, and Oxford's clock ran while customers waited for refunds.

Liability Caps in Dollars: $100 to What You Paid#

On a $100,000 purchase worth $70,000 when you file, the liability caps in these contracts range from $100 to the full $100,000. A liability cap is the most a company says it can owe you, whatever went wrong.

The table applies each contract's cap to one hypothetical claim: you paid $100,000, the metal is worth $70,000 when you file, and you keep the metal.

A "paid minus market value" cap limits recovery to roughly the markup you lost, with nothing for interest or gains. On USMR's wording, a buyer who paid $250,000 for metal worth about $62,500 could recover at most $187,500 (hypothetical). A $100 or $500 cap in website terms may not cover a metal purchase at all, so ask which document controls your order.

Do-Not-Call Waivers and Buyback Wording in the Same Contracts#

Three sellers' contracts let them call you even if your number is on the Do-Not-Call Registry, and no contract SafeOunce read guarantees a buyback price. AHG (para 1), Lear and Preserve (para 1) contain this waiver, and so did failed Oxford's 2023 agreement. Lear's waiver "shall remain effective unless and until Customer informs LC otherwise" (terms re-read November 6, 2026). Under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, an unlawful call can cost a seller up to $500, and up to 3 times that if willful (47 U.S.C. 227(c)(5)). How to stop the calls is on our page about your Do-Not-Call rights.

Lead forms go further than the contracts. Preserve's "kit" request form consents to contact by "AI technology, artificial voice, pre-recorded message, ringless voicemail" (read November 6, 2026). Priority Gold's marketing consent also names ringless voicemail.

Buyback wording follows a pattern too. AHG, Lear, Preserve, Goldline and American Bullion write that the law prohibits a guaranteed repurchase, as failed Oxford's agreement did, and Augusta's FAQ says it "cannot legally guarantee" one. Failed Rosland's agreement called its buyback "voluntary" and allowed itself 60 calendar days to pay. Goldco ("guaranteed at the highest price"), Noble Gold ("guaranteed buyback program") and Patriot ("Highest price Buy Back Guarantee") use the word in marketing without published terms. Priority publishes an 18% consignment fee after 60 months on non-bullion. What each written buyback clause promises is in gold IRA buyback programs compared.

9 Questions to Ask a Gold IRA Company About Its Contract, and the Answers That Should Stop You#

Nine questions about the contract, asked in writing before you fund the IRA, show whether a gold IRA company's terms are fair. Each question below points at one clause from the tables above.

1. Send me the agreement I will sign, with its version date.
2. State my markup for each item on my order, in writing.
3. Tell me when my cancellation window starts and whether it covers bullion.
4. Name the arbitration service, the city and who pays the fees.
5. Tell me whether I can opt out of arbitration, by when and at what cost.
6. State my deadline to bring a claim.
7. State the most you can owe me (the liability cap).
8. Confirm whether this contract waives my Do-Not-Call registration.
9. Put your buyback method and any fee in the contract.

The full set of 12 questions to ask a gold IRA company, beyond the contract, is on our guide to choosing one.

The table shows a good answer and a stop answer for each question, with the criterion in SafeOunce's published method that looks for it.

A good answer on every line does not make a company cheap, and a stop answer does not prove wrongdoing. It tells you where you carry the risk. Get each answer by email, so it sits next to the signed contract.

Contract fairness is worth 15 of 100 points in how SafeOunce rates gold IRA companies; each review shows the result.

Which Contract Terms Fit Your Situation?#

The right contract depends on whether you buy bullion or premium coins, whether you want to keep your court rights and how fast your IRA money moves. Premium coins are collector-style coins sold well above their metal value.

Whichever company you choose, keep a dated copy of the contract, the invoice and every email.

What Else Should You Check Beyond a Gold IRA Company's Contract?#

A fair contract is only one check: you also need proof the metal reached the vault, the company's complaint record and a regulator to call. The contract tells you your rights on paper. The three checks below tell you whether those rights will ever be needed.

• Delivery. How to check delivery of IRA metal against your invoice is on our delivery checklist.
• Complaints. Which agency takes which complaint is on how to report a gold IRA company.
• Regulators. The gaps between agencies are explained on who regulates gold IRA companies.

SafeOunce takes no money from any company named on this page. Many review pages are paid when you contact a company; see how SafeOunce is paid on who pays SafeOunce.

Bullion Dealers With IRA Programs: Courts, Home Counties and $250 Caps#

Online bullion dealers that sell into IRAs use different dispute terms: some name courts instead of arbitration, and one pays most of your arbitration cost. The six dealers below were read from their terms pages.

Does a Gold IRA Contract Make the Company Your Fiduciary?#

No: the contracts SafeOunce read say the opposite, for example Lear's "LC is not an investment or financial advisor, or retirement account fiduciary" and AHG's "no fiduciary relationship exists". A fiduciary must put your interests first. Rosland's agreement used the words "owe no fiduciary duty", and AHG's and Preserve's agreements say their sales reps "are not licensed". Goldline's agreement adds that commissions "are usually greatest on products with a higher spread". What a fiduciary owes you, and why salespeople are not one, is in our glossary.

Can you sue a gold IRA company if you signed an arbitration agreement?#

Usually not in court, unless you opted out in time or a court finds the clause unenforceable, as in Dennison (2020). In Kagan (2019), a magistrate judge recommended the same before the case was dismissed. You can still bring the claim in arbitration, use small claims where the contract allows it (USMR, Orion, GoldenCrest), and complain to regulators. How to get your money back from a gold IRA company through each route is explained step by step.

Can you still cancel after the dealer's window closes?#

For the first 7 days you can revoke the IRA account itself with the custodian and get "the entire amount" back, under Treas. Reg. 1.408-6, even after a 24-hour dealer window closes. The regulation says the refund comes "without adjustment for such items as sales commissions, administrative expenses or fluctuation in market value" (26 CFR 1.408-6(d)(4)). In plain English: the custodian owes you every dollar you put in. The dealer is not bound by that rule, and its contract still decides who bears a market loss on the metal order. The steps for the 7-day revocation right are on our cancellation page.

Does any gold IRA contract guarantee a buyback price?#

No contract SafeOunce read guarantees a buyback price; five operating sellers' contracts say the law prohibits it, as did failed Oxford's. Lear adds that it "has never refused" a buyback as of its agreement date, a statement about the past, not a promise.

What are typical fees for a gold IRA?#

Account fees run about $200 to $350 a year for setup, custody and storage at the large metals custodians, but the markup in the contract is usually the larger cost. Equity Trust's metals-only schedule (Rev. 081726) costs $235 or $285 a year, STRATA's (page modified August 31, 2026) $265 or $325, and GoldStar's (Rev. 01/2026) $215 for commingled storage. Every custodian and seller is compared on gold IRA fees.