Noble Gold Investments vs Lear Capital: Fees, Minimums, Buyback and Complaints Compared (2026)

For segregated storage, Noble Gold's gold IRA page and a Lear Capital fee article list the same $285 a year (November 6, 2026), but the firms differ more on paper. Lear publishes its spread range and its full contract, and it has paid $14.25 million to settle three government cases. Noble Gold publishes neither, and it had 3 BBB complaints in three years (October 2, 2026). Which of those facts matters for your money?

Noble Gold and Lear Capital, the precious metals seller, are two gold IRA companies based in Los Angeles. A gold IRA is a retirement account that holds physical metal through a custodian, the trust company that holds the account for you. Both are among the gold IRA companies SafeOunce checks with the same records, fees and contract questions.

The largest cost at both is the spread on the coins, the part of your price that is not metal. The BBB is the Better Business Bureau, a nonprofit that grades how firms handle complaints. The page ends with a verdict by situation, not an overall winner.

The five numbers that separate the two companies most are listed below.

• IRA minimum: $20,000 at Noble Gold vs none stated in Lear's IRA FAQ (September 29, 2026; re-read November 6, 2026).
• Account fees: $80 + $275 a year or $50 + $285 a year at Noble Gold (two pages) vs $365, then $285, segregated at Lear (fee article dated July 27, 2026). Lear's pooled price is $315, then $235 (IRA FAQ, September 29, 2026).
• Spread published: no at Noble Gold vs 2% to 35% at Lear (Lear's terms, last updated December 2025; both sites read November 6, 2026).
• Cancellation window: not published at Noble Gold vs 24 hours after the invoice at Lear (September 29, 2026).
• BBB complaints in three years: 3 at Noble Gold (October 2, 2026) vs 33 at Lear (September 29, 2026).

Noble Gold Investments vs Lear Capital at a Glance: 18 Facts Side by Side#

The table below compares the same 18 facts for Noble Gold Investments and Lear Capital, with the date we checked each one. Each fact comes from the company's own page, a court or regulator record, or the BBB.

The depository is the vault that stores the metal. Segregated storage keeps your coins apart from other people's; non-segregated (pooled) storage returns the same type and amount. BBB accreditation is a paid membership, separate from the BBB grade.

Company website links in this table: SafeOunce earns nothing from these links.

Table T1: Noble Gold Investments vs Lear Capital: 18 facts, checked September 29 to November 6, 2026. The official-site row is not counted in the 18.

"Not published" means the company's website did not show the figure on the date given. Noble Gold's two fee pages disagree, so both figures appear. Lear's IRA FAQ does not print the segregated price; a Lear knowledge-base article dated July 27, 2026 does. Lear Capital is not connected to Lear Corporation, the car-parts maker. Noble Gold is not connected to Noble Group, the Hong Kong commodity trader.

Our Noble Gold Investments review covers Noble Gold alone, and the Lear Capital review does the same for Lear, case by case.

How Do Noble Gold and Lear Capital Fees Compare?#

Like for like, Noble Gold's gold IRA page and Lear Capital list the same $285 a year for segregated storage; Lear's $235 buys pooled storage, which Noble Gold lacks. Over 10 years at list prices read September 29 to November 6, 2026, Noble Gold's fees total $2,830 to $2,930 and Lear's $2,430 pooled or $2,930 segregated. So where does the real cost difference come from?

It comes from the spread, which Lear prints as a range and Noble Gold does not print at all. Account fees are flat yearly bills for the custodian and the vault, while the spread is a share of every dollar you spend on metal. On $100,000, one point of spread cuts your day-one sale value by about $953. Every cost layer is compared on gold IRA fees.

Account fees: $275 or $285 a year at Noble Gold vs $235 at Lear Capital#

In year one Noble Gold lists $355 or $335 in account fees, depending on the page, and Lear $315 for pooled or $365 for segregated storage. Noble Gold's support page reads "one-time $80 setup fee, followed by a flat annual rate of $275", made of $125 custodial and $150 storage (September 29, 2026). Its gold IRA page lists $50 setup, $125 maintenance and $160 storage, or $285 a year, plus a $30 wire fee. Both pages were still live on November 6, 2026.

A flat fee is the same dollar amount at any account size. Lear's IRA FAQ says: "The fee for the first year is $315 and $235 each subsequent year", with e-statements and pooled storage. The FAQ does not print the segregated price; a Lear knowledge-base article dated July 27, 2026 lists $160 a year, so $365 in year one and $285 after.

Table T2: Account fees at Noble Gold (two pages, September 29, 2026) and Lear Capital (IRA FAQ totals, September 29, 2026; line items from its fee article dated July 27, 2026, read November 6, 2026); sums by SafeOunce.

Noble Gold's gold IRA page also lists $250 to close the account and $75 for an in-kind distribution, which means taking the coins themselves out of the IRA. Lear's FAQ lists no exit fees. If Noble Gold charges its $30 wire when you fund the account, its gold IRA page and Lear's segregated price match to the dollar.

Same custodian, different storage: what Equity Trust's schedule explains#

Both companies name Equity Trust as custodian, and its metals-only schedule lines up with the gap: there, segregated storage costs $50 a year more than pooled. Noble Gold's support page sends gold IRAs to "your custodian Equity Institutional", also called "Equity Trust IRA". Lear's rollover page names "our preferred IRA custodian, Equity Trust Company".

On October 2, 2026, Lear's IRA FAQ named "Self Directed IRA Services, Inc.", the former name of STRATA Trust Company; on November 6, 2026 it named Equity Trust Company. Equity Trust's Precious Metals (Only) Fee Schedule FS-0004-05 Rev. 081726 lists $50 setup, $125 a year and a $30 wire fee (for sending money by bank wire). Storage is $110 pooled or $160 segregated.

Table T3: Equity Trust's metals schedule (FS-0004-05 Rev. 081726) against each company's published fee lines, read September 29 and November 6, 2026.

Lear's lines match Equity Trust's schedule one for one, and its fee article calls the $30 "a $30 wire transfer fee". Noble Gold's gold IRA page matches the segregated column; its support page's $150 storage matches no Equity Trust line. Equity Trust does not say which schedule applies to which customer, so treat these matches as a guide, not proof. The full Equity Trust precious metals IRA fees, including exit charges, are on its review.

The markup: Lear Capital prints a 2% to 35% range, Noble Gold prints none#

Lear's contract says its spreads generally range from 2% to 35% of the price, and its own 2022 average was 23.4%; Noble Gold publishes no spread and no coin prices. Lear's terms (last updated December 2025) read: "LC's Spreads generally range between 2% and 35% of the quoted purchase price." Lear's reputation FAQ puts the low end differently: metal-related fees "start at 1%" (read October 2, 2026).

Lear confirms the exact spread on a recorded voice confirmation, a call where you answer yes or no to the order terms. It also appears on the invoice Lear sends before you pay. Its Chapter 11 plan (Doc 694, filed June 5, 2023) says the spread "can be as much as 33% (in 2022, the average spread was 23.4%)". The plan adds that Lear "contends its spreads are consistent with its competitors."

The same plan shows little of that spread is profit. Lear's net income was 2.51% of revenue in 2020 and 2.77% in 2021, so roughly 20 of the 23 spread points pay for commissions, advertising and staff.

Lear shows live coin prices online, one of 4 of 15 operating sellers that did on October 2, 2026. Noble Gold shows no prices; its support page says only: "We offer a flat fee structure when you acquire the metals from us." In a BBB reply of July 29, 2025, Noble Gold said every client signs a Shipping and Transaction Agreement "which clearly outlines the average spread". That agreement is not on its website.

For scale, the CFTC, the federal commodities regulator, puts bullion at 5% to 10% over spot, today's market price for raw metal (release 8215-20, 2020). It says legitimate spreads are often under 20% (10 Things, 2024). Every published range is compared on gold IRA markups and spreads.

How much must gold rise to cover the markup?#

At Lear's 2022 average spread of 23.4%, gold must rise about 37% before a customer who sells back gets back to even. The rise covers two gaps: the spread itself, and the buyback gap, because the dealer's bid sits below its own cost.

Table T4: Break-even rise by spread. The buyback gap comes from Lear's own contract example ($32 cost, about $30.50 bid, 95.3%). Noble Gold's spread and bid are not published. Illustration, not a quote from either company.

Lear's refund plan treated 12% as the reference spread, so a quote above 12% is above the level Lear's own plan used. At a 20% spread, gold rising 4% a year would take about 6.9 years to cover the 31.1%, or 4.0 years at 7% a year. Those growth rates are illustrations, not forecasts.

One Noble Gold reviewer reports paying "just over 10%" on gold (October 2023, unverified). At 10%, the rise needed is 16.6%. Test your own spread in the gold IRA break-even calculator.

What a $100,000 gold IRA costs over 10 years at each company#

At the same spread, 10 years of account fees on $100,000 differ by $500 at most between the two companies; the spread you are charged decides the total. The table assumes a flat metal price for 10 years and a spread taken as a share of the price paid. It uses a buyback bid of 95.3% of the dealer's cost, from Lear's contract example. Fees are paid from outside the IRA and exit fees are left out.

Table T5: 10-year cost of a $100,000 gold IRA at six hypothetical spreads; metal price flat. Noble Gold's range runs from its support page to its gold IRA page with the $30 wire. These are scenarios, not either company's actual spread, and not a forecast.

The day-one sale value is what the coins would fetch if sold back the day you bought them. Your first statement shows a similar drop, because Equity Trust's statement values "do not include any markups, commissions or premiums from the precious metals dealer". At a 23.4% spread, $100,000 shows as about $76,600 of metal.

New York's 2021 petition against Lear alleged customers were "shocked" when first statements showed about a third less (¶6, alleged); Lear settled without admitting wrongdoing. Why a gold IRA statement shows less than you paid is explained step by step.

For a benchmark, buying and selling a 1-ounce Gold Eagle the same day at a large online dealer cost about 5.39% (SD Bullion prices, September 29, 2026).

Promotions: Lear Capital's fee waiver and free coins vs Noble Gold's free coin#

Lear's free IRA fees apply only to "Limited Mintage coins", and neither Lear's free coins nor Noble Gold's free gold coin has published terms. A Limited Mintage coin comes from a small production run and sells at a higher price than plain bullion. Lear's four offers, as of September 29, 2026, are listed below.

• Fee waiver: year one free from $25,000, years one and two from $50,000, years one to three from $75,000; "*Limited Mintage coins only", repaid "after first month in storage".
• Free coins: "Up to $15,000 in Free Coins" on the homepage, with no terms published.
• $500 credit: usable "for shipping, insurance charges or IRA custodial fees".
• Price match: find a lower price within 24 hours of the invoice and Lear says it will match it, or you can cancel at no cost.

Noble Gold's depository guide shows one banner, "Get A Free Gold Coin When You Open A Gold IRA Account", with no terms (September 29, 2026).

Lear's affiliate contract (updated August 1, 2025) shows where the cost lands. It subtracts "the cost of any giveaways provided to induce the sale (e.g., reimbursed IRA custodial fees, bonus precious metals)" from gross profit.

How free silver and bonus metal gold IRA promotions are paid for is explained on our promotions guide.

Minimum Investment: $20,000 at Noble Gold vs No Minimum in Lear Capital's IRA FAQ#

Noble Gold requires $20,000 to open a gold or silver IRA, while Lear Capital's IRA FAQ states no minimum, as of September 29, 2026. Noble Gold's gold IRA page lists "Minimum Investment $20,000" for the Gold & Silver IRA. It lists $10,000 for "Cash Purchase & Home Delivery", a purchase outside any IRA (re-read November 6, 2026).

Lear's offers begin at set sizes instead. Its IRA FAQ says the "$50 set-up fee covered" applies above $10,000, and its fee waivers start at $25,000. Lear's affiliate contract counts a lead only above $10,000 of interest. None of these is stated as a minimum.

The IRS sets no gold IRA minimum investment. The 2026 IRA contribution limit is $7,500, plus $1,100 at age 50 or older (IRS Notice 2025-67). So most accounts start with a transfer, which moves money directly between custodians, or a rollover from a 401(k). We list the gold IRA minimum investment for every company we track.

Ranking pages read on November 6, 2026 print $2,000 or "$10k-$20k" for Noble Gold and $25,000 for Lear. Noble Gold's own page says $20,000, and Lear's IRA FAQ gives no figure.

What the minimum means for fee drag#

At Noble Gold's $20,000 minimum, its yearly fees take 1.375% to 1.425% of the account, against 1.175% for Lear's pooled $235 and 1.425% for its segregated $285. Fee drag is the share of your account the yearly fees take. Because both fees are flat, the drag shrinks as the account grows.

Table T6: Yearly account fees as a percent of the balance, from Noble Gold's pages and Lear's IRA FAQ (September 29, 2026) and Lear's fee article (dated July 27, 2026); SafeOunce computation.

At $100,000 every schedule falls under 0.3% a year. At that size the spread matters far more than the fee gap.

Less than $20,000? A gold ETF may cost less#

With less than $20,000, Noble Gold will not open an IRA, and at Lear $235 a year takes 2.35% of $10,000. A gold ETF is a fund that trades like a stock and holds gold for you. Expense ratios, the yearly fund fee, were 0.10% for GLDM, 0.25% for IAU and 0.40% for GLD (September 29, 2026). The costs are set out in gold IRA vs gold ETF.

Buyback and Cancellation: What Each Company Puts in Writing#

Lear puts its buyback method, a 24-hour cancellation window and its dispute rules in a public contract, while Noble Gold publishes none of the three. Disputes are decided on the signed documents, not on what was said on the sales call.

Buyback wording: "guaranteed buyback program" vs "the law prohibits LC from guaranteeing"#

Noble Gold's who-we-are page calls its buyback "guaranteed" without terms, while Lear's contract says the law prohibits it from guaranteeing a buyback and states how it prices one. A buyback is the dealer buying your metal back. The bid is the price a dealer pays you, and a wholesaler is the large firm that supplies dealers.

Table T7: Buyback wording on Noble Gold's and Lear Capital's own pages, read September 29 to November 6, 2026.

A Noble Gold reviewer reports 27 days and seven contacts to get a sell-back quote in early 2026. Noble Gold replied on February 26, 2026 that buyback inquiries "are addressed in the order received", with pricing set "at the time of confirmation". So no price is locked while you wait. Our guide on how to sell gold in your IRA explains bids and custodian fees.

At Lear, a Trustpilot reviewer alleges Lear said on February 27, 2026 that it was "not doing buy backs at this time". Lear replied that demand surged and "liquidity and processing timelines were affected across the industry, not just at Lear". That reply sits beside the contract's "never refused" line.

Other firms' wording is in gold IRA buyback programs compared.

Cancellation: 24 hours after the invoice vs not published#

Lear gives you 24 hours to cancel after it sends the written invoice, and Noble Gold publishes no cancellation window, as of September 29, 2026. Lear's terms read: "Customer then has 24 hours to cancel the transaction without penalty." They add: "Certain states require longer cancellation periods, which LC honors."

The right came from Lear's 2021 agreement with the Los Angeles City Attorney; Lear's plan calls it "(to most buyers) a 24-hour, no risk cancellation policy". Noble Gold's terms and pages state no window, so ask it for its deadline in writing, and from what moment it runs.

Treasury Regulation 1.408-6 gives a separate right: at least 7 days to revoke a new IRA. It runs against the custodian, not the dealer, so it may not undo a metal purchase. Our page on how to cancel a gold IRA separates the IRS right from the dealer's terms.

Contracts: Lear Capital's public terms vs Noble Gold's unpublished agreement#

Lear publishes the full contract you sign (last updated December 2025); Noble Gold publishes website terms and text-message terms, but not the Shipping and Transaction Agreement its customers sign. Arbitration is a private hearing instead of court. JAMS and AAA (the American Arbitration Association) are private companies that run those hearings. The table sets eleven terms side by side.

Table T8: Contract terms at Noble Gold (website and text-message terms, read September 29 and October 2, 2026) and Lear Capital (terms, last updated December 2025, re-read November 6, 2026).

An opt-out keeps your right to go to court, and to rescind is to cancel the sale and refund you. So at Lear, opting out can cost you the purchase itself. Lear's contract also waives class actions, where customers sue together as one group. Our table of gold IRA company contracts compared shows these clauses at every firm that publishes them.

Noble Gold's website terms contain an odd line: "Goldco shall make reasonable efforts ship metals within five to fourteen (5-14) business days". The same terms refer to "goldco.com", and Goldco's own terms carry the same sentence. SafeOunce found no business connection between the two firms.

Lear's contract section 1.6 advises putting no more than 20% of "available investment funds" in metals. It advises holding "at least a 3 to 5 year period, and preferably 5 to 10 years". Its salespeople "are commissioned salespersons" and "not licensed".

The Do-Not-Call Registry is the federal list that blocks most sales calls. Signing Lear's contract allows sales calls; how to stop gold IRA cold calls is on our calls guide.

Custodians and depositories: Equity Trust at both, IDS vs the Delaware Depository#

Noble Gold says it stores IRA metal with International Depository Services in segregated storage only, and Lear ships IRA metal to the Delaware Depository; both name Equity Trust as custodian. Noble Gold's support page says "Noble Gold has partnered with International Depository Services (IDS)" and "We only offer segregated storage". It cites an "all-risk policy underwritten by Lloyd's of London", insurance that covers loss from any cause the policy does not exclude.

IDS has vaults in Dallas, New Castle, Delaware and Mississauga, Ontario. No IRS ruling covers IRA metal stored in Canada, so get the custodian's written approval before using that vault. Locations and insurance for International Depository Services (IDS) are on its profile.

Lear names the Delaware Depository, whose FAQ lists $1 billion of all-risk cover plus $100 million of contingent cover (September 29, 2026). The cover pays metal value, not premiums, and excludes war, terrorism, cyber events and confiscation. FDIC and SIPC, the bank and brokerage protection funds, never cover IRA metal. For silver IRAs, Noble Gold names New Direction IRA Services, now New Direction Trust Company.

Ask three custody questions in writing, listed below. Fees, insurance and audits are on our Delaware Depository profile.

• Custodian: which one, and which fee schedule with its revision date?
• Vault: which city, and is the metal titled to my IRA?
• Storage: segregated or pooled, and at what yearly price?

Complaints, Lawsuits and Regulatory Records Compared#

Lear Capital paid $14.25 million in three government settlements and had 33 BBB complaints in three years, against Noble Gold's 3 (BBB, September 29 and October 2, 2026). Lear settled without admitting wrongdoing and kept operating after its 2022 Chapter 11 (Bankr. D. Del. No. 22-10165, plan Doc 694). We found no regulator action against Noble Gold, and its two federal cases were both filed by Noble Gold.

Each Noble Gold complaint and case is read in full on Noble Gold Investments complaints, lawsuits and BBB record.

BBB and Trustpilot: 3 vs 33 complaints in three years#

Lear has 22.1 BBB complaints per 100 BBB reviews (September 29, 2026) and Noble Gold 1.2 (October 2, 2026), about 18 times apart, though both keep an A+ grade. Complaint density is complaints divided by reviews, so big and small sellers can be compared. On those dates, Lear's rate was the highest of the ten sellers SafeOunce tracks, and Noble Gold's was lower than six of the nine others.

Table T9: BBB and Trustpilot records of Noble Gold Investments and Lear Capital; complaint density computed by SafeOunce.

Size explains only part of the gap. Brandwave, a third-party search-data firm, estimates Lear's share of US gold IRA company searches at 17.7% and Noble Gold's at 6.1% (September 2026). That is about 2.9 times the interest, while Lear has 11 times the complaints. These are outside estimates, used only as a rough size check.

Counts grow with sales, and arbitration keeps many disputes out of public view. Trustpilot adds seven 3.5-star reviews to every score, and both companies invite reviews. The BBB's rating overview says 90 of 100 points relate to complaints, not reviews.

Why star ratings barely separate these firms is covered in BBB, BCA and Trustpilot ratings.

What unhappy customers report about each company#

At both companies, the main complaint is the size of the markup and when it was explained; at Noble Gold, slow sell-backs come second. Lear's newer BBB complaints, filed from October 2023 to March 2026, allege spreads of 30% to 38% that were not clearly explained. One customer wrote on January 24, 2026 that "a 7% markup was discussed on multiple occasions", then 30% was charged.

Lear replies that these customers were told on the recorded call and agreed. One reply, of December 24, 2024, says the fee "falls within the range that appears on his signed contract". The BBB marks all 33 complaints answered or resolved (October 2, 2026).

An older pattern at Lear comes from court and regulator files on 2014-2020 conduct, which alleged yes-or-no confirmation calls, low first statements and coin swaps. New York's petition alleged commissions of up to 33% on over $43 million of sales to nearly 1,000 New York investors since 2014. It cites a 2015 Lear figure, "Average IRA Deal $52.1k", against $13.2k outside IRAs (alleged). Lear agreed to change these practices in its 2021-2023 settlements, without admitting wrongdoing.

At Noble Gold, a customer alleged on July 23, 2025 that fees on a $150,000 silver purchase were "around 40%". Noble Gold replied: "Noble Gold Investments does not charge a 40% fee, nor are fees hidden from clients." The customer says the charge was later cut to about 2.5%.

On Trustpilot, Noble Gold has 13 one- and two-star reviews out of 796 (October 2, 2026). By SafeOunce's coding, 4 are about price, 4 about slow replies, 2 about value drops and 3 about other topics.

Lawsuits and settlements: $14.25 million paid by Lear Capital, two cases filed by Noble Gold#

Lear paid $14.25 million in 2021-2023 to settle cases brought by the Los Angeles City Attorney, New York's Attorney General and at least 42 regulators, without admitting wrongdoing. A settlement ends a case by agreement. A consent decree is a court-approved settlement. Chapter 11 is court-supervised reorganization, and Subchapter V is a faster track for small businesses.

Table T10: Court cases involving Lear Capital and Noble Gold Investments (Golden Bull, LLC), with outcomes; searches of September 29 and October 2, 2026.

Lear's plan set up the Customer Fund, a pot of money for refunds on purchases from January 1, 2016 to March 3, 2022. Each customer who filed a claim got back the spread paid minus a hypothetical 12% spread. That was $8,000 on a $100,000 purchase at 20%, and $11,400 at 23.4%. Lear Capital, Inc. emerged from Chapter 11 and operates today as Lear Capital, LLC.

Noble Gold was the plaintiff, the side that sues, in both of its cases. An injunction is a court order to stop doing something, and a docket is the court's list of filings. Federal court searches found no customer lawsuit or class action against Noble Gold (October 2, 2026); they cannot see arbitration or most state courts.

Every case, with the court documents, is on our Lear Capital complaints, lawsuits and bankruptcy review.

Regulator actions: state and city cases against Lear Capital, none found for Noble Gold#

Every regulator action against Lear came from states, the District of Columbia and a city; SafeOunce found no federal action against either firm, and none at all against Noble Gold. Lear's three cases sit in our list of precious metals IRA enforcement actions. The SEC is the federal securities regulator.

The multistate settlement came through Lear's bankruptcy plan, announced by DC's Department of Insurance, Securities and Banking on October 19, 2023 (DISB release). It says "Lear Capital urged investors to liquidate their traditional retirement savings and buy precious metals without proper fee disclosures." That is a regulator's statement in a settlement release; Lear neither admitted nor denied the claims.

We searched CFTC and SEC releases and state regulator sites on September 29 and October 2, 2026. The state sweep does not yet cover all 50 states, so "none found" is limited to those searches.

Website statements vs the rules: home storage, rare coins and "IRS-approved"#

Noble Gold's own pages contain four statements that conflict with IRA rules, including an offer to store IRA gold at home; Lear's FAQ has one, calling its vault "IRS-approved". A collectible, in tax law, is an item such as a rare coin that an IRA cannot hold. A trustee is the bank or approved firm that holds IRA assets.

Table T11: Website statements at Noble Gold and Lear Capital checked against IRA rules, September 29 to November 6, 2026.

In McNulty, the tax court held that IRA coins kept at home count as a taxable distribution; the case is covered on home storage gold IRA.

No IRS list supports "IRS-approved" for metals or vaults. Eligible bullion must meet a fineness test, such as .995 for gold, or be a named US coin under 26 U.S.C. 408(m)(3). Our page on IRA-approved precious metals lists what the law actually allows.

Noble Gold or Lear Capital: Which Company Fits Your Situation?#

Neither company is better for everyone: Lear puts more in writing, Noble Gold has the far smaller record, and your situation decides between them. The table matches nine common situations to the company that fits better and the dated fact that decides it.

Table T12: Verdict by reader situation for Noble Gold Investments and Lear Capital, from facts checked September 29 to November 6, 2026.

Neither company publishes its spread per coin, so the deciding number at both is the one you get in writing.

Our ranked list of best gold IRA companies uses the same records; the spread counts once our written quote test is done.

Where Noble Gold and Lear Capital stand in SafeOunce's ratings#

Both ratings are provisional: Noble Gold has earned 37 of the 53 points checked so far and Lear Capital 19 of 56 (Noble Gold as of October 2, Lear as of November 6, 2026). A provisional result has no band and no score out of 100 until all 100 points are checked.

Table T13: SafeOunce rating evidence for Noble Gold Investments and Lear Capital, points earned of points checked, as of October 2, 2026.

The remaining points, 47 for Noble Gold and 48 for Lear, are not yet checked, including the 15-point written quote test at each company. Lear's 2021-2023 settlements trigger Gate 3, which keeps it off SafeOunce's best-of lists for 5 years from the settlement date.

Neither company is on watch, and we name no overall winner until both have a full score. Weights, gates and evidence rules are on how SafeOunce rates gold IRA companies.

What Should You Ask Noble Gold or Lear Capital Before You Sign?#

Ask both companies the same six questions in writing, on the same day, before any retirement money moves. The six questions are listed below.

1. Ask for the price of each coin and its spread in dollars and in percent. A spread above 12% is above the reference Lear's own refund plan used.
2. Ask what the company would pay for the same coins tomorrow, and how many business days a sale takes.
3. Ask which fee schedule applies (at Noble Gold, $275 or $285, and when the $30 wire is charged; at Lear, pooled $235 or segregated $285) and for every exit fee.
4. Ask for the cancellation window and the moment it starts.
5. Ask for the purchase agreement by email before the confirmation call.
6. Ask which custodian, which vault and which city will hold the metal.

All 12 questions on our longer list are in how to choose a gold IRA company.

Federal law backs the first question. The Telemarketing Sales Rule, 16 CFR 310.3(a)(1)(i), requires a telemarketer to disclose the total cost before you pay. Section 310.6(b)(5) keeps precious metals investment sales under the rule even when you called the company in response to its ad.

Put both written quotes side by side in our gold IRA company comparison tool, and keep every written answer with its date.

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

How are review sites paid to recommend Noble Gold or Lear Capital?#

Lear's affiliate contract pays review sites $175 to $225 per qualified lead plus a share of gross profit; Noble Gold's affiliate program does not publish its pay. An affiliate is a site paid for sending customers. Lear's contract (updated August 1, 2025) counts a lead only after "a Lear Capital sales representative" has spoken with you, and excludes New York leads.

The share is not settled: the contract's words say five, six and seven percent, while its figures say 8%, 9% and 10%. Affiliates must tell readers their reviews "are not neutral or independent". Noble Gold's sign-up page promises "huge payouts" but no amounts (September 29, 2026).

On November 6, 2026, the top results for this pair were affiliate pages, a 2022 press release and one unsigned page. That page listed fees but no spread, contract, complaint or court record.

We explain the whole system in are gold IRA reviews paid.

Who endorses Noble Gold and Lear Capital?#

Noble Gold's homepage features actor Kevin Sorbo and media hosts Dave Rubin and Seth Holehouse, as of September 29, 2026. Lear's features Judge Andrew P. Napolitano, whom Lear describes as a paid spokesman, and announces an endorsement by Glenn Beck. Noble Gold's 2023 Elliott case was over an "exclusive endorsement agreement", so such deals are business contracts. Who is paid by whom is listed under celebrity gold IRA endorsements.

How do Noble Gold and Lear Capital compare with other gold IRA companies?#

Each company has its own head-to-head pages against the other large gold IRA sellers. The seven pages are listed below.

• American Hartford Gold vs Noble Gold Investments
• Birch Gold Group vs Noble Gold Investments
• Lear Capital vs Priority Gold
• Goldco vs Lear Capital
• Noble Gold Investments vs Priority Gold
• Augusta Precious Metals vs Lear Capital
• Lear Capital vs Goldline

What is the minimum investment for Noble Gold?#

Noble Gold's minimum is $20,000 for a gold or silver IRA and $10,000 for a cash purchase delivered to you, per its gold IRA page (September 29, 2026). Sites that print $2,000 are wrong. Noble Gold's non-IRA Royal Survival Packs, sold for cash only, start at $5,000. Fees and storage are covered in our Noble Gold Investments review 2026.

Is Lear Capital a reputable company?#

Lear Capital is a real company operating since 1997, but it paid $14.25 million in 2021-2023 to settle markup cases without admitting wrongdoing. Its BBB complaint rate, 22.1 per 100 reviews on September 29, 2026, was the highest of the ten sellers SafeOunce tracks. It still holds an A+ grade, and it publishes its contract and spread range.

Who owns Noble Gold and Lear Capital?#

Collin Plume, Noble Gold's founder and CEO, runs it through Golden Bull, LLC; Kevin DeMeritt founded Lear Capital and owned 100% of Lear Capital, Inc. when it filed Chapter 11. Neither LLC publishes its owners today; John Ohanesian is Lear's CEO, per the BBB. "Golden Bull Ltd" in SEC records is Bit Digital, Inc., an unrelated firm.

Does Lear Capital sell gold bars and silver?#

Yes: Lear sells gold, silver and platinum coins and bars, inside and outside IRAs; 63.6% of its 2022 revenue came from direct sales, per its Chapter 11 plan. For an IRA, bars must be at least .995 gold, .999 silver or .9995 platinum (26 U.S.C. 408(m)(3)(B)).

Bought from Lear Capital between 2016 and 2022: can you still get a refund?#

Probably not: refunds came from a fixed $5.5 million fund for purchases from January 2016 to March 2022, and SafeOunce found no open claims process as of September 29, 2026. Contact your state securities regulator. Vermont's alert of June 29, 2023 asked eligible residents to email its securities division and said it "does not believe that any Vermont investors filed proofs of claim" (Vermont DFR). You can also report a concern to the CFTC at 866-366-2382 or call FINRA's Senior Helpline at 844-574-3577. Whether you can get your money back from a gold IRA company depends on three routes: cancellation, arbitration and restitution.

Can you move from one company to the other later?#

Yes: metals can move between IRA accounts in kind through a trustee-to-trustee transfer, but exit fees apply, and Noble Gold's $20,000 minimum still applies to a new account. A transfer has no 60-day clock, no once-per-year limit and no withholding (IRS Publication 590-A). Equity Trust lists $125 per in-kind transfer out and $250 to close; Noble Gold's page lists $250 closure and $75 in-kind. Steps and costs are in switching gold IRA custodians or companies.