| Current Silver Spot (USD/Oz): |
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Where Can I Buy Silver?
Depending on where you live, you may be able to buy silver nearby, at a coin store, jewelry store, or bank. However, in many locations it is not easy to find silver to purchase (or it may be priced too high). In these cases, we recommend:| Source | Notable For | Details |
|---|---|---|
| eBay |
| There is always silver available to buy on eBay, but you have to be a bit cautious (e.g. not buying from someone with little feedback, being aware of the protection limits that eBay and PayPal offer). Sometimes, prices will be higher than they should; other times, you can purchase silver below spot. If you use eBay, you can save up to 15% by using the Bing cashback program (which typically provides 8% cash back for 'Buy It Now' purchases), as well as eBay Bucks (2% for those invited to the program), Mr. Rebates (3%) or Ebates, and credit card rewards programs (1%-2%). |
| The Tulving Co. |
| A no-nonsense website for those that have a lot to invest (the minimums vary, but are typically about 500+ ounces for silver), almost always offering the best prices. |
| APMEX |
| APMEX is best known for their very diverse selection of silver (and gold) products, often offering hard-to-find items. Their prices are also very competitive. |
| AJPM |
| AJPM has common bullion products, at very good prices. They also have daily specials, that sometimes include uncommon products, or better than usual deals. |
| Bullion Direct |
| Bullion Direct acts as an intermediary between buyers and sellers. Sellers ship the product to Bullion Direct, who then inspects the product and ships it to you. |
| Provident Metals |
| Provident Metals has only been around since about August, 2009, but has gained a large following of loyal customers. |
| Gainesville Coins |
| Gainesville Coins has been around since about 2006, but it appears that they have grown their customer base significantly over the past year or two. |
| www.kitco.com1 |
| Kitco is a well-known dealer. See our notes below. 1, 2 |
All of these sources are reputable (but checking out BBB reports is always recommended), and have been around for a number of years. As of this writing, we do not receive any affiliate payments from any of these companies.
1. Unlike the other companies, we do not have experience purchasing through this company. Our only experience with them is with their forums, where they will delete posts for breaking rules that are not stated anywhere. In one case, their users were looking for someone to provide notes of a 5+ hour CFTC meeting, which we prepared and put online, and posted a link to. This met all their listed rules, yet the post was deleted. After a few back-and-forth E-mails with their moderator, it was determined that they have unlisted rules (in this case, that you may never post links to a webpages that you have an affiliation with, and links to all but the most popular sites should be done as text rather than a hyperlink). After having spent a couple hours helping out some of their users who requested this information, which was unavailable anywhere else, and about one of the most significant meetings in the metals market for years, we were quite disappointed. We have no problem with the hosts of forums having rules, or amending them as needed, but we certainly would think twice before purchasing bullion with a company having unwritten rules.
2. We are skeptical of the data they provide. Specifically, they offer historical data ('1833-1999 Yearly Averages') that appears to be inaccurate. They show a London Fix Average price of $21.793 for silver for 1979, and $16.393 for 1980. However, using data directly from the LBMA, we determine it to be $11.0679 in 1979, and $20.9837 for 1980. So for one year, their price is almost TWICE what it really was, and the other 20% LOWER than it really was. They were contacted about this discrepancy, but never replied to offer an explanation. We are unaware where they are getting their inaccurate date from, nor why they do not fix it. But given all the concerns of manipulation and such, it is disconcerning when companies provide inaccurate information. It may just be an honest mistake.
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