Close-up on handful of gold and silver bullion coins.
When someone invests in precious metals, they discover just how vast bullion offerings can be. After this realization, however, they often notice how nearly identical items can have very different prices. This typically causes confusion among those thinking of buying silver bullion rounds.
No matter how vigilant a person is with their research, figuring out the price differential between silver rounds and coins can be maddening. Why are items with the same bullion content and from the same year so differently priced? Designs can even be similar — sometimes too similar.
At Silver Gold Bull, we understand the confusion that often accompanies buying silver bullion rounds. You’re not alone in trying to figure out this industry secret, and fortunately, the answer isn’t complex. When investing in precious metals, though, this knowledge is invaluable.
The primary difference between bullion rounds versus coins is who produces them. The mints of sovereign governments manufacture coinage. Any item advertised as a round, however, comes from a private mint. This is the key distinction that accounts for many other variations.
The first thing that pops into people’s heads regarding these differences is legal tender status. Coins have a face value. It could be lower than the precious metal worth of a coin, but it’s still valid to pay public debts. This isn’t the case with rounds since private mints can’t issue legal tender.
The following are additional differences between silver bullion rounds and coins that many people overlook.
Any design featured on a government-issued coin must have approval from that government. The designs can vary immensely, but you’ll always find a year of issue on these coins. Rounds do not have to go through a government approval process.
A private mint can issue any design they want — including those that closely resemble legal tender issues. These rounds do not need to feature a year, and if they’re similar to government coinage, they must contain a distinction to differentiate them from legal coinage.
Government-issued coins come in an array of sizes and weights. Bullion coins typically have specific sizes, however, ranging from 1/10 oz to 1 oz. Rounds can also come in a variety of shapes and sizes, but they cannot have the same specifications of any legal tender coin.
By not allowing silver bullion rounds to have the exact same dimensions, the risk of counterfeiting drops drastically. This often minimizes the chance of coin-identifying technologies failing. That is why you’ll often find unique precious metal weights such as 1/20 oz.
Of all the differences between silver bullion rounds and coins, the one most people wonder about is price. If you buy a 1-ounce Sunshine Mint silver round for $26, for instance, the price of an American silver eagle would be closer to $32.
While this may not seem like a significant difference to some folks, it can quickly add up if you’re purchasing many coins. Does this mean you should automatically choose rounds over coins? This depends on your overall investing goals.
The rest of this guide will help you better make that decision.
A section on why buying silver bars is more affordable than purchasing coins may seem out of place in this guide. In reality, this nuance to precious metal investing is an important factor in silver bullion rounds versus coins. It all comes down to production costs.
If you look at a silver bullion bar, you’ll often see no designs at all. Other than a few identifying marks — such as weight and purity — these bars are completely blank. Outside of pouring the precious metal into a mold, very little production is necessary for this bullion type.
When you look at coins and rounds, however, you’ll typically see intricate designs. Some people even collect them for their artistic value rather than their precious metal content. After molding rounds into the proper shape, each individual coin has to go through a striking process.
When you add in design features such as high-proof strikes and reeded edges, it becomes apparent why silver bullion rounds and coins will cost you more than buying silver bars. It simply costs more to create these items, so it only makes sense that their price tags will be higher.
The price difference between silver bars and coins partially explains the variations in round versus coin values. Most rounds you’ll find are not nearly as intricate government-issued coins. This means they’re usually less expensive to produce.
Whenever an item has higher demand, you can expect to pay a higher premium. More liquidity directly relates to this demand. Buyers know they can easily sell government-issued coins, so they’re likely to view them as more valuable than silver bullion rounds.
Of course, all the advantages of coins over rounds mean higher premiums. You’ll hear this multiple times throughout this guide, but if it’s just silver you want to invest in, bullion rounds are the way to go. This will help you avoid any premiums linked to collectability or demand.
If your goal is to invest solely in precious metals, silver bullion rounds seem like a great option. While you’ll end up paying a premium over silver bars, you’ll gain added collectability value without the higher price of legal tender options.
Of course, not all silver rounds are equal. Even worse, not all precious metal dealers will be as fair in their dealings. Because of these and many other issues, there are concrete steps you can take to ensure you get the best price on any silver bullion rounds you purchase.
The biggest step you can take to get your money’s worth on silver rounds is buying from reputable companies. The number of precious metal scams have gone through the roof in recent years, so buying from an unknown source is never a good idea.
Even when you’re buying real silver rounds, you risk losing your entire investment when you don’t work with a reputable company. When a private citizen released silver “Liberty Dollars,” for instance, the government ended up confiscating the rounds from those who bought them.
Even when you’re buying legitimate silver bullion rounds, a lack of credentials or qualifications could risk your investment.
Not all silver rounds are the same. This is also true for precious metal dealers. While the spot price of silver may be the same for everyone, many dealers will charge higher premiums for their services. This can end up costing you big.
At Silver Gold Bull, our Best Price Guarantee means you never have to worry about this. If you find a better price from any of our competitors, let us know. We’ll match it and provide better service. Even after one purchase, you’ll realize we were the right choice.
On the Silver Gold Bull website — and the sites of most reputable dealers — you’ll see discounted pricing for purchasing multiple silver bullion rounds. Like most other products out there, you can typically get a discount for buying more than one round.
It’s possible to call any silver round a specialty coin. When you look at the pricing of an actual specialty coin, though, you won’t mistake it for common rounds. When the Sunshine Mint round was selling for $26, for instance, a Monarch Precious Metals Zodiac coin cost over $38.
This isn’t to say that one coin is a better purchase than the other. The Monarch Precious Metals simply coin has far more detail and an intricate design. This increases collector’s worth. If you’re seeking silver bullion rounds just for intrinsic value, though, avoiding specialty coins is ideal.
There are a variety of ways to invest in silver. Outside-the-box options like collectibles and precious metal ETFs are certainly unique, but when it comes down to it, nothing beats bullion. And even when you go this route, investors’ choices seem nearly endless.
If it’s pure bullion you want to invest in, you can’t do much better than silver bars. If you enjoy the collectability, beauty, ease of storage, and other benefits of precious metal coinage, though, you won’t have many superior options than silver bullion rounds from private mints.
At Silver Gold Bull, we recognize that not all silver items are right for everyone. That’s why we offer a massive variety of products for every investment goal. If bullion rounds fall in line with your goals, visit our Silver Rounds Products page today.
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