How do Costco Gold Bar Prices Compare

Costco added a several product lines of 24k Gold Bars to their online store and select warehouses last year, to which their members have taken quite a shine. These investment-grade gold bars are minted from 24k pure gold (.9999 fine) and are minted by a variety of private refineries.

Periodically, Costco will post gold bars for sale on their website at a fixed price relative to the current gold price.

On a recent trading day, Costco offer PAMP Suisse 1 oz Gold Bars for around $61 over that day’s gold price, which was a premium of around 2.6%. The lowest dealer price for the Lady Fortuna Gold Bar that day was around $76 over melt value, roughly 3.24%.

It’s estimated that they are selling up to 80,000 ounce per month. While the low premiums are low, many are maxing out the Executive Membership rewards while leveraging credit card offers to maximize cash back for buying gold bars.

Costco offers these various gold bars with a limited inventory like a “flash sale”. Once the available stock is sold out, the listing becomes inactive. The r/CostcoPM group on reddit tracks the latest offerings as they are available, but most Costco gold bars are sold out within an hour or two.

These same brands of gold bars are generally available in the bullion markets and can be bought from many trusted and reputable bullion dealers.

Most investors in physical gold bars will become familiar with the local coin stores in their area and will also have a handful of favorite online dealers. Not only can this be helpful in adding to your portfolio, but it is also good for down the road, when its time to sell. Local coins stores actively trade in precious metals due to their expertise in gold coins and are familiar with market conditions.

The employees at local coin stores can be extremely knowledgeable when it comes to tangible assets and will often have insights into the buy/sell spread in the local area. While online bullion dealers offer a large selection of products, including bars that are available in a variety of denominations that are less than a full ounce. Fractional gold bars are available in a range from as small as 1 gram to as large as 20 grams and are popular will investors with more modest budgets.

The smallest denomination available from Costco so far has been the 25 gram PAMP Multigram gold bar, which is comparable in price to a full 1 oz gold bar. Buyers looking for smaller denominations of fractional gold bars will have more choices shopping with online bullion dealers.

The brands that Costco has offered so far have been limited to those from PAMP Suisse and the Rand Refinery. Both are among the most reputable refineries and private mints, however, the cheapest 1 oz gold bars are often those from the secondary market.