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If you want to buy precious metals, two of the most frequently recommended options are Noble Gold and Birch Gold Group. While these companies both offer IRA services and a variety of products, there are some distinct differences in how they're run. Both have great reputations and are endorsed by various media personalities.
We've taken a look at what both of these companies have to offer, as well as how their policies compare.
Birch Gold vs Noble Gold
About Birch Gold
Birch Gold Group was started in 2003, and it has since grown to serve more than 13,000 people across every state in the US. The company has been endorsed by commentators and politicians like Ben Shapiro and Ron Paul. They work to maintain a standard of strong ethics and transparency.
The company is made up of a group of experts from every financial background imaginable. There are experts on retirement, investing, financial advice, Wall Street, and of course the precious metals themselves. Birch Gold's inventory is made up of many IRA-eligible precious metals.
The experts behind Birch Gold also frequently make appearances in the media to talk about precious metals and how they work against market volatility. They have been invited to speak on Fox Business News and Ben Shapiro's talk show.
About Noble Gold
Noble Gold was founded back in 2016, but both of the founders came directly from another gold IRA company. They have used their careers of more than 20 years in the gold industry to create a business model that succeeds.
The ultimate goal of Noble Gold is to help customers preserve their wealth during economic downturns by investing in precious metals. In addition to focusing on IRAs and retirement, they also have Survival Packs that can be purchased in cash.
Noble Gold's philosophy is that gold adds security that you can't get with regular currency or other assets.
Company Similarities
Both of these companies sell gold and silver bullion to clients, whether as part of an IRA or as a portfolio purchase. Both companies are built around the idea that precious metals are a vital part of a healthy portfolio. And both companies place a strong emphasis on educating and helping the customer, even if it causes the company to lose a sale.
When you talk to an account representative at either company, they will ask you questions and learn about your life. You'll talk about your goals, your worries, and why you're interested in precious metals. Then they'll provide insights that are custom tailored to fit your unique circumstances.
There are rollover services with both companies. That means that they'll not only help you with creating your retirement account, but they'll walk you through the complicated paperwork to move funds into the new account from your old account. You can discuss how much you want to spend and how you want to allocate your assets.
On top of silver and gold, both companies also often have palladium and platinum offerings. However, the availability can vary depending on the day and the inventory. Palladium is exceedingly rare, so it's difficult to find in the store.
Both of these companies have partnered with financial institutions and secure depositories. The financial institutions work as custodians of the self-directed IRAs. They place the products into the licensed depository, where they are insured, audited, and as secure as it's possible to be.
If you're outside of the US, there aren't a whole lot of options to invest with either of these companies. But Americans living abroad can make purchases and have them stored in a depository inside the country for when they come home.
Company Differences
Birch Gold Group
Birch Gold came into existence not long after the IRS decided to allow people to invest in precious metals IRAs. Basically, the IRS legalized gold and silver retirement accounts in 1997. It was 2003 when Birch Gold began to operate out of its office in California. By comparison, Noble Gold has only been around for six years.
Birch Gold is also endorsed by Ben Shapiro. Not only does he use their services, but he frequently recommends them on his talk show. He says that he always tells his family and friends to use Birch Gold.
Birch Gold also offers a variety of promotions that Noble Gold doesn't. Sometimes these offers are only available for limited amounts of time, so you should ask whether they're active rather than assuming.
But according to the website, as of writing, they will reimburse you a percentage of your investment up to $10,000 in free silver. In the past, there have been offers to receive free silver coins when you invest a certain amount. Noble Gold doesn't seem to have any promotions running.
Noble Gold
Noble Gold doesn't have any setup fee to create an account. With Birch Gold, you have to pay $50 as a courtesy for filing the paperwork. Noble Gold doesn't charge this fee as long as you have enough money to meet their relatively low investment requirement.
Noble Gold is also much more open about their buyback program. They have a no hassle buyback setup that involves simply calling for a quote, locking the price in, and then mailing the precious metals over. If you're keeping the metals in an IRA, the process is even shorter, as Noble Gold will coordinate everything for you. Birch Gold has some buyback information, but not much.
One feature that Birch Gold doesn't have at all is the Royal Survival Packs. These are packs of investment bullion that you can easily trade, barter, or sell during an emergency. Every package has high quality and recognizable coins. Each one is different, since the price of coins fluctuates on a daily basis.
Noble Gold has an account management tool that you can use online. This allows you to take a look at your holdings and your past purchase history. It also makes it easier to keep track of conversations with customer support staff.
Promotions and Fees
Birch Gold Group
When you call about signing up for Birch Gold's services, you will be told that you need at least $10,000 to open an IRA. However, you probably won't need to meet that same minimum if you're just buying precious metals in cash. If you invest $50,000 at one time, you'll have your first year of fees totally waived.
The other basic IRA-related fees are as follows:
All of the packages will ship to your depository with full insurance. Similarly, if you choose to add to your personal investment portfolio with your savings, you can have your package shipped to your house with no charge. But you'll need to call and ask whether there is a minimum investment amount for buying items with cash.
Noble Gold
Noble Gold has a much lower minimum investment fee than Birch Gold. In fact, they have one of the lowest minimums in the entire industry, especially compared to the top companies. Other top competitors typically have thresholds of anywhere from $5,000 to $50,000. But you only need to have $2,000 to invest to use Noble Gold's services.
There aren't any extra transaction fees to pay with cash. But the IRA-related fees are:
The company's survival packs are their main way of offering precious metals outside of your retirement account. When you buy one of these "packs" with cash, you'll be given a combination of metals that are high quality and easy to liquidate during an emergency.
The minimum investment for one of these packs is $5,000, but they go all the way up to $500,000. Or if you're a high net worth individual, you can have an entire plan customized for you.
Reputation
Birch Gold Group
Birch Gold Group is often featured on lists of the best gold dealers online. They're certainly one of the best precious metals IRA brokers, and they have the reviews to prove it. In addition, they have multiple endorsements from important celebrities and commentators.
Birch Gold's reputation is a combination of different things. First and foremost, they have almost universally excellent reviews. When they've gotten the occasional rare negative feedback, they've immediately responded to solve the situation. Other organizations have recognized them for having incredible service and competitive pricing methods.
Birch Gold has been accredited by organizations like Trustpilot, Google, the Business Consumer Alliance, and the Better Business Bureau since 2011. The BCA and BBB give top marks in their evaluations, and their customer ratings pages show consistent praise.
Birch Gold has also been featured in many different pieces of media. If you ever watch or listen to Ben Shapiro, you've probably heard of them. Ben Shapiro endorses Birch Gold and recommends them as his top gold dealer in the US. The company has also been featured on Fox Business News.
Customers say that they have had amazing experiences working with Birch Gold. They often comment on the strong ethics and honesty, as well as the kindness and patience of the people working there. Many of those who comment have never bought precious metals before, and they say they're happy with the education that they received.
Noble Gold
Noble Gold is another company that often ends up on top ten lists. The company works with clients from all economic backgrounds and in all states. Though they are a relative newcomer in the industry, they have grown quickly and become one of the foremost competitors in terms of gold and silver IRAs.
One of the biggest appeals of Noble Gold is how fast the company's turnaround time is. They try to get your account and funding set up as fast as possible. In fact, they have a streamlined strategy that they refer to as a "5-Minute IRA," because the initial application only takes five minutes. The rollover application takes slightly more time because of the added information, but not much!
Noble Gold doesn't have as much accrued industry experience as Birch Gold, since they began their operations in 2016. But six years is more than enough to establish a business model and reputation. Everything about how the company runs indicates that it is well managed. In addition, both of the founders have over 20 years of industry experience and previously worked for the popular IRA company Regal Assets.
When it comes to third parties, Noble Gold is the recipient of good reviews. Scam Risk gives them an A+ rating, indicating integrity and strong policies. The Business Consumer Alliance rates them AA, which is nearly perfect. The Better Business Bureau gives them an A+.
Customer reviews are similarly glowing, with very little negative feedback ever given. Many of the customers mention their account executive by name. They frequently talk about how knowledgeable and patient the executives are, as well as how convenient and painless the IRA process was. Most of the customers seem to have contacted Noble Gold about IRAs rather than their survival packs.
Client Education
Birch Gold Group
Birch Gold has made sure to hire people who are experts not just in investing, but also in finance and the precious metals world. The team has combined knowledge in every aspect of retirement planning, financial advice, Wall Street investing, and precious metals mining. There's always someone around who can answer your questions.
When you go to the Birch Gold website, you'll find a number of helpful pages that have information if you're a newbie. You can learn about different retirement accounts, the benefits of precious metals, the available storage options, how to open an IRA, and all of the most commonly asked questions about keeping gold in an IRA.
There is also an education section on the website. This includes several long and in-depth articles that can inform you about:
These articles are extremely informative, although the text may be a little dense if you prefer to learn via video or pictures.
Noble Gold
Like Birch Gold, Noble Gold believes that it's important for clients to be educated. All of the sales representatives are willing to answer questions and explain things to you. They don't work on commission, so there aren't any ulterior motives. Instead of thinking about closing a sale, they're just thinking about how to do right by the customer.
On the Noble Gold website, there's an entire investment guide available to download for free. This talks about how to invest in gold and silver, what these products mean for your retirement, and what kinds of companies can help with the process.
Then there's a learning section on the website. One of the pages is a comprehensive Gold and Silver Guide, which may be the same information that you can download. Underneath that, you'll find an entire library of articles, resources, and videos. All you have to do is type in a keyword and search to find what you're looking for.
The experts on the team also frequently write blog posts and thoughts about current events. There's a section to catch up on news and economic insights. In this section, you'll find opinions about the current state of the economy, predictions about the future, and guidance for how to protect yourself when times seem dire.
Who Wins?
It's a tough call between Birch Gold and Noble Gold. Judging by the reputations, you'll have a good experience working with either. So it really just comes down to your preferences and needs.
We believe that Noble Gold has a slight advantage over Birch Gold. It is a more ideal company to work with for the following reasons:
But Birch Gold does have a good reputation. If you prefer the sound of their policies, there's nothing stopping you from working with them instead.