Silver IRA Rollover: How It Works and What the Companies Charge

The IRS rules for moving retirement money into silver are the same for every company. The prices are not, and the biggest one is the one nobody prints.

By BGM Editorial Team. Company data verified September 26, 2026.

A silver IRA rollover moves money from a 401(k), 403(b), Thrift Savings Plan or existing IRA into a self-directed IRA that owns physical silver. The tax mechanics are ordinary retirement-plan mechanics, set by the IRS. The costs are set by the company you choose, and they come in two layers: the account fees most companies advertise, and the markup built into the price of every coin and bar the account buys.

We checked the websites of eight companies that sell silver IRAs. Five publish a company-specific fee schedule. None publishes its markup as a percentage. This guide starts with that comparison, then walks through how the money moves, which accounts qualify, what silver the IRS accepts, and what a $50,000 rollover costs over five and ten years.

Silver IRA Rollover Companies Compared

Affiliate disclosure: BestGoldMoney.com may earn a commission when readers open accounts with some companies on this page. Commissions do not affect the figures below, which are taken from each company’s own website, or the alphabetical order.

The fee columns are the easy part. Among the five companies that publish a schedule, annual costs cluster between $225 and $285 a year. The number that separates a reasonable purchase from a bad one is the markup on the metal, and it is missing from every row.

What silver IRA roll over reviews don’t tell you

Star ratings and complaint counts measure how a company treats customers: how fast paperwork moves, whether calls get returned, whether the metal arrives. They say nothing about what the customer paid for it. A buyer who paid a 30% markup and got friendly service can leave a five-star review in good faith.

Use silver IRA roll over company reviews to judge service. Use a written price quote to judge cost. Our best silver IRA companies ranking covers service and reputation; this page covers price.

How to choose the best silver IRA rollover company

Before you sign anything, get three documents in writing:

1. The full fee schedule. Setup, annual administration, storage, wire, and the fee to close or liquidate the account. Noble Gold, for example, lists a $250 account closure fee. [25] Most companies in the table do not list one.
2. A per-product quote with the spot price. The price per ounce of each product next to the spot price at the moment of the quote lets you calculate the markup yourself. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission tells buyers to ask exactly this: “What is the spread?” [13]
3. The buyback price. What the company would pay today for the same product. The gap between the buy and sell prices is your real round-trip cost.

Silver IRA Rollover vs. Transfer: What’s the Difference

People use “rollover” for any move into a silver IRA. The IRS uses three distinct terms, and the differences decide whether money is withheld, whether a deadline applies and whether the move counts against an annual limit.

A trustee-to-trustee transfer moves money from one IRA to another without it ever being paid to you. The IRS states plainly: “Trustee-to-trustee transfers between IRAs are not limited.” [2]

A direct rollover is the employer-plan version. Your 401(k), 403(b) or TSP administrator pays the new IRA custodian directly. “The mandatory withholding doesn’t apply in a direct rollover.” [3]

An indirect rollover pays the money to you, and you have 60 days to deposit it in the new IRA. [1] This is the version with the deadline, the withholding and the once-a-year limit.

How a Silver IRA Rollover Works

For a more detailed paperwork checklist, see our precious metals IRA rollover process guide. The short version depends on where your money is now.

Direct transfer: how to transfer an IRA to silver

If your money is already in a traditional, Roth, SEP or SIMPLE IRA, you open a self-directed IRA with a custodian that holds precious metals, and the new custodian requests the funds from the old one. The money moves between institutions. Once it arrives, you authorize the purchase, and the dealer ships the silver to an approved depository in the custodian’s name.

Nothing is withheld, nothing is taxed and the transfer does not count toward the one-per-year rollover limit. [2]

Direct rollover from a 401(k)

From an employer plan, you ask the plan administrator for a direct rollover payable to the new custodian “for the benefit of” you. The IRS says this kind of rollover “isn’t taxable (unless the rollover is to a Roth IRA or a designated Roth account from another type of plan or account),” and no 20% withholding applies. [3] Some plans mail the check to you, made out to the new custodian. That is still a direct rollover, because you cannot cash it.

Indirect rollover and the 60-day rule

“You have 60 days from the date you receive an IRA or retirement plan distribution to roll it over to another plan or IRA,” the IRS says. [1] Miss the deadline and the money becomes a taxable distribution, possibly with a 10% additional tax if you are under 59½. [4]

Since 2015, you can make “only one rollover from an IRA to another (or the same) IRA in any 12-month period, regardless of the number of IRAs you own.” Traditional, Roth, SEP and SIMPLE IRAs all count together. Break the rule and the second distribution is taxable, may carry the 10% early withdrawal tax, and if you deposit it anyway it can be treated as an excess contribution “taxed at 6% per year as long as they remain in the IRA.” [2] The limit does not apply to trustee-to-trustee transfers, to Roth conversions or to rollovers from employer plans. [2]

If you miss the 60 days for reasons outside your control, the IRS allows a self-certification letter (Revenue Procedure 2016-47) for listed reasons such as an error by the financial institution, serious illness or a postal error. The deposit must then be made “as soon as practicable (usually within 30 days).” Self-certification is not an IRS waiver; the IRS can still examine it on audit. The alternative, a private letter ruling, carries a $10,000 user fee. [6]

The 20% withholding on 401(k) payouts

“A retirement plan distribution paid to you is subject to mandatory withholding of 20%, even if you intend to roll it over later.” And: “If you later roll the distribution over within 60 days, you must use other funds to make up for the amount withheld.” [1] On a $50,000 balance it works like this:

A direct rollover avoids all of it. There is no reason to take a 401(k) payout personally when the goal is a silver IRA.

Which Accounts You Can Roll Over Into Silver

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