Gold Bars Guide: Sizes, Brands & Where to Buy in 2026

A practical walk-through of gold bars — from 1-gram pieces to kilogram bars — including how sizes trade off premium vs. flexibility, which refineries are globally recognized, and the checks that help you avoid counterfeits.

Last reviewed April 24, 2026 8 min read Category: Physical Gold

Key Takeaways

  • Bars from LBMA "Good Delivery" refineries carry the broadest global resale liquidity.
  • Premiums shrink sharply as bar size increases — 1g bars can carry 10–20% premiums, while 1oz bars typically land at 1.5–3%.
  • Assay cards, serial numbers, and tamper-evident packaging are resale features, not nice-to-haves.
  • Kilogram bars offer the lowest per-ounce premium but the least resale flexibility for retail investors.

Why Gold Bars at All?

Gold bars exist at the efficient end of the physical-gold spectrum. Where bullion coins carry production costs — sovereign-mint overhead, design, legal-tender denomination — bars are stripped-back units of metal. Refineries pour a blank, stamp serial numbers and weights, and seal the result in packaging that doubles as authentication.

The trade-off is that bars are less universally recognized than major sovereign coins (American Eagle, Canadian Maple, Krugerrand). In exchange, you pay less above spot.

Common Sizes and Their Trade-Offs

Size Typical Premium Best For Trade-Off
1 gram 15–25% above spot Gifts, souvenirs, experimenting with physical gold Very high premium per unit of gold
5 gram / 10 gram 8–14% Small accumulation, easy to sell one at a time Still expensive compared to larger sizes
1 oz (31.1 g) 1.5–3% The sweet spot for most individual investors Premium is meaningful at small allocations
100 g / 10 oz 0.8–2% Larger buyers who accept slightly reduced resale flexibility Fewer buyers if you ever want to sell just a fraction
1 kg 0.5–1.5% Dealers, institutions, high-net-worth storage ~$90k+ per bar at recent prices; resale limited to dealers
400 oz (Good Delivery) Institutional only Banks, ETFs, central banks Not practically available to retail buyers

Practical rule: 1oz bars are the default for individual physical gold holders. They balance premium, resale flexibility, and storage density better than any other retail size.

Refineries to Know

Recognition matters on resale. A bar from an LBMA Good Delivery refiner is accepted worldwide; a bar from an unknown local stamp may require re-assay before a dealer will pay a competitive price.

Widely recognized refineries include PAMP Suisse, Valcambi, Argor-Heraeus, Metalor (Switzerland); Perth Mint (Australia); Royal Canadian Mint (Canada); Rand Refinery (South Africa); and Credit Suisse-branded stock produced historically by PAMP. Each has a distinct look — PAMP's Fortuna obverse, Perth Mint's kangaroo reverse, Royal Canadian Mint's maple leaf — and each uses modern authentication features.

For the United States, bars from Asahi Refining (formerly Johnson Matthey Salt Lake City) and Sunshine Minting are widely accepted, and Sunshine's "MintMark SI" holographic feature has become a recognizable authentication standard.

Assay Cards and Authentication

Smaller bars (under 100g) are typically sold in sealed plastic assay cards showing the refiner, weight, purity, and a unique serial number. The card is not packaging — it is the authentication mechanism. A bar out of its assay card is worth noticeably less to a dealer because it now requires verification.

Modern features you may encounter:

  • Serial numbers embossed or printed and matched on the card.
  • Tamper-evident card seals that show visible damage if opened.
  • Holographic or optically variable patterns (PAMP Veriscan, Sunshine MintMark).
  • Micro-engraving or UV features visible only under specific light.

For larger bars (100g+), authentication typically relies on the refiner's reputation, precise weight, and dealer verification. Bars from unrecognized producers — or bars with damaged packaging — should be discounted for resale uncertainty even if they are genuine.

Where to Buy

Established online dealers

The online market in most major economies is dominated by a handful of established dealers offering consistent pricing, published buyback policies, and documented supply chains. Features to look for:

  • Live pricing tied to spot, with transparent premium above spot.
  • Volume discounts disclosed on the product page.
  • Published buyback terms — ideally for customers and non-customers alike.
  • Insured, signature-required shipping, and optional vault storage.
  • A clear return policy for genuine manufacturing defects.

Local coin shops

Local dealers offer cash-settled privacy, same-day purchase, and the ability to inspect bars before paying. Premiums vary widely and often run higher than large online dealers. Local dealers are particularly useful for small top-up purchases and for the occasional urgent resale.

What to avoid

  • Random online marketplaces. Counterfeit gold bars — often tungsten-cored or heavily gold-plated — appear frequently on open marketplaces. If you can't authenticate, assume the worst.
  • Dealers who push "rare" or "numismatic" bars. For bullion investors, the goal is metal at the lowest premium, not collectible specialty items.
  • "Gold proxy" products without direct bar allocation. Some programs sell "ownership" of bars you never see or can never withdraw. That is not the same as owning a bar.

Resale Considerations

Before you buy, think about how you would eventually sell. Every bar has two markets: buyers and dealers. Dealers will usually buy back at spot minus a small discount (often 1–3%) for a recognized refiner in unopened packaging. Unopened packaging matters — once the assay card is broken, many dealers apply an additional discount to cover re-verification.

If you plan to sell in pieces, smaller bars give you flexibility. If you plan to sell the whole position to a dealer, larger bars are more efficient. Most investors never sell, so resale optionality is secondary to accumulation cost.

Storage Implications

Bars store densely: a 1kg bar is about the size of a deck of cards and represents ~$90k+ at recent prices. That density has two effects.

First, it makes larger bars cost-effective to vault. A vault storage fee of 0.5% per year is a smaller absolute dollar amount per ounce when the ounces are concentrated.

Second, it concentrates risk. If a 1kg bar is stolen, the entire $90k is gone. If a thief takes one 1oz bar from a holding of twenty, you've lost 5%. Your storage choice should match your concentration: centralized storage for concentrated bars, distributed storage for distributed holdings.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

  • Buying small bars for bulk exposure. Ten 1oz bars are cheaper than one hundred 1g bars for the same ten ounces of gold.
  • Breaking the assay card. Don't open it unless you have reason to. It reduces resale value immediately.
  • Mixing refiners unnecessarily. When dealers evaluate a position for purchase, a single recognizable refiner is simpler to quote than a miscellany.
  • Ignoring weight verification. Even in unopened packaging, put the bar on a jeweler's scale. A correctly labeled bar should match within a tolerance of hundredths of a gram.

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Disclaimer: Educational content only. Premium and buyback ranges are typical observations and change with market conditions. Verify current pricing and dealer policies directly before transacting. See our full disclaimer.