Best gold IRA for 401k rollover, October 2026

Advantage Gold is our top pick for a 401(k) rollover because it pairs a $5,000 minimum with a full-service process, where an account executive walks you through the custodial application, the plan paperwork and the first purchase. The five companies after it each suit a different balance or priority, and every one of them leads on something specific, from the lowest yearly administration fee to the lowest minimum.

All figures on this page come from our fee database and from the company facts we recorded, and we last checked Advantage Gold’s record on September 29, 2026. If you want the mechanics before the ranking, our 401(k) to gold IRA guide covers the transfer step by step, and the Advantage Gold rollover process page shows how one dealer runs it.

What we ranked on

A 401(k) rollover has a shape that other gold purchases lack, because the money starts inside an employer plan and has to travel to a new custodian before any metal is bought. That shape drove the criteria we used, listed here in the order we weighed them.

1. Minimum investment. Many 401(k) balances from a former employer are modest, so a dealer that opens at $2,000 to $5,000 reaches more people than one that starts at $25,000 or higher.
2. Help with the plan paperwork. The rollover is where first-timers stall, so we favoured dealers that assign a person to the transfer and stay on it until the account is funded.
3. Published or well-documented fees. Each dealer is priced on its setup fee, yearly administration and storage, run through the same arithmetic as our fee calculator. The markup is set when you place the order, which leaves it out of these figures.
4. Ten-year fees. Fees repeat every year, so we compared what each company charges over 10 years, which gives one number per dealer.
5. Independent ratings. We looked at the BBB, Business Consumer Alliance, Trustpilot and similar records where a dealer has them.

How the six compare on ten-year fees

The table prices each company’s fees over 10 years, using commingled storage. Advantage Gold comes in at position 3 of the 12 dealers in our database on ten-year fees, and it does so from the second-lowest entry point among these six.

Dealer	Minimum	Setup	Yearly admin	Storage	Ten-year fees
Advantage Gold	$5,000	$50	$100	$100	$2,050
Goldco	$25,000	$50	$80	$100	$1,850
American Hartford Gold	$10,000	$0	$100	$125	$2,250
Birch Gold Group	$10,000	$50	$125	$100	$2,300
Augusta Precious Metals	$50,000	$50	$125	$100	$2,300
Rosland Capital	$2,000	$50	$125	$110	$2,400

Storage is the commingled rate, and a segregated account costs more at every dealer. The figures cover fees only. The markup on the metal is quoted on each order, so it is not in any total.

The best gold IRA companies for a 401(k) rollover

Each block below prints the company’s minimum, its fees and any BBB and Trustpilot record we hold, so the paragraph under it explains where the company fits a rollover from an employer plan.

1

Best for starter 401(k) rollovers

Advantage Gold

Minimum

$5,000

Setup fee

$50

Yearly fee

$100

BBB rating

A+

Trustpilot

4.8

Advantage Gold earns first place because it makes the hardest part of a 401(k) rollover feel like a conversation instead of a form. You send a statement from your current plan, the custodian contacts the old administrator and moves the funds, and the account executive then walks you through eligible coins and bars before the metals are bought, packed, insured and shipped to the depository.

The company says the account is funded in a few days after the statement is sent, and it names both STRATA Trust Company and Equity Trust Company as custodians. It holds an A+ from the BBB with accreditation since 2014, a AAA from the Business Consumer Alliance, a 4.9 TrustLink score across 495 reviews and a 4.9 Google rating across 987 reviews. Fees are flat at $50 to set up, $100 a year for administration and $100 a year for commingled storage, which puts ten-year fees at $2,050. The metal is bought at the price Advantage Gold quotes when you order, and the markup sits inside that price, so get the quote in writing before the account funds.

You can start with a call to Advantage Gold or read the full Advantage Gold review first.

Pros

• A full-service rollover, where the account executive contacts your old plan and coordinates the custodian
• An application that takes about 30 minutes or less with an account executive
• A free one-on-one call and a free gold IRA guide before you commit to anything
• A catalogue of IRA-eligible gold, silver, platinum and palladium products

Things to keep in mind

• Fees are not published on its website, so the figures come from your account executive
• There is no live chat, so questions go by phone or the contact form
• Direct purchases outside an IRA carry shipping and insurance charges

Visit Advantage Goldon Advantage Gold's site Call (888) 501-9001 or read our Advantage Gold review

Advantage Gold is a paid partner of Gold IRA Digest.

2

Lowest yearly admin fee at $80

Goldco

Minimum

$25,000

Setup fee

$50

Yearly fee

$80

Goldco suits a 401(k) holder with a larger balance who wants the lowest yearly administration fee in our database. Its $80 administration fee is $20 a year below Advantage Gold’s, which leaves its ten-year fees at $1,850. It publishes its own cost page, which makes it easy to check the schedule before you call. Our Advantage Gold vs Goldco comparison compares the two line by line, and the Goldco review covers the rest.

Pros

• The lowest yearly administration fee of the twelve dealers we track
• A published buyback guarantee, which appeals to buyers who plan to sell later
• A published cost page, so the fee schedule can be checked before a call

Things to keep in mind

• The $25,000 minimum suits larger 401(k) balances and sits above smaller ones

Read our Goldco review Compare matched companies

3

Best for a $0 setup fee

American Hartford Gold

Minimum

$10,000

Setup fee

$0

Yearly fee

$100

American Hartford Gold charges nothing to open the account, and its $100 yearly fee matches Advantage Gold’s. Its commingled storage rate of $125 is the one place it runs higher, which brings its ten-year fees to $2,250. That is a fair trade for a 401(k) holder who values the absence of an opening fee and has at least $10,000 to move.

Pros

• No setup fee, which trims the first-year cost of moving a plan
• Fee waivers on larger rollovers
• A flat yearly administration fee of the same size as Advantage Gold's

Things to keep in mind

• The $10,000 minimum is twice Advantage Gold's, so smaller balances fit better elsewhere

Read our American Hartford Gold review Compare matched companies

4

Best for first-year fee coverage on larger transfers

Birch Gold Group

Minimum

$10,000

Setup fee

$50

Yearly fee

$125

Birch Gold Group is the dealer to look at when your 401(k) balance is on the larger side. It opens at $10,000, charges $125 a year for administration and $100 for commingled storage, and its ten-year fees come to $2,300. Its first-year fee coverage on larger transfers lowers the early cost further, so a sizable former-employer balance gets the most from it.

Pros

• Birch pays the first year of fees on larger transfers
• A published fee page on its own blog
• Custody through Equity Trust or STRATA Trust, the same two names Advantage Gold lists

Things to keep in mind

• The yearly administration fee is higher than at Goldco or Advantage Gold

Read our Birch Gold Group review Compare matched companies

5

Best for balances of $50,000 or more

Augusta Precious Metals

Minimum

$50,000

Setup fee

$50

Yearly fee

$125

Augusta Precious Metals fits a 401(k) holder who has $50,000 or more to roll over and wants a dealer that focuses on larger accounts. It charges a $125 yearly fee and $100 for commingled storage, which comes to $2,300 in ten-year fees. The Advantage Gold vs Augusta comparison shows the two fee schedules next to each other.

Pros

• A dealer built around larger retirement balances
• Fee schedule in line with the other mid-priced dealers, at a flat yearly rate
• Fee waivers on qualifying rollovers, which lower the cost of the early years

Things to keep in mind

• The $50,000 minimum is the highest of the six, so it suits larger rollovers

Read our Augusta Precious Metals review Compare matched companies

6

Best for smaller balances, from $2,000

Rosland Capital

Minimum

$2,000

Setup fee

$50

Yearly fee

$125

Rosland Capital opens the door widest. Its $2,000 minimum is the lowest we track, its $25 wire fee is the lowest in the group, and a small 401(k) from an old job can still become a gold IRA there. Its ten-year fees come to $2,400, the highest of the six, so it fits best when balance size is the deciding factor.

Pros

• The lowest minimum of the twelve dealers we track
• The lowest wire fee of the six
• A published FAQ that lists its fee schedule

Things to keep in mind

• At $2,400 in ten-year fees it is the highest of the six, which makes it a fit when the entry point matters more than the yearly bill

Read our Rosland Capital review Compare matched companies

Questions to settle before you request the transfer

A 401(k) rollover goes faster when a few decisions are made before the first call, and most of them take an evening rather than a week. The list below is the one we would work through ourselves.

1. Which plan holds the money. Pull your latest statement from the old employer’s plan, because the account executive will ask for it and the custodian needs the balance to size the first purchase.
2. Whether you want commingled or segregated storage. Commingled storage pools your metal with other clients’ holdings of the same kind, and at Advantage Gold it runs $100 a year against $175 for a segregated account that keeps your bars and coins apart. Over 10 years that difference is $750, which is the price of knowing exactly which pieces are yours.
3. How much of the balance goes into metal. Nothing requires the whole 401(k) to move, and many buyers roll a portion and leave the rest invested where it is.
4. Which products you want. Advantage Gold lists 39 products across 4 metals, and its account executives walk through the coins and bars that meet IRA fineness rules, so you can lean on that conversation instead of researching each coin.
5. Who the custodian is. The IRA itself is held by a custodian, and Advantage Gold names STRATA Trust Company and Equity Trust Company, with metal stored at Brink's Global Services USA (Los Angeles or Salt Lake City) or Delaware Depository (Wilmington, DE).

Working through those five items usually turns the first call into a short one, because the account executive is confirming decisions instead of explaining basics. If you still want a wider view of what companies charge, the Advantage Gold fees page breaks the schedule into its lines.

Why the quote matters more than the yearly fee on a rollover

Yearly fees repeat, while the markup on the metal is paid once and grows with the size of the purchase, so a large 401(k) magnifies the markup and leaves a standard fee schedule as it is. Advantage Gold’s administration and storage come to $2,000 over 10 years on its standard schedule, and its markup sits inside the price it quotes when you order. On $100,000 of metal each percentage point of markup is $1,000, which is why the written quote deserves more of your attention than a gap in yearly fees.

The practical takeaway is that a difference of $20 a year between two dealers is real but small next to what a markup adds on a large purchase, so it makes sense to weigh service and fit alongside price. A dealer that helps you finish the rollover cleanly is worth more than a saving of a few dollars a year if the alternative is a stalled transfer. Our ten-year cost page for Advantage Gold breaks the fee total into its parts.

Other companies we considered

Six more dealers sit in our fee database, and each is a reputable name that fits a narrower situation than the six above.

Noble Gold Investments opens at $20,000 and charges $125 a year for administration, which suits a 401(k) holder with a mid-sized balance who wants a flat, predictable yearly schedule.

Lear Capital opens at $7,500 and charges $200 a year for administration, which suits a first-time buyer with a modest former-employer plan and a mid-range minimum.

Oxford Gold Group opens at $25,000 and charges $175 a year for administration, which suits a larger balance where one yearly charge that folds in storage keeps the bookkeeping simple.

Patriot Gold Group opens at $25,000 and charges $200 a year for administration, which suits a larger balance, where its setup waiver and no-fees-for-life tier on the biggest accounts pay off most.

Monetary Gold opens at $5,000 and charges $180 a year for administration, which suits a buyer at the same entry point as Advantage Gold who wants no account-opening fee.

Preserve Gold opens at $10,000 and charges $125 a year for administration, which suits a mid-sized rollover through Horizon Trust, with the setup fee waived on larger accounts.

Who each option fits, and who should look elsewhere

Choose Advantage Gold if your 401(k) balance is $5,000 or more and you want someone to run the paperwork with you. Choose Goldco if the balance is $25,000 or more and the yearly fee matters most, or one of the others if the balance is above $50,000.

A balance below $5,000 points toward Rosland Capital, and a buyer who wants to read a fee schedule on the dealer’s own website before calling fits well with Goldco or Rosland Capital, which both publish theirs. To see which dealers match your balance, compare matched companies against your balance, or talk to Advantage Gold first through Advantage Gold's site. Our gold IRA fees guide explains every line in the table above.

If the money sits in the Thrift Savings Plan or a 403(b) instead, the best gold IRA for a TSP or 403(b) rollover ranks dealers on those plans. A mid-size rollover is priced line by line on the best gold IRA for $50,000 page, and a Roth 401(k) points to the best gold Roth IRA list.

What a 401(k) rollover looks like at Advantage Gold

Advantage Gold describes the process in three steps, and they follow the order most companies use.

1. Open a Gold IRA: complete the custodial application with an account executive, e-sign.
2. Complete the rollover: send a statement from the current plan; the custodian contacts the old administrator and moves the funds.
3. Purchase metals: the account executive walks through eligible coins and bars; Advantage Gold buys, packs, insures and ships them to the depository.

A direct rollover moves the money between custodians without passing through your hands, while an indirect rollover, where a check comes made out to you, carries a 60-day window to redeposit. Most buyers choose the direct route for that reason, and the account executive can tell you which your old plan supports. The rollover process page covers each step in more detail.

How we ranked

We ranked the six companies on the criteria above, weighing minimum, rollover help, fees over ten years and independent ratings, with the fee figures drawn from our database and the ratings from each platform’s own page. Advantage Gold is a paid partner of Gold IRA Digest, and partner status affects placement on this list, so the ranking reflects both our reading of the data and that commercial relationship. The disclosure page explains how we are paid and how it shapes what we publish. Every other company on the list is described from the same data and in the same terms.

Common questions

What is the best gold IRA company for a 401(k) rollover?

Advantage Gold is our top pick for a 401(k) rollover. It opens at $5,000, charges flat yearly fees, and an account executive handles the paperwork between your old plan and the new custodian.

Can I roll a 401(k) into a gold IRA without paying tax?

Yes. A direct rollover from a 401(k) to a gold IRA moves the money without a tax bill when the funds go custodian to custodian. Our 401(k) to gold IRA guide walks through each step.

How long does a 401(k) rollover to a gold IRA take?

Advantage Gold says the account is funded in a few days after you send your plan statement. Your old plan administrator sets the pace on its side of the transfer.

Do I need to be retired to roll over a 401(k) into gold?

No. Many people roll over a 401(k) from a former employer while still working elsewhere. Rules for your current employer's plan depend on what that plan allows, so ask its administrator.

Which gold IRA company has the lowest fees for a 401(k) rollover?

Goldco has the lowest yearly administration fee we track, at $80. Advantage Gold is close behind with a $100 yearly fee and a $5,000 minimum that fits smaller balances.