A Gold IRA is a Self-Directed IRA holding physical precious metals. A Traditional IRA holds paper assets. The IRS treats them identically for tax purposes. The mechanics, custody, and fee structures are not identical.
Tax Treatment.
Identical. Traditional contributions are tax-deductible (subject to income limits); Roth contributions are post-tax. A Gold IRA operates under the same framework. Traditional or Roth. depending on how it is structured. The IRS does not differentiate between a Traditional IRA holding stock ETFs and one holding gold bullion in a Self-Directed structure.
Custody Structure.
Traditional IRAs are custodied by brokerages. Fidelity, Schwab, Vanguard. that act as both custodian and investment platform. Gold IRAs require a Self-Directed IRA custodian (STRATA Trust, Equity Trust, Kingdom Trust) plus a depository (Delaware Depository, Brink's, IDS). The three-party structure drives most of the additional fee overhead.
Fee Structure.
A Traditional IRA at Fidelity costs $0 annually. A Gold IRA at any top-six firm runs $180, $280 all-in for custody and storage. Under $20,000, that crosses 1% as a percentage. Above $100,000, it drops below 0.3%. The math favors larger accounts. which is why the minimums exist.
Augusta Precious Metals.
For the $50,000+ allocator executing a Gold IRA rollover, Augusta is the custodian we recommend without reservation. The firm's contractual buy-back, named-analyst relationship, and segregated-default storage at Delaware Depository place it at the top of our register for the fourth consecutive cycle.
Investment Options.
Traditional IRAs can hold any publicly traded security. Gold IRAs can hold only IRS-approved precious metals. gold at 99.5% purity, silver at 99.9%, specific listed sovereign coins. Numismatic coins, collectible graded coins, and non-approved bullion are excluded. The Gold IRA is not a collectibles IRA.