When I first started stacking silver I knew I wanted to buy silver coins, not bars. But that does not mean you should not buy bars.
What you should buy, silver bars or silver coins, depends on your specific goals and needs.
Silver stackers and enthusiasts typically buy silver coins with the main goal being barter and trade, and purchase silver bars with the main goal of wealth preservation.
Knowing why you want to buy silver is the step to understanding what kind of silver you should buy.
| Types of Silver | Common Reason to Stack | Common Goals |
| Silver Coins | Barter Wealth Preservation | Direct exchange for goods Generational wealth Inflation Hedge Liquidate to FIAT |
| Silver Bars | Wealth Preservation | Generational wealth Inflation Hedge |
Once you know why you want to buy silver, we can have a deeper look at the kind of silver adapted to your specific goals.
I am going to explain the different types of silver you could buy along with common reasons why people stack each type of silver, along with advantages and disadvantages of both.
This article will therefore help you to decide if you should buy silver bars, coins, or both.
Buy Silver Coins for Barter
One of the main reasons stackers love coins is because of the ease to barter with them.
Many stackers are also preppers and consider that our FIAT currency will be worthless in a hyperinflationary environment.
Having small denominations of silver can be very helpful in an SHTF situation where “real money” is needed as a means of exchange for goods and services.
Here are common reasons why you may want to buy silver coins:
| Types of Silver | Common Reason to Stack | Common Goals |
| Confederate Coins | Barter | Direct exchange for goods Generational wealth Inflation Hedge |
| Sovereign Coins | Barter Wealth Preservation | Liquidate to FIAT Direct exchange for goods Generational wealthInflation Hedge |
| Silver Rounds | Barter Wealth Preservation | Liquidate to FIAT Direct exchange for goods Generational wealthInflation Hedge |
There are three main types silver coins stackers like:
- Confederate Coins or junk silver consist of circulated and uncirculated coins containing silver. These coins consist of .10 cents, .5 cents, and .25 cent coins pre-dating 1965 in the USA, and 1967 in Canada. Confederate coins are great for barter since they come in small denominations, have face values, and are easily recognized by non-stackers.
- Sovereign Coins are created by government-controlled mints and typically have a face value. These coins are highly recognizable and are very easy to liquidate back into FIAT currency.
- Silver Rounds are coins that are created by private mints. These coins cost less than sovereign coins but are sometimes considered less recognizable than sovereign government minted coins.
Overall, sovereign coins and silver rounds are the first place most beginners start their stacking journey.
I personally started my stacking journey with 40% rounds and 60% sovereign coins.
I have no regrets based on my personal goals of stacking for barter (silver rounds) and wealth preservation (sovereign coins).
Buy Silver Bars Mainly to Preserve Wealth
Silver bars typically consist of large quantities of silver in a bar format. These are what you would typically imagine in a central bank.
| Silver Bars | |
| Common Reason to Stack | Wealth Preservation |
| Common Goals | Generational wealth Inflation Hedge |
| Advantages | Practical for long term storage Lower premiums compared to coins Look cool |
| Disadvantages | Often cost a higher initial investment Harder to liquidate More difficult to verify purity Not as recognizable as face value coins Not always purchased by all dealers Not useful for barter |
You can find silver bars in 1 oz, 1 kilo, or even 5 kilo bars.
Although 1 oz silver bars exist, they are not practical for barter because they are less recognizable to the general population compared to coins.
Imagine trying to trade a silver bar with a farmer for some meat. They may not know if the bar is real and can decline to avoid taking the risk.
Therefore, in most cases silver bars are only used to preserve wealth.
Since bars contain such large and dense quantities of silver they are not practical to use in barter for everyday items.
However, silver bars can be practical to barter for large items such as a car or home in an SHTF (if you find someone willing to take them).
The upside about silver bullion bars is that they typically have lower premiums compared to coins or other manufactured forms of silver.
Bars are typically cheaper than coins because they are lumps of silver in raw forms. Silver bars typically do not have any fancy finishes or designs lowering their cost to produce.
Most people who purchase silver bars have the goal of re-converting it back into FIAT currency at some point. However they are much harder to liquidate compared to coins.
Many dealers and barter partners may not take or buy silver bars due to the risk of their core not actually containing silver.
Although dealers have sophisticated machines to ensure bars are real, they are not perfect and sometimes do not reach the very center of the bar.
There is too much fisk for most dealers to buy back a bar they did not sell. So they either often refuse to purchase bars, or buy them back at melt price.
Silver bars are not as recognizable as coins, and can be harder to use (and carry) in everyday situations, so they are best for long term wealth preservation.
Bars can be practical if you do not need access to your money right away, believe silver preserves wealth, and may possibly increase in value over time.
I Do Not Buy Numismatic Silver Coins
There are some types of silver bars and coins I just completely avoid altogether as a stacker.
Numismatic coins are collectable coins minted by governments or private mints. These coins typically have low mintages making them more rare. They may also have key dates and special artwork.
Numismatic coins are generally sold for a high markup over spot, making them very expensive compared to other types of coins.
I’ve seen markups as high as 45% over spot on numismatic coins! Gold would have to increase at least by 45% in value for the coin to be worth that much as is.
It’s just not worth it. I wouldn’t buy them unless I was a seasoned coin collector and really knew how to speculate in the collector coin market.
I can’t tell you what to do, but hopefully this article helped you understand if you should buy silver bars or coins.
My goals consisted in barter and wealth preservation when I first started out. So I bought 40% rounds and 60% sovereign coins.
I won’t be buying any silver bars in the near future since I consider that my coins also fulfill the role of wealth preservation.
That is my personal goal, but what is yours? Just be sure to find out before you go to a dealer, or else they will tell you your goals based on their own 😉
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