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Birch Gold Group is one of the most recognizable names in a crowded field of gold IRA companies.
With celebrity endorsements from Ben Shapiro and other conservative influencers, the Birch Gold name seems to be everywhere.
But is this the right company for your precious metal investments?
In this Birch Gold Group review, we take a look inside the company, their services, review their fees and pricing, and sift through real online customer reviews.
In my review, I found that Birch Gold has great ratings from online ratings firms (4.84/5 stars from BBB), great pricing and low fees, and has a great selection of precious metals and bullion for your SDIRA.
Birch Gold Group Review - Summary
Product Rating Summary
In our Birch Gold Group review, we discovered that the company offers a wide selection of gold, silver, platinum, and palladium products that are competitively priced, make it easy to setup a precious metals IRA, and have helpful staff and great reviews online.
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Pricing
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Selection
After reviewing 30+ gold IRA companies, we’ve added Birch Gold Group to the top of our list of recommended companies for 2024.
Here’s the highlights from our review of Birch Gold Group:
- Customer reviews: Birch Gold Group shines with a 4.84 average rating with the BBB and other ratings firms.
- Customer service: Birch Gold Group has great customer service, and can help walk you through all the pitfalls of investing in precious metals, and adding precious metals to a self-directed IRA
- Great pricing: Birch Gold Group’s fees are competitve compared to other gold dealers we’ve reviewed.
Request more information from Birch Gold here.
What Is The Birch Gold Group?
Birch Gold Group has been helping Americans diversify their savings with physical precious metals for almost twenty years. Customers call Birch Gold to either rollover a portion of their retirement into a tax-deferred gold IRA, or to buy physical gold or other precious metals for their personal possession.
In business since 2003, Birch Gold Group is an established precious metals company with thousands of customers in all 50 states.
The company is highly rated with the Better Business Bureau (BBB), the Business Consumer Alliance (BCA), and has hundreds of 5 star reviews from verified customers on TrustLink, TrustPilot, and Yelp.
Birch Gold has built trust and brand recognition over the years via their focus on customer service, word of mouth advertising (referrals), and through smart advertising on popular conservative media.
The company has served over 13,000 U.S. customers in their 19+ years of business.
Ben Shapiro - Celebrity Ambassador
Birch Gold Group began a partnership with Ben Shapiro’s media company in 2016.
Shapiro regularly promotes Birch Gold through 30 second ads and occasionally brings Birch Gold’s Philip Patrick onto his program to discuss precious metals and the economy.
Below is an example of Philip Patrick’s recent conversation with Ben Shapiro.
Outside of the Ben Shapiro Show, Philip Patrick has represented Birch Gold with appearances on NewsMax, Bannon’s War Room, and Real America’s Voice to discuss topics like inflation, the overheated stock market, and precious metals.
Birch Gold Group’s Reputation
Verified customer reviews play a big role in our gold IRA reviews. We will not recommend gold companies with a history of customer complaints or poor online ratings.
This is where the Birch Gold company truly shines.
Birch Gold’s website proudly displays their A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau (BBB). Birch has 81 customer reviews on the BBB website with an average 4.84 out of 5 star rating.
Birch Gold Group reviews with the Business Consumer Alliance (BCA) reveal an AAA rating and 5 stars average review based on 7 verified customer reviews. This pattern of earning 5 star reviews is also prevalent with TrustLink and TrustPilot.
Between TrustPilot and TrustLink, the precious metals dealer has almost 300 positive 5-star reviews from past customers. Birch Gold Group reviews can also be found on Yelp. The company has a 4 out of 5 star average rating on the review site.
It’s important to note that A+ ratings and 5 star reviews are not always the norm with gold companies.
We’ve researched several companies that were eliminated from our list of recommendations due to online complaints of “hidden fees,” pushy salesmen, poor communication, or other problems.
It’s great to find a company like Birch Gold Group that is able to maintain top ratings from their past clients for almost two decades of business.
Request more information from Birch Gold Group here.
Birch Gold Group Fees & Pricing
Birch Gold Group Fees | |
|---|---|
Minimum recommended account size: | $10,000+ |
Account set up fee: | $50 |
Wire transfer fee(s): | $30 |
Annual Storage/Insurance fee: | $100 |
Annual management fees: | $100 |
For larger accounts: | Accounts over $50K: first year fees free |
Gold buy back fees: | Free |
If you’re buying gold and silver to store in your personal possession, there are no fees. Cash purchases of precious metals can be delivered to your location of choice.
The shipping of your precious metals is free and fully insured by Birch Gold Group.
Because most of Birch Gold Group’s customers are interested in buying precious metals with their 401(k) or other qualified retirement account, a Birch Gold review would be incomplete without reviewing their gold IRA fees.
There are several moving parts in setting up a gold IRA. Left on your own, the process may seem complex. This is why people turn to gold IRA companies like Birch Gold Group. Birch has a streamlined process and can painlessly set up a new precious metals IRA in under a week!
Your Gold IRA involves 3 parties:
- a gold dealer (Birch Gold)
- a self-directed IRA custodian
- a gold storage depository
If you choose to work with Birch Gold Group, they have a list of recommended self-directed IRA custodians and IRS-approved vault depositories as options.
Gold IRA Custodian
While Birch can work with just about any self-directed IRA custodian, most of their business is with Equity Trust.
Customers tend to choose Equity Trust because they’re an established leader with very low custodial fees.
With Equity Trust, you can expect to pay $80 annually for the custodial maintenance and administrative fees. You can explore your options with Birch Gold, but most customers go with Equity Trust. They offer excellent service at the lowest cost to you.
Gold IRA Storage
Birch Gold Group offers both segregated and non-segregated vault storage of your metals along with full insurance of your investments for up to one billion dollars.
Like with your custodian, Birch is flexible in working with your private storage company of choice.
They typically work with Brinks, Delaware Depository, or International Depository Services. Their flexibility allows for a wide range of depository locations across the United States.
Typically investors pay $100 annually for the storage of their metals. Discuss the different options with Birch to decide what makes most sense for your needs.
Important note: Birch Gold often runs promotions in which they will cover 100% of your gold IRA fees for your first year. Make sure to ask about this as your account may qualify.
Home Storage Gold IRA?
Over the last several years, less-than-reputable gold firms have advertised what they refer to as the “home storage gold IRA.”
This scheme sounds like a great way to bypass finding a legitimate custodian and third-party vault storage for your metals. The idea of holding your precious metals in your home also sounds attractive to some people.
Don’t believe it…
The Industry Council for Tangible Assets (ICTA) released this white paper in 2018 warning Americans against the home storage gold IRA.
There are no legal loopholes in which you can trick the IRS into allowing you to hold retirement investments in your personal possession.
This could trigger red flags with the IRS and leave you vulnerable for an IRS audit. If the IRS disqualifies your account, it could leave you responsible for hefty IRS fees and penalties.
If you speak to Birch Gold Group or any other reputable gold IRA company, they will warn against schemes like this.
Find a trusted gold company, a reputable self-directed IRA custodian, and have your metals stored in an IRS-approved vault.
Companies like Birch make the process easy. Plus, you’ll be able to sleep better at night!
Gold Buy-back Program
Speaking of fees, most gold IRA companies are willing to buy-back your precious metals when you want or need to sell your holdings. Most gold companies also make a profit from the transaction by charging extra fees for this.
Birch Gold Group does not charge any fees when they buy your precious metals back.
If this is important to you, make sure to discuss their unique buy-back program with your Birch Gold account rep. Other companies may not be able to compete with Birch when it comes to buying back your precious metals.
Birch Gold Group Products & Services
Birch has several options if you're considering working with them, starting with their SDIRA, let's go through them now.
Self-directed Precious Metals IRA
A precious metals IRA can help you diversify your retirement funds into inflation-resistant assets. Birch Gold IRAs are set up to make funding your retirement accounts with gold, silver, or other precious metals easy.
With a self-directed gold IRA (SDIRA), you (the account holder) get to make the investment decisions (what to invest in, when, and how much).
Ultimately, you’re in charge with an SDIRA, and you can choose to invest in and diversify your portfolio into:
- Precious metals like gold, silver, and palladiums
- Real estate
- Cryptocurrencies (Bitcoin, Ethereum, etc.)
- Business assets
- And more!
Diversifying and gaining exposure to precious metals in a precious metals IRA is a great way to protect your retirement against the eroding value of the dollar.
Gold Coins and Bars
If you’re looking to buy precious metals, Birch Gold Group has a great selection of gold and silver coins as well as bullion.
Some gold dealers only focus on the most in-demand bars and coins. You may also be interested in the most sought-after products, but some customers may want more variety.
Birch Gold Group can source any IRA-approved bar or coin that you’re interested in buying. If you’re looking to make a non-IRA cash purchase, they also have a selection of collectible, rare, or numismatics.
The company offers gold, silver, platinum, and palladium bars and coins for your purchase. Work with your Birch Gold account representative to decide what makes the most sense for you.
This is just an example of the physical precious metals that you can purchase with your Birch Gold IRA:
- American Gold Eagle
- American Gold Buffalos
- 2021 Australian ¼ oz Gold Florins
- 2021 Australian 2 oz Silver Florins
- Canadian Gold, Silver, Platinum, or Palladium Maple Leafs
- Gold or Silver Gyrfalcons
- America the Beautiful Silver Series
- Valcambi CombiBars
You can expect to find the common gold bars and coins like the American Gold Eagles and Canadian Maple Leafs with just about any company, but the company can source some gold bars and coins that aren’t as readily available with other dealers.
If this is important to you in finding a precious metals IRA dealer, you may want to contact the Birch Gold Group team for your precious metals investing needs.
Ongoing Promotions
Birch Gold Group often runs promotions and other incentives for new customers. Make sure to ask them about any ongoing promotional offers.
At the time of this writing, Birch Gold is offering customers free shipping on any cash purchase over $10,000.
They’re also covering all IRA fees for the first year of your new account, and offering up to $10,000 in free silver for qualified purchases.
These offers can change at any time, so be sure to ask your account representative about any promotions you may qualify for.
Pros & Cons Of Birch Gold Group
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Cons
Who Should Open an Account With Birch Gold?
Precious metals IRAs aren’t for everyone, this is who we believe should consider working with Birch Gold Group, and who should not.
We recommend Birch Gold group, if:
- You are prepared to invest at least $10k into your new IRA
- You understand the risks and have educated yourself on SDIRAs and precious metals
- You are concerned about inflation and want to hedge against it
- You are interested in diversifying your retirement accounts
We don’t recommend BGG, if:
- You are younger than 40 years old
- You aren’t concerned with inflation
- You are risk-tolerant with your investments and looking for higher growth vehicles
- You have not done your research on SDIRAs and precious metals
Alternatives To Birch Gold Group
If you’re looking into other precious metal IRAs, we’re building a list of gold company IRA reviews for you to compare:
Frequently Asked Questions About Birch Gold Group
Birch Gold Group Review - Final Thoughts
After reviewing Birch Gold Group, we’ve added the company to the top of our recommended gold IRA companies for 2024.
So, what's the bottom line?
To recap our Birch Gold Group review, the company:
- is highly rated with the BBB, BCA, TrustLink, TrustPilot (and other review sites)
- has been in business for almost two decades (they’ll still be around in 10 years)
- allows you freedom to choose your custodian or storage company (they can make recommendations)
- offers a wide selection of gold, silver, platinum, and palladium bars and coins
- will buy-back your metals at a competitive price with zero additional fees
There’s a reason the Birch Gold Group has been around so long. If you’re interested in buying precious metals for your personal collection or through a gold IRA rollover, request more information from their website here.
There are hundreds of gold IRA “specialists” doing business in the U.S. Birch Gold Group is one company you should consider working with for your precious metals investment needs.
