Premium Calculator — Work Out the Premium Over Spot
Choose a product and enter the asking price to work out the premium.
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We pour our heart into keeping preciousmetalprices.com fast, clean and free — no paywalls, no clutter, just reliable facts and live prices. If it helps you, the nicest way to say thank you is to pass it on. Every share helps a fellow investor discover us and keeps the project alive. 💛
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Formula and worked example
The premium is worked out in two steps:
Metal value = fine weight (g) × spot price per gram
Premium % = (asking price − metal value) ÷ metal value × 100
Example at the current Gold price: a 1 oz coin contains 31.1035 g of fine metal. At the current spot of 121.60 €/g the metal value is 3,782.21 €. If the coin is offered at 3,952.41 €, that is 170.20 € of premium — around 4.5 %. The calculator above does this for you with the live rate.
Premium by denomination
The most important rule: the smaller the unit, the higher the percentage premium. Minting and distribution cost roughly the same per piece, so spread over less metal the mark-up rises. Typical bands for new gold products (market-dependent, no dealer named):
| Denomination | Type | Typical premium |
|---|---|---|
| 1 kg / 500 g | Bar | approx. 1–2 % |
| 100 g | Bar | approx. 2–3 % |
| 1 oz | Bar | approx. 3–4 % |
| 1 oz (Krugerrand, Maple Leaf …) | Coin | approx. 3–6 % |
| 20 g / 10 g | Bar | approx. 5–8 % |
| 1/2 oz | Coin | approx. 6–9 % |
| 1/4 oz | Coin | approx. 8–12 % |
| 1/10 oz · 5 g | Coin / bar | approx. 10–18 % |
| 1 g · 1/20 oz | Bar / coin | approx. 15–25 % |
These figures are rough orientation and move with supply, demand and mint. In times of stress they rise noticeably. They apply to gold, which is exempt from VAT — for silver, platinum and palladium the tax of your country is added on top, which is why the calculator works out its own band for those.
One ounce against ten tenths
Here is the moment it clicks: for the same money you get different amounts of gold, depending on denomination. At a premium of 4.5 % on a full ounce against 12 % on ten tenth-ounces, the difference goes straight into less fine gold:
1 × full ounce · premium ~4.5 %
Of 10,000 invested, about 9,570 ends up in the safe as actual gold — only around 430 is mark-up.
10 × tenth ounce · premium ~12 %
Here only about 8,930 is gold value — a good 1,070 is lost to the premium.
That is roughly 640 difference for the same outlay, purely from the denomination. What you get in return: tenth-ounces are easier to divide and more flexible in a pinch. The rule of thumb is therefore to buy the largest unit that fits your budget and your selling plans — plus a few small units for flexibility.
Coin or bar?
At the same fine weight the metal value is identical — the difference lies in the premium and in handling. Bars usually carry the lower premium because they are cheaper to produce. Bullion coins cost a little more but are recognised worldwide, easier to verify and quicker to sell on — the trade identifies a Krugerrand or a Maple Leaf in seconds. As investment gold both are exempt from VAT.
For the lowest metal price the bar wins, for liquidity and divisibility the coin. A modest coin premium is the price of easier resale — money well spent for many investors.
The premium when you sell: the spread
The premium is only half the story — what decides your return is the spread, the gap between buying and selling. When you sell back you normally get slightly below the spot price: buy-back quotes sit closest to spot for standard bars and well-known coins, and further below it for small denominations and exotics.
So the real cost of an investment is the whole round trip: buying above spot plus selling below it. That is precisely why liquid standard products with a tight spread are usually the cheaper choice. What a sale would realistically yield is estimated by the purchase price calculator.
Silver, platinum and tax
International edition — describes German law. Readers outside Germany must consult local rules.
An important special case: unlike investment gold, silver, platinum and palladium are not exempt from VAT. The tax is part of the final price and makes the premium look very high at first sight.
In this country edition the rate on silver, platinum and palladium is 19 %. Coins can be sold under the margin scheme, where only the dealer's margin is taxed; bars carry the full rate. The calculator applies this distinction, which is why a silver coin and a silver bar of the same weight are measured against different bands.
The calculator compares your asking price with the pure metal value, so for silver, platinum and palladium the premium shown is to be read including the tax. That is not a mistake in the maths, it is the real extra you pay. For a fair comparison put like against like — a margin-scheme coin against a margin-scheme coin.
Tax rules for this country edition last checked: 08/08/2026.
In short: with gold the premium is pure mark-up. With silver, platinum and palladium it also contains the VAT, which is why the percentage is systematically higher.
The premium as a market indicator
The premium is not constant — it breathes with the market. When demand spikes (crises, crash fears, mints running short) premiums rise sharply, sometimes to a multiple of the normal level, and delivery times stretch. In quiet phases with plenty of stock they fall back.
For buyers that means a low premium is often a sign of a relaxed market — a good moment for a physical purchase. Sharply increased premiums signal stress in the physical market. For anyone buying for the long term, a low premium matters more than the exact price on the day.
Common mistakes with the premium
- ◆Looking only at the metal value: Two products with the same fine content can differ noticeably in price. Only the premium makes an offer expensive or cheap.
- ◆Forgetting shipping and payment fees: A low premium helps little if shipping and card fees eat it up again. Always compare the final price.
- ◆Choosing denominations that are too small: Many small units instead of one large one — the percentage premium visibly eats into your return (see the example above).
- ◆Mistaking a price below metal value for a bargain: A price clearly below spot is a warning sign — a fake or a scam — not a stroke of luck.
- ◆Confusing premium and spread: What counts for your return is the whole round trip: the premium when you buy plus the discount when you sell.
- ◆Buying collector coins as an investment: Numismatic mark-ups are not a premium on metal — when you sell, the collector price is often gone.