APMEX Review (2026)

APMEX is a large online precious-metals retailer that sells bullion and collectible coins directly to the public, with no minimum order to buy. It suits a self-directed buyer who wants a very broad catalog, live published pricing, and no salesperson. It is not built for someone who wants a guided, high-touch account or a dedicated representative.

The company was founded in 2000. Its catalog is deliberately wide. You can buy gold, silver, platinum, and palladium as bars, government-minted coins, and numismatics, from common bullion rounds to graded rare coins. Prices track the market and are shown on each product page. There is no order minimum on the buy side.

Buying and paying

Here is the part that is easy to miss. The price you see already assumes you will pay the cheaper way. APMEX gives a 4% discount off its list price to customers who pay by paper check, eCheck, bank wire, or trade, and the displayed price includes that discount. If you pay by credit card, PayPal, or cryptocurrency, you do not get the discount, so you pay about 4% more than the number on the screen. On a $10,000 order that gap is roughly $400.

The trade-off is speed. Same-day bank wire clears fastest and still gets the cash price. Check and eCheck orders are held before shipping, about four to five business days, and longer if your bank is slow to confirm the payment. So the cheapest payment methods are also the slowest.

Cancellation carries a real cost. Once APMEX issues an order number, the price is locked. If you cancel, you are subject to its market loss policy plus a fee of the greater of $50 or 5% of the order total. Market loss applies when the metal price has fallen since you locked in. In a flat or rising market the fee is the floor. In a falling market it can run well past that.

Storage and selling

Storage is optional. Most buyers take delivery. If you would rather not hold the metal yourself, APMEX offers allocated storage through Citadel, a wholly owned subsidiary, with the vaulting handled by Brink’s. Metal is allocated and segregated in your name and insured against theft, damage, or loss. The fee is 0.55% per year. APMEX compares that to an ETF expense ratio, which is a fair reference point.

Selling back is straightforward and published. The minimum sell-back is $1,000. You lock a price by phone, then ship with a prepaid, fully insured APMEX Logistics label. Payment is typically issued about two business days after your items arrive and are authenticated. APMEX states there are no receiving fees and no hidden fees on a sale.

Who it suits

APMEX fits a confident, self-directed buyer. If you know what you want, will pay by wire or check, and value selection and a published buyback over hand-holding, it is a strong fit. A first-time buyer who wants guidance, or anyone who plans to pay by card and does not notice the surcharge, is more likely to be caught out.

Where it falls short

Three things deserve attention before you order.

The card surcharge is the big one. The 4% is framed as a discount for paying by check or wire, so a card, PayPal, or crypto buyer can pay it without realizing the displayed price was never meant for them.

The cancellation terms are strict. Backing out of a locked order costs the greater of $50 or 5% of the total, plus any market loss. That protects APMEX from price swings. It lands on the buyer who changes their mind.

Payment timing adds friction. Check and eCheck orders sit for several business days before shipping, so paying the cheap way means waiting.

One more point of context. APMEX draws a high absolute number of complaints at the Better Business Bureau over three years. Read that against volume, not in isolation. This is a very high-volume retailer, and a large complaint count on a large order base is not the signal it would be for a small dealer. Weigh the rate, not the raw total.

Bottom line

APMEX is a deep, transparent catalog for a buyer who does not need a guide, and the published buyback and optional allocated storage round out a complete self-serve operation. The cautions are specific and avoidable. Pay by check or wire to get the price you see. Do not lock an order you might cancel. Expect a wait if you pay by check. Read the payment and market loss pages before you buy, and confirm the current check hold against APMEX’s own pages.