Comparing the true cost of buying bullion
Most bullion comparison websites show only the advertised product price.
The Poppet goes a step further by estimating the total delivered cost of buying gold, silver, platinum and palladium bullion from Australian dealers.
Where delivery information is available, we combine the dealer's bullion price with their delivery and insurance charges so you can compare what an order is likely to cost when it reaches your door.
Our aim is simple: help Australians compare bullion products on a like-for-like basis across multiple dealers.
How the delivered price is calculated
For each product listing, The Poppet calculates:
Product price + delivery costs + insurance costs = delivered price
The product price used is the dealer's current advertised price for the quantity selected.
Where a dealer offers quantity discounts or volume pricing tiers, the applicable price break is used in the calculation.
Where collection from a dealer's showroom is available and selected, delivery costs are treated as zero.
How delivery costs are estimated
Australian bullion dealers use a variety of delivery pricing models.
Depending on the dealer, delivery charges may be based on:
- Parcel weight
- Order value
- Insured value
- Product type
- Delivery location
- Flat-rate shipping fees
To estimate delivered pricing as accurately as possible, The Poppet applies each dealer's published delivery rules, including:
- Weight-based delivery bands
- Per-kilogram or per-ounce delivery rates
- Flat-rate shipping fees
- Insurance fees
- Minimum charges
- GST where applicable
Some dealers publish detailed delivery schedules.
Others calculate shipping during checkout. In these cases, delivery estimates may be based on cart calculations or dealer-provided information where available.
Remote locations, PO Boxes and special delivery requirements may attract additional charges. Final delivery costs should always be confirmed with the dealer before ordering.
Collection-only dealers
Some bullion dealers do not offer shipping services and instead require customers to collect products from their showroom or branch.
Where a dealer operates on a collection-only basis, no delivery charge is applied and products are shown as available for collection only.
Delivery rules by dealer
The delivery calculations used by The Poppet are based on the delivery rates each dealer publishes on its website.
These rules are reviewed and updated regularly.
| Dealer | Delivery |
|---|---|
| Adelaide Gold Company | Insured Australia Wide Delivery: $25 up to 1 kg ($30 to 2 kg, $40 to 3 kg, then $10 more per kg), plus insurance of 1.2% of the order value. Read from the cart's delivery estimate. |
| Ainslie Bullion | Silver $8 per kg, gold $15 flat, plus 0.6% insurance, minimum $31 per order. |
| Australian Bullion Company | Australia Post registered: $20 up to about 830 g of metal, $25 to 2.5 kg, $30 to 4.2 kg, then $10 per kg, plus compulsory insurance of 1% of the order value, all plus GST on the insurance. Orders over $20,000 go by secure courier, quoted separately. |
| Australian Gold Capital | Insured Australia Wide Delivery: $25 up to 1 kg ($30 to 2 kg, $40 to 3 kg, then $10 more per kg), plus insurance of 1.2% of the order value. Read from the cart's delivery estimate. |
| Box Hill Gold Company | Insured Australia Wide Delivery: $25 up to 1 kg ($30 to 2 kg, $40 to 3 kg, then $10 more per kg), plus insurance of 1.2% of the order value. Read from the cart's delivery estimate. |
| Brisbane Gold Buyers | Insured Australia Wide Delivery: $25 up to 1 kg ($30 to 2 kg, $40 to 3 kg, then $10 more per kg), plus insurance of 1.2% of the order value. Read from the cart's delivery estimate. |
| Brisbane Gold Company | Insured Australia Wide Delivery: $25 up to 1 kg ($30 to 2 kg, $40 to 3 kg, then $10 more per kg), plus insurance of 1.2% of the order value. Read from the cart's delivery estimate. |
| Bullion Now | Insured parcel, $20 under 1 kg, $28 for 1 to 3 kg, $35 for 3 to 5 kg. Over 5 kg is quoted on request. |
| Cash for Old Gold | Insured Australia Wide Delivery: $25 up to 1 kg ($30 to 2 kg, $40 to 3 kg, then $10 more per kg), plus insurance of 1.2% of the order value. Read from the cart's delivery estimate. |
| Geelong Gold Company | Insured Australia Wide Delivery: $25 up to 1 kg ($30 to 2 kg, $40 to 3 kg, then $10 more per kg), plus insurance of 1.2% of the order value. Read from the cart's delivery estimate. |
| Glenroy Gold Company | Insured Australia Wide Delivery: $25 up to 1 kg ($30 to 2 kg, $40 to 3 kg, then $10 more per kg), plus insurance of 1.2% of the order value. Read from the cart's delivery estimate. |
| Gold Bullion Australia | Same weight bands and insurance rates as Gold Stackers, plus 10% GST on both. |
| Gold Stackers | Australia Post Registered, $25 up to 4.99 kg ($40 to 9.99 kg, $50 to 19.99 kg), plus insurance of 0.8% of order value for silver or 0.5% for gold. |
| Great Southland Bullion | Collection only (terms cl. 5), by appointment, from Perth, Sydney (Roselands) or Melbourne (Box Hill, Chadstone, Glen Waverley). Orders are not posted. |
| Guardian Gold | Collection only, from Melbourne or Sydney (no appointment needed); most orders are ready in 7 to 12 business days. Orders are not posted. |
| Hobart Gold Company | Insured Australia Wide Delivery: $25 up to 1 kg ($30 to 2 kg, $40 to 3 kg, then $10 more per kg), plus insurance of 1.2% of the order value. Read from the cart's delivery estimate. |
| Imperial Bullion | Startrack or TGE, priced on order value and weight and insured; the fee is not published, so it is left blank here. GST applies to freight and insurance. |
| KJC Bullion | Silver $4.18 per kg, gold $1.95 per oz, insurance included, minimum $40 per order. |
| Liberty Bullion | Free insured delivery in our tests on 11 November 2026: no fee was charged on a 1oz coin purchase, and checkout showed $0 delivery for a 1kg silver bar and for a 1oz gold coin. Liberty doesn't publish its rates (they depend on location and order value), so orders over $6,500 show "+ delivery". Orders over $20,000 are split into insured packages. |
| Melbourne Gold Company | Insured Australia Wide Delivery: $25 up to 1 kg ($30 to 2 kg, $40 to 3 kg, then $10 more per kg), plus insurance of 1.2% of the order value. Read from the cart's delivery estimate. |
| Perth Bullion Exchange | Australia Post satchel, $18 up to 900 g, $23 up to 2.7 kg, $27 up to 4.5 kg, plus secure delivery of 0.7% of the first $1,000 and 0.35% above (at least $5). Free from 20 items (orders of $5,000 or more still pay secure delivery). Over 4.5 kg goes by courier, quoted at checkout. |
| Royal Bullion | Australia Post with signature, priced by weight at checkout; the fee is not published, so it is left blank here. |
| Swan Bullion | Delivery fees are not published (only that GST may apply), so they are left blank here. |
| Vault Australasia | Online orders are held for collection at the Adelaide vault (22 King William St). Delivery can be arranged on request, but it isn't part of the online shop and the fee isn't published. |
See our dedicated Bullion Delivery Costs page for practical examples across common order sizes.
Price per ounce
The price per ounce figure allows products of different sizes and brands to be compared on a consistent basis.
It is calculated by dividing the total delivered price by the product's fine metal weight.
This allows investors to compare:
- Different bar sizes
- Different coin sizes
- Different mints
- Different dealers
using a common unit of measurement.
Understanding “over spot”
The over spot figure shows how far a product's price sits above the current precious metals spot price.
It helps investors compare premiums across similar bullion products.
Spot prices are obtained from:
- Gold-API
- Backup precious metals pricing sources when required
Because bullion dealers use their own pricing feeds, the spot price used by a dealer may differ slightly from the spot price used by The Poppet.
Differences can result from:
- Update timing
- Data providers
- Currency conversion methods
- Internal pricing systems
For this reason, over spot should be viewed as a comparison tool rather than a dealer's actual margin.
Price quality checks
Every product price collected by The Poppet passes through a series of automated quality checks before being displayed.
These checks help identify pricing errors, scraping issues and unusual dealer data.
Spot price validation
Prices significantly below spot are rejected.
As a general rule:
- Products more than 2% below spot are excluded.
- Gold products more than 15% above spot are rejected.
- Silver products more than 45% above spot are rejected.
If a price fails validation, the last known valid price is retained until a new verified price is available.
Sudden price change detection
Large price movements between updates are automatically flagged.
Where a product changes by more than 15% without a corresponding movement in the underlying metal price, the update may be rejected pending further validation.
Product matching controls
Products are matched across dealers using key product attributes, including:
- Metal type
- Weight
- Mint
- Product series
- Year of issue
Only products that match these characteristics are compared side-by-side.
This helps ensure investors are comparing equivalent bullion products rather than unrelated items.
Why methodology matters
Comparing bullion prices sounds simple, but accurate comparison requires more than collecting product prices.
Delivery fees, insurance costs, volume discounts, stock status, spot price movements and product matching all influence the true cost of an order.
The Poppet's methodology is designed to provide transparent, consistent and practical comparisons so Australian investors can make more informed decisions when buying gold, silver, platinum and palladium bullion.