Investing for Preppers: Gold vs. Silver

By James Barton •  Updated: 04/12/19 •  5 min read

In life, the best thing you could want for both you and your family is security. Whether that comes in the form of a secure home, adequate finances or emotional support, you want to have a system in place that will take care of you throughout any situation. In the modern world, there are a great number of things you must worry about on a daily basis, and one of them may be the state of current affairs.

As it is, the world sometimes seems as if it is heading towards a path of despair, one that may culminate in a catastrophic event that is either manmade or natural: the Doomsday event.

If you are someone who has already begun preparing for the possible Doomsday—storing mass goods within your home, from clothing to self-defense items, purified water to food—or if you are someone who has contemplated investing in preparation materials, you might be a Doomsday Prepper.

Many Doomsday Prepper lists will offer you a large quantity of items to keep stockpiled, including:

These lists can be quite extensive, but it is the final item that begs the question: Which currency works best?

What Currency Is King?

Without knowing what Doomsday will bring, it can be difficult to discern which currency is going to provide you with the best financial security both in the immediate aftermath and the long run.

While cash is easy to store in large quantities, the likelihood of its current value staying following an apocalypse is quite low. Inflation will hit and the USD will crash, leaving the dollar more or less useless not long after the world takes a turn for the worse.

For this reason, it is best for you to invest in precious metals—silver and gold. Whether in the form of bullion bars, jewelry or rare, collectible coins, these items hold both a monetary and visual value that make them suitable for buying and trading items with other people.

These items are relatively easy to stock up on in preparation for Doomsday, as they work as investments for the future, whether or not a Doomsday event occurs. The value of gold and silver is something that is intrinsic to human history, and it is certain that these precious metals will continue to reign supreme no matter the direction of the future.

Yet, between these two precious metal options, which makes for the best long-term investment for you? There are two characteristics of both gold and silver to consider when first thinking about investing.

The Cost Effectiveness of Each

Currency

Even when prepping, you need to make investments while considering your finances in relation to now. For this reason, you must consider the spot prices of both gold and silver to determine just which would make for the best investments for you.

At this time, the spot price of gold currently sits at just under $1300 per ounce, while the silver spot price is approximately $15 per ounce. While the value of gold might be greater than that of silver, the initial cost required to invest in gold is equally steep. If you’re looking to stockpile in larger investments of coins and bullion for the time being, it might be in your best interest to invest in silver; however, if you’d like to add some noteworthy pieces to your collection—items that could be used in dire times, when someone dearly needs to be influenced—you can rely on a piece of gold.

While having a higher spot price, gold makes for a beneficial investment due to the advantage it has to increasing in worth over time. The value of gold has continually been shown to be greater than that of silver, but as the global mass of gold begins to shrink—and whenever doomsday hits—it can be expected that the value of gold will only continue to grow as all other precious metals become difficult to come by.

Intrinsic Trading Value 

Due to the difference in spot price between gold and silver, these items will serve different purposes when trading with others. Simply put, silver would be used to purchase small items, while gold would work best for items of much greater value.

Consider the following scenario: Doomsday has come and you have stockpiled a notable amount of both gold and silver; however, as you have continued thriving in the post-apocalyptic world, your supplies begin to dwindle. You know someone still living within your region has the essential supplies you need, particularly food and water. For smaller items such as this, you could offer them a considerable amount of silver coins to purchase these basic items—a fair trade; however, if they were not pleased with the amount of silver you offer them, you could always provide them with gold, making it more likely to capture their attention.

coins

What You Should Invest In

While we have provided you with insight into the differences between investing in gold and silver, we cannot make a declaration as to which would work best for you.

The truth is that each item carries its own worth, both monetarily and socially. It will depend entirely upon the size of the purchase as to whether silver or gold would be the most fitting item to trade. Furthermore, it will depend upon your current finances as to which investment you should consider most.

James Barton

James Barton

Hi, I'm James. I am the founder and main editor for The Survival Corps. I have been a part of the survival and prepping community since my mid 30's as I downsized and started to prepare to be self sufficient in a time of crisis.