Who would’ve thought your next travel adventure could be funded by a trip to the bulk warehouse? That’s right, we’re talking about buying and selling gold bars and coins from Costco! It might sound wild, but this savvy strategy has become a fascinating way for points and miles enthusiasts to rack up rewards, meet minimum spend requirements, and even potentially turn a profit.
A Golden History: Costco's Foray into Bullion
Costco, the land of oversized everything, surprised many when it quietly started selling 24-karat gold bars online in June 2023. What began as a somewhat niche offering quickly exploded in popularity, with sales reportedly reaching upwards of $100-$200 million per month by April 2024. They later expanded their precious metals offerings to include silver coins and even platinum bars.
The gold bars typically sold at Costco are from reputable refineries like MKS PAMP and Rand Refinery, both certified by the LBMA (London Bullion Market Association). You’ll often find the popular 1-ounce Lady Fortuna bar from PAMP Suisse. The appeal for many lies in Costco’s familiar and accessible platform, allowing members to buy physical gold without navigating specialized dealers. However, due to overwhelming demand, these precious items are often in short supply, and Costco has implemented strict purchase limits (currently, often limited to 1 transaction per membership, with a maximum of 2 units per 24 hours for online purchases. In-store purchases allow a few extra bars at a time).
Fueling Your Wanderlust: Meeting Minimum Spend Requirements
One of the most exciting aspects of the Costco gold strategy for points and miles aficionados is its potential to help you hit those lucrative credit card minimum spend requirements. Imagine getting a massive sign-up bonus for a premium travel card by simply buying something you can then convert back to cash (or more gold!).
Here’s how it works:
Big Purchases, Big Rewards: Gold bars and coins are high-value items. A single 1-ounce gold bar can easily be several thousand dollars, making a significant dent in even the most aggressive minimum spend requirements.
Everyday Spending, Elevated: While you can’t always buy gold in-store, online purchases at Costco with your credit card count towards your spending. This allows you to essentially “manufacture spend” on an item that holds its value, unlike, say, buying a bunch of groceries you don’t need.
Cash Back on Top: If you have a Costco Executive membership, you even get 2% cash back on your purchases, adding another layer of value to the transaction. This 2% can often offset any minor premiums paid over the spot price of gold, making the entire endeavor even more appealing.
Important Note: Always ensure you have the funds readily available to pay off your credit card balance in full. The goal is to earn points, not accrue interest! Interest charges can quickly negate any rewards earned. Also, be aware that some credit card issuers might flag extremely large or frequent gold purchases, so it’s wise to proceed cautiously and understand your card’s terms.
My Favorite Credit Cards for Gold Reselling
When deciding to jump into the gold reselling marketplace, you don’t want to overlook the cards you’re using to actually buy your stock. Using a debit card or, even worse, cash will result in far lower gains than you could earn otherwise. You’ll still earn your 2% from your Costco Executive membership, but that margin gets eaten up pretty quickly in fees throughout this process.
Here are a few of my go-to cards to make the most out of this part of the hobby. If you’re interested in applying for any of these cards and don’t mind helping support our group, simply click on the EMAIL links below to send me a message:
- US Bank Altitude Reserve – No longer available to new applicants – If you’re lucky enough to still have this card laying around, you’ll earn 3x points on every dollar spent with your mobile wallet including purchases at Costco for gold. You can then redeem your points for a 1.5x boost when using them for travel related expenses.
- Chase Sapphire Reserve Business – EMAIL – This card won’t have any must-have category bonuses for Costco purchases, but it does have a healthy 200,000 UR sign up bonus after $30k of spend. Normally that’d be a pretty tough goal to hit, but with gold reselling you could earn your bonus is as few as 2 trips to Costco!
- Bank of America Premium Rewards – No referrals available – This card will earn you 60,000 points after $4,000 in spend, but the true benefit lies in the 75% points earning boost if you’re a Platinum Honors customer with Bank of America. This requires holding $100k+ in assets with either BoA or Merrill to qualify, and will result in an earn rate of 2.62% cash back for any and every purchase you make on the card.
- Capital One Venture, or Venture X – EMAIL (Venture), EMAIL (Venture X) – Both of these cards will net you 75,000 points after $4,000 in spend, and will always earn 2x points per dollar on all your spend. This is a great option for double-points on every purchase.
- Capital One Venture X Business – EMAIL – This variant of the Venture card will net you 150,000 points after $30,000 in spend. Again, another high-dollar requirement that can be easily accomplished with just 2 trips to Costco for gold reselling.
- Citi Double Cash – EMAIL – This card’s sign up bonus is pretty weak at $200 cash back after $1,500 spend, but the real benefit is it’s 2x earning rate on all your spend with no max limits. What’s lesser known about that 2x is that you can combine those points with a premium Citi card to use them as transferable points, too. Definitely a good option when not working on a SUB.
Any other good cards come to mind? Let us know in thePointsPage Gold Reselling Superthread in our Facebook Community.
The Gold Market Rollercoaster: Making (and Losing) Money
While the points and miles aspect is a primary driver, there’s also the allure of potentially profiting from the gold market itself. Gold is often seen as a “safe haven” asset, with its value tending to rise during times of economic uncertainty and inflation. In 2024, gold saw its best annual performance in over a decade, reaching new nominal record highs. Many experts anticipate continued appreciation.
Here’s the exciting part:
Arbitrage Opportunities: Sometimes, Costco sells gold at a slight discount to the prevailing market “spot price,” or the 2% Executive membership cash back can create a positive spread. If you can buy at a favorable price and sell quickly when the market is up, you can pocket the difference.
The Power of Patience: If you’re not in a rush to liquidate, holding onto gold during an uptrend can lead to significant gains.
Volatility is Real: Gold prices fluctuate daily, influenced by global economic data, geopolitical events, interest rates, and the strength of the U.S. dollar. What you buy for today might be worth less tomorrow.
Premiums and Spreads: While Costco’s pricing is often competitive, there’s always a premium over the spot price when buying physical gold. When you sell, there will also be a “spread” – the difference between the buying and selling price that goes to the dealer. These premiums and spreads eat into your potential profits.
No Guarantees: There’s no guarantee you’ll make money on the gold itself. Treat any potential profit from the gold’s appreciation as a bonus, with the primary goal being the credit card rewards.
Your Go-To for Gold Liquidity: CollectPure.com
Once you’ve snagged your gold bars or coins from Costco, the next step is often finding a reliable and efficient way to sell them. This is where a platform like CollectPure.com truly shines.
Create your own CollectPure account by clicking here and receive a new-user bonus when using thePointsPage’s referral code below.
To receive your bonus you must copy and paste this code to the referral section when creating your account: 239a8153-c418-4041-8b56-fcc154f82d81
CollectPure.com is a modern marketplace specifically designed for buying and selling precious metals and rare coins. What sets them apart, especially for those dealing with Costco gold, is their focus on transparency, competitive pricing, and a smooth selling process. Unlike traditional pawn shops or some local dealers who might offer significantly below market value, CollectPure aims to provide a fair price by connecting sellers with a network of market makers.
Why I personally use CollectPure.com:
Competitive Pricing: Their order-book style marketplace allows for bids and asks, ensuring you get a competitive price for your items, often based on a transparent premium over the spot price.
Streamlined Process: From free insured shipping labels to fast payouts, they’ve clearly thought about making the selling experience as hassle-free as possible. This is a huge win when you’re dealing with valuable items.
Reputation and Trust: Backed by reputable investors (including Y-Combinator), CollectPure has quickly built a strong reputation in the precious metals community for being legitimate and reliable. Their customer support, often handled by a founder like Trey, is incredibly responsive.
No Guesswork: They clearly outline their selling fees and provide guidance on how to properly ship your items, taking away much of the uncertainty.
Unlock More Rewards with thePointsPage x CollectPure.com Partnership!
If you’re ready to dive into the world of buying and selling gold from Costco to supercharge your points and miles game, I highly recommend checking out CollectPure.com. They make the selling side of the equation a breeze.
Copy and paste our referral code below when creating your own account and you can earn credits towards your first sell order. There are a few steps to follow to make sure you get your bonus, but they’re easy:
- Sign up for a CollectPure account here:
- Copy and paste our unique referral code into the Referral field during account creation: 239a8153-c418-4041-8b56-fcc154f82d81
- Make sure your first sale to CollectPure is $5,000 or more to trigger your new user credit
Following these 3 simple steps will ensure you receive your bonus, and will get you well on your way to hitting as many credit card sign up bonuses as you can handle!
Getting to the Point(s)
Costco and the new(ish) gold offering presents a unique avenue for points and miles enthusiasts to meet credit card minimum spend requirements and potentially profit from gold market fluctuations, combining financial savvy with travel hacking.
The process is is relatively straightforward, but probably looks a little intimidating to those just getting started. Here’s your cheat sheet:
- Sign up for the Costco Executive membership so you earn 2% back on all Costco purchases (sometimes you can find a Groupon for this).
- Create a seller’s account at CollectPure using our referral code (copy and paste: 239a8153-c418-4041-8b56-fcc154f82d81) for your new-user bonus.
- Monitor in-store and online gold prices at Costco and compare to prices being paid on CollectPure.
- Purchase your Costco gold using a Visa or Mastercard credit card to meet your minimum spend obligation for a new sign up bonus.
- Sell your gold (at least $5,000 for your first order to receive your referral bonus) using the CollectPure marketplace platform, then box it up, and ship it out! Make sure to follow the instructions for this provided here.
Have questions that we didn’t answer above?
Drop us a line on our Facebook Community’s dedicated Gold Reselling thread and receive real-time feedback from thePointsPage.
