LemonTrades
TL;DR
- The spot price is what one troy ounce of pure silver trades for right now, in bulk. It’s live below.
- It comes from the futures market, mainly COMEX in New York, and changes nearly around the clock on weekdays.
- Coins and bars cost more than spot, and dealers buy back for a little less. The gap is the dealer’s premium.
- LemonTrades tells you what moved silver, and why, within seconds, with alerts on sharp moves.
Here’s the price of silver right now, and what goes into it.
What “spot” means
Spot is the price for immediate delivery of large, pure (.999) silver bars. In practice it’s set by trading in silver futures on COMEX and in London’s over-the-counter market. Price sites show a bid, what buyers will pay, and an ask, what sellers want, and the spot price sits between them.
What you’ll actually pay
| What you buy | Typical cost |
|---|---|
| Large bars (100 oz, 1 kilo) | A little above spot |
| Generic rounds and 10 oz bars | A few percent above spot |
| American Silver Eagles | Several dollars an ounce above spot |
| Junk silver coins | Near spot, sometimes more when demand is high |
When you sell, dealers usually pay a little below spot. See junk silver and how much an ounce of silver is worth.
What moves the silver price
- Industry: about half of silver demand comes from industry, especially solar panels and electronics, so it tracks the economy more than gold does.
- Interest rates and the dollar: lower rates and a weaker dollar usually help, as they do for gold.
- Gold: silver tends to follow gold, with bigger swings.
- Investment flows into silver ETFs such as SLV.
Why it’s moving now: why silver is going up. Trading hours: when the silver market opens.
Sources
- The Silver Institute: silver supply and demand
- CME Group: Silver futures
- Royal Society of Chemistry: Silver
Education, not financial advice. See our disclaimer.
