SD Bullion vs Pure: Buying and Selling Compared (2026)
Both SD Bullion and Pure let you buy and sell gold, silver, platinum, and palladium online, but they work differently. SD Bullion is a dealer: it sells products from its own warehouse at prices it posts, and its Sell to Us page says you lock a buyback price by calling its buyback team. Pure is a peer-to-peer marketplace: buyers and sellers post their own bids and asks on an order book anyone can see without an account, buyers pay no marketplace fee, and sellers pay a published fee of 0.5% to 1.5%. On Pure, a seller never ships straight to a buyer: every item comes to Pure first, on an insured shipping label Pure provides at no extra cost, and Pure's team verifies it before passing it along.
We run Pure, so we have a stake in this comparison. Every SD Bullion detail below comes from SD Bullion's own website as of October 6, 2026, and its policies can change, so check its site for current terms. Pure is not affiliated with SD Bullion.
SD Bullion vs Pure at a glance
What to look for | SD Bullion | Pure |
|---|---|---|
Model | Dealer selling from its own warehouse | Peer-to-peer marketplace where members trade with each other |
Who sets the price | SD Bullion | The buyer and the seller, through bids and asks on the order book |
Paying | Card (up to $5,000) and PayPal (up to $500), neither eligible for the 4% cash discount; e-check (up to $10,000), which is eligible; checks, bank wire, and other methods, each with its own limit | Bank wire or ACH, no marketplace fee; card only on Pure Priority items, plus 2.9% |
Shipping to you | Free and insured on domestic orders over $199; $9.95 for shipping and insurance at $199 or less | $25 on orders under $10,000; free at $10,000 or more; insured |
Selling | Lock a price with the buyback team (by phone, per its buyback page), then ship | Sell into the highest bid, which fills right away, or post an ask at your price and wait for a buyer; no minimum to sell |
Where your item goes when you sell | To SD Bullion, whose inventory team inspects each product for authenticity and accuracy, per its Sell to Us page | To Pure, never straight to the buyer, on an insured label Pure provides at no extra cost; Pure verifies every item first |
Seller cost | Buyback page lists optional fees only: $30 for a bank wire payout, or a fee for an SD Bullion insured shipping label | Published fee of 0.5% to 1.5%, by item and quarterly volume |
Getting paid | Issued within 1 to 3 business days after processing; ACH, or bank wire for $30 | Automatic once the item checks in and passes verification, about 3 business days from check-in; ACH or check |
How buying works on each
SD Bullion. You choose a product and place an order. SD Bullion's help center says the metal price locks the moment you confirm and place the order, and that adding an item to your cart doesn't lock it. Its 4% cash discount depends on payment method: card and PayPal orders aren't eligible, while e-check orders are. It also says in-stock items are in its warehouse and ready to ship, and that orders are typically processed and shipped within 1 to 3 business days once payment clears.
Pure. Each product has an order book that lists every resting bid (what a buyer will pay) and ask (what a seller will take). You can take the lowest ask, or post a bid at the price you want and wait for a seller to fill it. Buyers pay no marketplace fee and can pay by bank wire or ACH. A card works only on Pure Priority items, adds 2.9%, and those items are already verified and ship Express in 2 to 3 days once payment confirms. On every other order, the seller ships to Pure and Pure verifies the item before sending it on, so allow extra time if you need an item by a set date. Shipping is $25 on orders under $10,000 and free at $10,000 or more. How the Pure marketplace works covers the full flow.
How selling works on each
SD Bullion. SD Bullion's Sell to Us page says prices lock over the phone when you agree to a trade with its buyback team. The minimums to sell are 40 oz of silver, 2 oz of gold, 1 oz of platinum, and 1 oz of palladium. The page says SD Bullion records video of every package it receives and that its inventory team inspects each product for authenticity and accuracy; payment is issued within 1 to 3 business days after processing, by ACH or by bank wire for $30. Metal held in its depository can be sold without shipping it.
Pure. You can sell into the highest bid, and the sale fills right then at that price, or post an ask at the price you want and wait for a buyer to take it. Either way, the bids are visible on the product page before you decide, and there's no minimum to sell. You then ship the item to Pure, not to the buyer, using the insured label Pure gives you at no extra cost. Pure's team verifies that it's real, and payout is automatic once it checks in and passes verification, arriving about 3 business days from check-in by ACH or paper check. Seller fees are published and run from 0.5% to 1.5% depending on the item and your quarterly volume; the full tier table has the breakdown.
How Pure checks the metal
Every item comes to Pure first and is tested by Pure's team, usually within about 24 hours of arriving. Pure records the unboxing, tests the metal's exact composition without damaging the item, and has a trained specialist inspect it by hand. An item that passes is Pure Qualified. One that fails never ships out, and Pure works to match that buyer with a new seller for the same item at the same price. Pure doesn't publish its exact equipment, since a public list would tell counterfeiters what they need to fool. Shipments are insured both ways up to $125,000.
Using both
You don't have to pick one. You can buy a specific in-stock product from a dealer and use a marketplace when you want to set your own price.
FAQ
Is Pure a dealer like SD Bullion?
No. Pure is a peer-to-peer marketplace. Prices on Pure come from the bids and asks buyers and sellers post on each product's order book, and Pure sits in the middle: it tests the item, ships it insured, and handles the payment.
Is Pure legit?
Pure was founded in 2022, came through Y Combinator's Summer 2023 batch, and has processed almost 60,000 orders. Pure's team tests every item before it ships, shipments are insured both ways up to $125,000, and everyone on both sides completes document verification before they can trade.
Do buyers and sellers on Pure deal with each other directly?
No. A seller on Pure never ships to the person buying. The seller sends the item to Pure on an insured shipping label Pure provides at no extra cost, Pure's team verifies it, and only an item that passes goes on to the buyer. Prices come from an order book that shows every bid and ask for that product, so you can see what buyers are offering and what sellers are asking before you trade. Buyers and sellers on Pure complete document verification before they can trade, and shipments are insured both ways up to $125,000.
How fast do you get paid after selling?
SD Bullion's Sell to Us page says payment is issued within 1 to 3 business days after processing, by ACH or by bank wire for $30. On Pure, standard payout is automatic once the item checks in and passes verification, and it arrives about 3 business days from check-in, by ACH or check.
See the order book for yourself
Prices on Pure are public, no account needed. Open the 1 oz American Gold Eagle on Pure, or browse the Pure marketplace, and the bids and asks are right there. If you're shopping somewhere else, pull up the Pure price on the same item and compare the totals side by side, shipping and payment method included. If you have metal to sell, post an ask on Pure at the price you want.