What percentage of your portfolio should be in gold and silver?

Deciding how much gold and silver to keep in your wallet should be a personal decision. Generally speaking, investors invest between 10 and 15% of their wealth in precious metals. The research showed that the “sweet spot” for the percentage of gold in the portfolio is 20%. In the long term, this provides the best balance between risk and reward.

Some analysts recommend allocating between five and ten percent of your portfolio to gold and silver. Others suggest allocating up to 25 percent. So how much gold and silver should you have? It depends on your situation and needs. The assignment will be different for each individual.

To help you decide how much gold and silver you'd like to consider owning, we've compiled information from all over the country. If you're interested in adding gold and silver to your retirement portfolio, you can do so with a self-directed IRA. The easiest way to add gold to a portfolio is through an ETF called SPDR Gold Shares, commonly known by its symbol GLD. If the investor has a low risk tolerance, then investing in gold and silver through a gold-silver investment fund or ETF is a better option.

There are two main ways to invest in gold and silver: physical gold and silver or through a mutual fund or gold-silver ETF. If you have 5% in gold and 50% in S%26P, then gold has to rise 400% if the stock market falls by 50% just to break even (assuming that gold rises as much as stocks fall).