When gold prices rise, the most common question is not "Will it keep rising?" but "Where is the best place to buy it now?”
If you are prepared to invest a sum of money for the long term (such as holding for 10 years), your choice of channel will directly affect the final amount you receive. The differences in premiums, fees, and the compounding effect of annual fees for different channels will be significantly magnified over a ten-year period. Below, we clarify the major domestic and overseas channels using a unified case to help you compare your own situation for a choice.
1. First, clarify: The difference over 10 years for the same amount of money in different domestic channels
Assumptions (for illustrative purposes only, not investment advice):
- Buying at the Shanghai Gold Exchange Au99.99 benchmark price of about 940 RMB/gram
- Investing a fixed amount of 100,000 RMB
- Purchasing once and holding for 10 years, without trading during that period
- Ignoring vault fees, extreme point spread adjustments, authenticity verification losses, etc.
- Calculating net proceeds at different gold price scenarios upon selling
Typical cost structure for each channel:
Net amount after 10 years illustration (in RMB):
The conclusion in China is very clear:
- For true long-term holding, low-fee on-market gold ETFs (comprehensive fee rate of about 0.20%) have the lowest cost and best liquidity.
- If you do not have a securities account and want a simple operation, bank accumulation gold or funds linked with Alipay (C class) are more convenient, but the annual fee burden will be higher.
- If you want the safety of physical gold, choose bank investment bullion; the initial premium will be sufficiently diluted after 10 years.
- Jewelry/craft gold from stores is hardly suitable for pure investment, as the actual holding amount is significantly reduced at purchase.
2. For those with overseas accounts: Also consider these lower-cost options
If you already have a stable US or Hong Kong stock account and can ignore the account opening threshold, the focus shifts to annual fee compounding + residual trading friction + exchange rate impact.
Comparison of annual fees for major channels:
10-year compounding burden:
- 0.10% (GLDM) → Effective holding about 99.0%
- 0.20% (domestic low fee) → About 98.0%
- 0.25% (IAU) → About 97.5%
- 0.40% (GLD) → About 96.1%
Illustration of a 100,000 RMB case with an overseas account (showing only results after cost burdens):
Note: When using overseas channels, you also need to consider exchange costs (if transferring from RMB, about 0.3%-0.8%) and exchange rate fluctuations. An appreciation of the US dollar is favorable for the RMB returns of US stock ETFs, while depreciation is the opposite.
3. How to choose? One decision table is enough
Not recommended: Jewelry/craft gold from stores for pure investment; leverage products for long-term holding.
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4. In conclusion
Gold allocation should be controlled within 5%-15% of investable assets, with the core logic being long-term holding, not frequent trading. The differences in channel costs will be magnified over a 10-year dimension by compounding, making the advantages of low annual fee products increasingly apparent.
The above calculations are based on the publicly available fee range from 2025-2026; actual figures will vary according to banks and fund company policy adjustments. The gold price itself is influenced by multiple factors including the US dollar, real interest rates, geopolitical events, and central bank purchases, so the above only compares channel cost differences and does not predict gold price fluctuations.
Before proceeding, please verify the latest rates and buyback rules of specific products, and choose based on whether you need physical gold, whether you have an overseas account, and your risk tolerance. Investment carries risks; decision-making should be cautious.
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