The Best Gold IRA Depositories Compared

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What "IRS-approved" depository actually means

There is no single IRS list of approved depositories that a reader can download. Under 26 U.S.C. section 408, an IRA can only be held by a bank, a federally insured credit union, a state-chartered trust company, or an IRS-approved non-bank trustee (source: Cornell Legal Information Institute on IRC 408, checked July 2026).

For a gold IRA specifically, IRC section 408(m) requires that the physical metal sit in the possession of a bank or an IRS-approved non-bank trustee. Home storage does not qualify, per the US Tax Court ruling in McNulty v. Commissioner (2021). Any qualifying facility can then be named by an IRA custodian on its approved depository list.

The practical effect is that each self-directed IRA custodian publishes its own approved list. STRATA Trust names Delaware Depository. Equity Trust names Delaware Depository and adds the Texas Bullion Depository. GoldStar Trust in Amarillo names Texas Precious Metals Depository. When a dealer sells the coins, the depository options on your buy instruction come from your custodian's list, not from a central IRS registry.

That is why the same six or seven names keep appearing on paperwork. The larger custodians have converged on a short set of vaults that meet IRC section 408 requirements, carry a public insurance stack, and pass an independent audit like SOC 2 or SSAE18 SOC-1. Below is what those names actually mean.

The six depositories on most Texas paperwork

Six vaults account for the vast majority of Texas gold IRA depository selections. Three sit inside Texas, two on the East Coast, and one in Salt Lake City. Every one qualifies under IRC section 408 through its custodian relationship, but the reader experience varies.

The rest of this page reviews each of the six in the same order, with the honest trade-offs a Texas reader should weigh. Nothing on this list is a scam or a shell. The differences are legal category, insurance transparency, geography, and how the reader gets to the depository through a custodian.

Delaware Depository (Wilmington, DE)

Delaware Depository is a privately held, state-chartered Delaware trust company founded in 1999 (source: delawaredepository.com About page and Wikipedia entry citing the company, checked July 2026). Its primary vault sits at 3601 North Market Street in Wilmington, DE 19802. A second US vault operates at 1009 Industrial Road, Boulder City, NV 89005.

The About page reports 1 billion dollars of all-risk vault insurance placed through London-based underwriters, with shipment coverage capped at 100,000 dollars per package. The company is SSAE18 SOC-1 Type 1 audited. Exchange licenses cover CME Group (COMEX and NYMEX Divisions) and ICE Futures US.

For a Texas reader, Delaware Depository shows up on paperwork through STRATA Trust Company (Austin) or Equity Trust (Ohio) as the paired custodian. The reader never signs anything directly with the depository. The metal ships insured from the dealer to the Wilmington vault or the Boulder City vault, and Delaware Depository issues a receipt back through the custodian.

Storage runs as either segregated (exact original bars returned) or non-segregated (pooled fungible bullion). Under the STRATA fee schedule, Delaware Depository storage is passed through at 100 dollars per year non-segregated or 175 dollars per year segregated, on top of the 125-dollar STRATA account fee (source: stratatrust.com fee schedule, checked June 2026).

Brink's Global Services USA (Salt Lake City, UT)

Brink's Global Services USA is the metals custody arm of The Brink's Company (NYSE: BCO), the publicly traded armored-transport and security business founded in Chicago in 1859. The company reports revenue and vehicle counts in its SEC 10-K filings (source: Wikipedia entry on Brink's citing the 10-K, checked July 2026).

Its primary gold IRA vault is in Salt Lake City, Utah, with additional metals custody operations in Los Angeles and New York City. The Birch Gold Group storage overview page lists all three US sites as options for its clients (source: birchgold.com storage overview page, checked July 2026).

Brink's does not publish a specific vault-level dollar cap on insurance for retail readers. The company assumes full liability for transport and storage, backed by its NYSE-listed parent. For an IRA reader, the insurance answer worth in writing is what the paired IRA custodian will confirm in the storage arrangement documents.

Fee transparency at Brink's runs through the IRA administrator, not the depository itself. On the IRA Express Precious Metals form, commingled Brink's storage is billed at 1.20 dollars per 1,000 dollars per year (125-dollar minimum). Segregated storage is billed at 2.00 dollars per 1,000 dollars per year (200-dollar minimum). Out-shipment and handling fees are separate.

IDS Group (New Castle, DE and Dallas, TX)

International Depository Services Group is a division of Dillon Gage Metals, a Dallas-based precious metals wholesaler founded in 1976 (source: internationaldepositoryservices.com About page and history page, checked July 2026). The group operates three vaults: IDS of Delaware in New Castle (2010), IDS of Canada in Mississauga, Ontario (2013), and IDS of Texas in Dallas (2017, relocated and expanded 2019).

IDS of Delaware is CME/COMEX approved for gold, silver, platinum, and palladium (2016 approval), one of only eight US COMEX-approved facilities. IDS of Canada is IIROC approved (2014). IDS of Texas is not COMEX approved but sits inside Texas within minutes of DFW International Airport, which matters for freight logistics for a Texas reader.

The IDS Insurance page reports 100 percent all-risk coverage through Lloyd's of London at all three sites, with all outbound shipments insured. The group is a LBMA Associate and NCBA member. IDS explicitly does not offer unallocated storage; the two modes are allocated and segregated only.

IDS does not publish a retail IRA storage fee schedule on its public site. Rates are negotiated between the depository, the IRA custodian, and the dealer. Common market ranges cited by third-party IRA administrators run 10 to 30 basis points per year for pooled storage, and higher for segregated. Ask your custodian in writing for the exact IDS pass-through rate before signing.

CNT Depository (Bridgewater, MA)

CNT Depository is a division of CNT, Inc., a third-generation single-family precious metals firm headquartered at 722 Bedford Street in Bridgewater, Massachusetts 02324. Bullion.Directory describes CNT, Inc. as the largest privately owned precious metals company in its listing directory (source: Bullion.Directory CNT Depository listing plus CNT Minting corporate page, checked July 2026).

Sister division CNT Minting was established in 2018 and holds ISO 9001:2015 certification. That certification covers the minting division, not the depository. CNT is a single-location operator; no other US vault sites appear on its public materials.

CNT lists storage models as segregated, allocated, commingled, and IRA-suitable on the Bullion.Directory entry. The depository is described as fully insured, and the Bullion.Directory rating is A+. Specific vault dollar caps, the underwriter behind the insurance, and any SOC or SSAE audit are not published on CNT's public site.

Fee transparency at CNT is opaque compared to Delaware or Texas Precious Metals Depository. Bullion.Directory characterizes the fee structure as fixed plus percentage (asset-based), with pass-through rates set by the IRA custodian. For an IRA reader, the vault choice is generally driven by the custodian's default paperwork rather than by CNT's own retail marketing.

Texas Precious Metals Depository (Shiner, TX)

Texas Precious Metals Depository is a private commercial vault on the campus of Texas Precious Metals LLC at 50 CR 356 in Shiner, Texas 77984 (Lavaca County). The parent dealer is a subsidiary of Kaspar Companies, a fifth-generation South Texas family business operating since 1898 (source: texmetals.com About page, checked July 2026).

The Shiner facility launched in 2018 with 54,000 or more square feet of concrete-entombed, temperature-controlled vault space. Storage is 100 percent segregated, individually sealed per client, held as bailment (source: texasdepository.com security page, web archive snapshot, checked June 2026). No commingled or pooled option is offered.

Insurance runs through underwriters at Lloyd's of London on an all-risks basis for the full replacement value of client holdings, marked to market daily against the LBMA reference price. The facility is SOC 2 certified under the AICPA Trust Service Criteria and audited annually by ADKF of San Antonio. Only four IRA custodians name TPMD on their approved lists: GoldStar Trust (Amarillo), STRATA Trust (Waco), Digital Trust (Las Vegas), and Horizon Trust (Albuquerque).

Fee transparency here is unusually high. Gold, platinum, and palladium storage is published as tiered rates. The schedule starts at 0.50 percent per year up to 100,000 dollars, drops to 0.45 percent from 100,001 to 500,000 dollars, and steps down to 0.28 percent above 2.5 million dollars, with a 10-dollar monthly floor. Source: texasdepository.com pricing page, checked June 2026 via web archive.

Texas Bullion Depository (Leander, TX)

The Texas Bullion Depository is an agency of the State of Texas, located in Leander (Williamson County, north of Austin), established by House Bill 483 signed by Governor Greg Abbott on June 12, 2015. Operations began in 2017 under Lone Star Tangible Assets LP as the vendor contractor to the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts (source: texasbulliondepository.gov and Texas Comptroller pages, checked July 2026).

It is the only state-administered and state-audited precious metals depository in the United States. The facility sits on a 10-acre campus with a 40,000 or more square foot vault building and stores gold, silver, platinum, palladium, and rhodium.

Insurance runs through Lloyd's of London for theft, fire, flood, and natural disasters, with daily market-value updates. The IRA Storage Services page confirms that IRA accounts are stored on a segregated-only basis and are never commingled with other client metal. The vault is Class 3 (the highest commercial rating), per the same page (checked June 2026).

Equity Trust Company was the first self-directed IRA custodian publicly working with the state depository (as of June 2026). The depository states it expects the custodian list to expand. Retail non-IRA segregated storage runs tiered from 0.49 percent (0 to 499,999 dollars) down to 0.34 percent at higher tiers. The IRA-specific fee is negotiated between dealer, custodian, and the depository contractor. Source: Texas Bullion Depository Schedule of Fees effective April 1, 2026, checked June 2026.

Side-by-side comparison table

The table below puts the six depositories on a single grid using the published facts each one has made public as of July 2026. Where a depository does not publish a specific number, the entry says so in plain terms.

Distance from Texas: the geography honest chart

Geography is the single fact that separates Texas readers cleanly. Three of the six vaults sit inside Texas: IDS of Texas in Dallas, Texas Precious Metals Depository in Shiner, and the Texas Bullion Depository in Leander. The other three ship the metal well over 1,000 miles from any Texas metro.

Reading the chart: IDS of Texas at roughly 10 miles from downtown Dallas is a same-city option. Leander sits about 190 miles down I-35. Shiner is about 230 miles south. Salt Lake City lands near 1,000 miles, Wilmington near 1,300 miles, and Bridgewater near 1,570 miles. Distances are approximate straight-line and vary by metro of origin.

Distance itself does not change how the metal is protected in the vault. It does affect insured freight cost during setup, in-kind distribution logistics if you ever take physical possession, and whether you can drive to the vault for a scheduled in-person viewing. For most gold IRA holders none of these matter until distribution day.

For a Texas reader who ranks state-agency oversight above all else, the Texas Bullion Depository wins even at 190 miles from Dallas. For a Texas reader who ranks proximity above all else, IDS of Texas or TPMD Shiner win. For a Texas reader who ranks the maturity and dual exchange licenses of Delaware Depository, the 1,300 miles are the trade.

Segregated vs commingled at each depository

Segregated storage means your bullion is stored physically separate under your name; the exact original bars or coins come back at withdrawal. Commingled (or non-segregated) storage means fungible bullion is pooled by product; you get back the equivalent, not the specific bar. Both are IRS-compliant.

The choice matters for fees and traceability. Segregated costs more because of labor, space, and per-client sealing. Commingled costs less because of shared handling. Certain readers value the traceable exact bar; certain readers value the lower percentage per year on a balance that will trade in and out.

The two Texas facilities that only offer segregated (TPMD and TBD) remove the choice at intake. That is deliberate design: for retirement metal held long term, segregated protects the exact-bar trace even if the depository operator changes vendors or the reader takes an in-kind distribution years later.

What this costs per year on a Texas gold IRA

The vault line is only one of three lines on a gold IRA carrying cost. The dealer coin premium is usually the largest single line in year one. The IRA custodian account fee is a recurring flat charge. The depository storage fee is either a flat pass-through or a percentage of balance.

Reading the table: the flat-fee vaults (Delaware via STRATA, Brink's via IRA Express) look inexpensive at 100,000 dollars and grow slowly with balance. The percentage-tier vaults (Texas Precious Metals Depository) look higher at 100,000 dollars but include Lloyd's-underwritten insurance at full replacement value and step down as the balance grows.

At smaller balances the pattern reverses. On a 25,000-dollar account, Delaware via STRATA still costs 100 dollars per year non-segregated (0.40 percent), TPMD costs 125 dollars per year (0.50 percent), and Brink's commingled hits the 125-dollar floor. On a 500,000-dollar account the tier stepdown at TPMD (0.45 percent, or 2,250 dollars) opens a wider gap versus the flat-fee options.

Estimate your own annual fee drag

Use the calculator below to enter your planned rollover balance and see the estimated annual carrying cost and fee drag as a percentage. Adjust the assumptions to match the depository tier and custodian schedule you are actually being quoted. Verify the exact numbers in writing before signing paperwork.

How to pick your depository step by step

The order of decisions matters. Pick the custodian first, because the custodian dictates which depository options appear on your paperwork. Pick the depository second, from the custodian's approved list. Pick the storage model third, from what that depository actually offers.

1. Confirm your custodian and its approved depository list. STRATA Trust, Equity Trust, GoldStar Trust, Digital Trust, and Horizon Trust each publish their own approved depository list. Ask the custodian in writing for the current list before you commit to a dealer.
2. Filter by in-state or out-of-state preference. If in-state Texas storage is a hard requirement, the workable choices are IDS of Texas (Dallas), Texas Precious Metals Depository (Shiner), and the Texas Bullion Depository (Leander). If not, the full six-name list stays open.
3. Filter by segregated or commingled preference. If you want the exact original bars back, favor Texas Precious Metals Depository, Texas Bullion Depository, IDS, or the segregated tier at Delaware Depository or Brink's. If you want the lowest percentage per year, pooled storage at Delaware or Brink's costs less.
4. Ask each depository for insurance coverage in writing. Not every depository publishes a vault dollar cap. Delaware and TPMD publish specific numbers. For the others, request the current policy limit, the underwriter, and the named exclusions through your custodian before signing.
5. Read the fee stack in dollars, not just percentages. A 0.50 percent tier rate on 100,000 dollars is 500 dollars per year. A 100-dollar flat pass-through is 100 dollars per year. Add the custodian account fee and any one-off transaction fees; look at the total dollar bill in year one and year two.
6. Sign the buy instruction naming your depository. The dealer prepares a buy instruction that names the coins or bars, the price, and the depository. The custodian wires funds once you sign. Ask for the depository name on the paperwork to match what you selected.
7. Reconcile the first depository receipt against your intake choice. After the dealer ships and the depository confirms receipt, check that the receipt reflects the vault, storage model, and account name you elected. Ask the custodian to send you the receipt in writing.

Worked example: a Houston 150,000 dollar rollover

When each depository is a bad fit for you

Frequently asked questions

Written by Harry's Coins Editorial. Reviewed July 2026 against live and archived sources cited above.