There are different ways in which one can Invest in Gold. All the modes or investment types have their own pros and cons.

This is one of the most popularly used mode of purchase and investment for gold in India. While there is a lot of sentimental and cultural value associated with gold ornaments in India, jewellers typically charge a 15-20% making charge which gets it lesses preferred in terms of investment. Physical gold also comes with the risk of theft, and there might be additional cost required to store physical gold safely.

Digital gold is as good as physical gold, minus the hassle and expenses to preserve and protect it. Digital gold can be easily converted to physical gold. It can be bought and sold very easily using some of the popular digital platforms like Gullak Money App, Augmont and other leading e-comm apps.

Exchange traded funds (ETFs) can be simply understood as funds that invest in gold and can be bought and sold on stock exchanges, like common stock. Investors are required to purchase a minimum of one unit that is equivalent to one gram of gold to begin trading in gold ETFs. It is not possible to convert your ETFs to physical gold. ETFs typically have a cost of 0.1%-0.3% in the form of expense ratio charged to the investors every year.

Digital gold bought on digital platforms can be leased to some of the most renowned and trusted jewellers of the country in exchange of an assured return of 4-5% in gold grams. These leases are secured by Bank guarantees. You can earn the gold price appreciation and the additional assured return in gold.

These are bonds issued by the government of India. These bonds come with a lock-in of 8 years, and are issued in the denominations of 1 gram units. These bonds are issued a few times in a year. In addition to the gold price appreciation, SGBs provide a 2.5% simple interest every year. This interest is applicable on the INR amount invested.