Charted: The Costs of Mining Silver vs. Gold

Visual Capitalisr ^ | April 25, 2025 | Ryan Bellefontaine

[Mean Daddy]

At first glance, gold’s higher price per ounce makes it seem like the obvious choice for miners. However, a closer look at production costs and environmental impact reveals why silver remains such an attractive metal to extract.

This graphic, sponsored by Vizsla Silver Corp., uses data from Thunder Said Energy, AG Metals, and Metals Focus Gold Mine Cost Service to compare the costs of mining silver vs. gold.

Gold mining is not only significantly more energy-intensive than silver mining but also produces many more emissions because of the increased energy intensity.

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TOPICS:
KEYWORDS: gold; mining; silver

[Mean Daddy]

With all the talk about silver and prices, I started researching the cost to mine silver. Other articles I've read have indicated a range of $10-30 per ounce. With the price climbing, I'm guessing more mines will be focused on retrieving the silver.

[Vermont Lt]

MOST silver is a by product of other mining. The metal it is usually found with is copper. Sometimes gold.

There are very few mines with silver has a primary target. They are mostly in Mexico.

[misanthrope]

What is estimated quantity of above ground privately owned silver? (Grok)

Estimates of above-ground privately owned silver (primarily in bullion, coins, bars, jewelry, and silverware held by individuals and private investors, excluding government stocks and industrial/fabricated products that are less recoverable) vary significantly due to the opaque nature of the market and differing methodologies.
Key Estimates

Private sector bullion stocks (investment-grade bars and coins): The Silver Institute’s 2025 Market Trend Report estimates these at approximately 8 billion troy ounces (about 249,000 metric tons) as of end-2023, with the vast majority held privately (ETPs represent only ~12% or 964 million ounces).
Investable or bullion-focused private holdings: Many analysts and sources (including Kitco, SD Bullion, and investor discussions) place privately owned investment-grade silver at 1.5–3.5 billion troy ounces (47,000–109,000 metric tons), with a common midpoint around 2–3 billion ounces.
Broader private ownership including jewelry/silverware: When including privately held jewelry, decorative items, and tableware (largely owned by individuals worldwide), estimates rise to 6–7 billion troy ounces recoverable form, or higher when factoring in less liquid holdings (up to 250,000–300,000 metric tons in jewelry alone per some 2025 guides).

Context and Variations

These figures focus on private ownership, as governments hold negligible silver stocks today (unlike gold). Total above-ground silver (including all forms) is estimated at 550,000–600,000 metric tons in recoverable stocks by some sources, or higher (up to ~1.6–1.7 million metric tons historically mined minus losses) by others like CPM Group. However, much of this is in industrial applications or “immobile” forms not readily available.

The majority of privately owned silver is held by individuals (e.g., in India for jewelry or Western investors in bullion), making it fragmented and hard to track precisely. Recent multi-year market deficits (e.g., ~180 million ounces annually) have drawn down visible inventories, but private holdings remain substantial and largely immobile unless prices incentivize selling.

For the most accurate current data, refer to the Silver Institute’s World Silver Survey or CPM Group’s Silver Yearbook, as estimates evolve with mining, recycling, and demand trends.
2.4s

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[gloryblaze]

I’m waiting for it to be worthwhile to glean the silver off silverplate, lol.

[G Larry]

"Sprott Physical Silver Trust trading at a discount to NAV demonstrates no real physical silver shortage exists in the market." (NAV Net Asset Value)

Seeking Alpha article

[BipolarBob]

Does Sprott deliver coins,bullion to my physical address?

[Nateman]

Gold, Silver and Copper are in the same column of the Periodic table. The Copper mine in Sandy Utah uses Copper to pay for the mines operation. Because of the chemical similarity it also gets Silver and Gold as impurities in that Copper. The Copper pays for running the mine. Those impurities are its profit.

[G Larry]

No.

Trust units can be purchased or sold like any regular equity security through financial advisors, full-service brokers and discount brokers. Your units will be held in your name through the third-party financial professional.

[fella]

Lead mines also produce silver. The Osama/Biden/Hitlery administration closed all of our lead mines.

[Karl Spooner]

No shortage of paper silver and BS. You can't make solar panels, EV's, Tomahawk missiles etc out of paper and BS. Mine production and consumption figures are available for your inspection if you look.

Paper silver vs physical silver.