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February 9, 2026 / 2:50 PM EST / CBS News

Over the past year, the precious metals market has shifted in ways that few investors would have predicted. For example, the price of gold spent much of last year climbing to repeated record highs before pushing past the $5,000-per-ounce mark last month. Silver's price run was even more dramatic, though, surging from roughly $30 an ounce last year to more than $100 by late January. Prices for both metals have cooled somewhat since those peaks, but the scale and speed of the moves have changed how investors think about them, and raised fresh questions about which metal makes sense to own right now.

Those questions tend to carry more weight for investors over 50. After all, when retirement appears on the horizon, there's less time to recover from big price swings and every major move in the market feels more personal. That's because price volatility doesn't just show up in account balances. It also impacts your retirement timelines, income plans and peace of mind. As a result, the recent turbulence in gold and silver has made the trade-offs between stability and upside much harder to ignore.

So if you're investing in the precious metals market after age 50, which precious metal makes more sense right now: gold or silver? That's what we'll outline below.

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Here's what to know about how each metal stacks up for older investors in today's market:

Gold's appeal for people nearing retirement has very little to do with chasing upside. It's about how gold tends to behave when markets get unsettled, and that's exactly the environment investors are navigating right now. Over the past few weeks, silver has experienced serious volatility, while gold slipped only modestly before finding its footing again. That kind of relative stability is necessary for anyone who doesn't have the luxury of waiting years to recover from a sharp drawdown.

The current policy backdrop also plays to gold's strengths. The Fed has held rates steady, but markets are split on when more rate cuts might come, and officials themselves aren't sending a unified signal. With Fed leadership changes ahead and inflation data still choppy, uncertainty is driving market behavior. Gold doesn't need a clean outcome on rates or growth to do its job, though. It tends to benefit simply from the lack of clarity.

What further strengthens gold's case right now is who's buying it. Central banks have been adding to gold reserves at elevated levels, treating it as a core store of value rather than a short-term trade. That steady demand helps support prices in volatile markets. Gold also trades in deep, liquid markets, making it easier to buy and sell globally even when risk assets are under pressure. For investors in their 50s and 60s, that combination of relative stability, liquidity and institutional demand makes gold a straightforward way to add precious metals exposure right now.

Take steps to protect your investments with silver and gold now.

Silver's recent pullback looks ugly at first glance, but it wasn't caused by a sudden breakdown in how the metal is actually used. Silver prices surged into late January on heavy speculative positioning and economic news, then sold off quickly as that trade unwound and leveraged positions were forced out. That kind of move is typical for silver, which tends to overshoot in both directions.

What hasn't changed, though, is the overall demand for the metal. Industrial use remains a major driver in the silver market, with solar manufacturing currently accounting for a significant percentage of annual silver demand - and that demand continues to grow as new capacity comes online. Electric vehicles, charging infrastructure and grid upgrades also rely on the conductivity of silver, and those end markets are still expanding. So, the underlying use case didn't weaken just because silver prices pulled back.

For investors in their early to mid-50s who already have a stable portfolio and can tolerate volatility, buying silver after a sharp correction like the one that just occurred can make more sense than chasing silver investments when prices are near recent highs. When you take this approach, you're not betting on a straight-line rebound. You're positioning for the next upcycle over time, knowing silver moves in bursts.

Silver's lower price per ounce also makes it easier to build a position gradually instead of committing a large lump sum. Just be sure to go in clear-eyed, as the volatility that occurs regularly within the silver market (and creates opportunity) can cut the other way just as fast.

For investors over 50, the smarter choice between gold and silver comes down to the role you want precious metals to play in your portfolio. Gold tends to suit investors who prioritize stability, liquidity and downside protection as retirement approaches. Silver may appeal more to those who still want meaningful upside potential and are comfortable with bigger price swings in pursuit of growth. In practice, many older investors don't choose one or the other. They blend both to balance gold's steadiness with silver's growth potential. The trick is to be honest about your risk tolerance, your time horizon and how much volatility you can stomach if markets get choppy.

Edited by Matt Richardson

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