The metal costs more than spot
Spot is the wholesale benchmark you see on the news. Nobody sells coins at spot. The dealer adds a premium that covers the product, the service, and their margin, and it varies a lot between a common bullion bar and a 'premium' coin. Ask for the exact product, weight, purity, quantity, and the total you'd pay. Then ask another dealer for the same basket on the same afternoon.
Split the one-time fees from the yearly ones
A precious metals IRA can involve an account setup charge, an annual custodian fee, annual storage, insurance, shipping, and a fee each time you buy or sell. Each of those may be billed by a different company. Ask who charges what, and whether any 'first year free' promotion snaps back to full price in year two. A line-by-line schedule tells you more than one advertised account fee.
Ask for the buyback price today
Have the dealer tell you what they'd pay to buy the same metal back right now. The gap between that number and your purchase price is the cost of getting in and out, and it's often the biggest fee nobody mentions. Ask whether the buyback quote is binding and how long it stands.
Put it all on one page
Write down the premium, the setup cost, the annual account and storage fees, and the exit spread, using the amount you actually plan to invest and the years you plan to hold. Ask for every minimum, promotion, and condition in writing. If a salesperson won't put it on paper, that tells you something too.
Now put it to use
Take these questions to the comparison and see which company answers them best.
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