However, there are some aspects of both precious metals that investors need to take into consideration before deciding on either one.

Economic Uncertainty

When it comes to weathering financial storms, gold has shined in the darkest markets.

During the recession of 1980–82, the S&P 500 Index plunged 27 percent while gold increased by 46 percent, according to futures brokerage RJOFutures. Fast forward to the dot.com crash of 2000–02, and gold rose 12 percent while the S&P 500 dipped 49 percent.

During the Great Recession in 2008–09, the average annual percent change in the producer price index for gold ores rose 12.8 percent. It rose 27.4 percent in 2010 and 32.8 percent in 2011.

While silver has also seen monumental highs during tough times, it may not perform as consistently as gold.

During the 1980 recession, the price of silver reached a record high of around $49.45 per ounce. But during the Great Recession, silver prices swung from a high of around $16 per ounce in 2007 to a low of about $8 per ounce in 2008.

So that's some historical perspective, but what about more recent times?

Gold and Silver Today

Even though the Federal Reserve's hint of slowing down interest-rate cuts could move investor interest away from gold and into interest-yielding assets, the price of gold has remained strong.

The spot gold price has dropped to around $2,630 from its record high of about $2,790 per troy ounce in October 2024. But analysts at Goldman Sachs still expect gold to close out around $3,000 per ounce by mid-2026 amid larger purchases from central banks and geopolitical tension.

Silver put up a fight in 2024 as well. The spot price of silver gained 21.46 percent, reaching $28.90 per ounce from $23.65.

And while gold is recognized as a luxury and store of value, silver crosses these boxes and also has immense industrial applications. It's a main component in electronics, solar panels, and electric vehicles.

In fact, industrial applications account for about 55 percent of global silver demand, according to research by Sprott, a global asset manager focusing on precious metals.