Silver DCA Blog

How to Calculate Your Silver Average Cost, Step by Step

By Dark Haus Studio · Published October 23, 2026 · Updated October 23, 2026

Your silver average cost is the total amount you actually paid, premiums included, divided by the total number of troy ounces you own. That one number tells you what each ounce in your stack cost you on average, no matter how many separate purchases it came from.

Worked example

Say you made two purchases, and you recorded the all in price per ounce for each one, that means the price after the dealer's premium was added, not just the spot price on the day:

• Step 1, Work out what each purchase cost in total. Buy 1: 4 troy ounces at $36.00 per ounce all in = 4 × $36.00 = $144.00. Buy 2: 6 troy ounces at $41.50 per ounce all in = 6 × $41.50 = $249.00.
• Step 2, Add up everything you spent. $144.00 + $249.00 = $393.00 in total.
• Step 3, Add up everything you bought. 4 + 6 = 10 troy ounces in total.
• Step 4, Divide total spent by total ounces. $393.00 ÷ 10 = $39.30 per troy ounce. That is your average cost.

Notice that $39.30 sits closer to the $41.50 price than to the $36.00 price. That is correct, and it is the whole point of doing it this way: you bought more ounces at the higher price, so those ounces pull the average further in their direction. Every ounce counts equally in the average, regardless of which purchase it came from.

Run your own numbers

You can check any average in under a minute in the free Silver DCA Calculator on the homepage. Add each purchase as its own entry with the number of ounces and the all in price per ounce you actually paid, and the calculator blends them into one average cost per ounce for you, the same $393.00 ÷ 10 maths above, done automatically. It also compares that average against the live spot price, so you can see how your stack looks at today's price without redoing any arithmetic by hand. Your portfolio stays in your own browser; nothing is uploaded.

Mistakes to avoid

• Averaging the prices instead of the totals. In the example above, simply averaging the two per-ounce prices gives ($36.00 + $41.50) ÷ 2 = $38.75, which is wrong, because the two buys were for different amounts. That shortcut only works when every purchase is for exactly the same number of ounces. Always divide total spent by total ounces instead.
• Using the spot price instead of the all in price you paid. Coins, bars, and rounds are sold at a premium over spot, and shipping may be added on top. If you run your average using spot, you will understate what your stack really cost you, and every profit-and-loss comparison you make afterwards will be flattered.
• Forgetting a purchase, or forgetting to recalculate after a sale. Your average only describes the ounces you currently hold. Leave out a buy and the total is wrong from the start; sell part of your stack and you need to remove those ounces and recalculate the average for what remains, rather than carrying the old number forward.

Variations to try

• Adding a third, fourth, or monthly purchase. Nothing about the method changes. Each new buy adds its total cost to the running total spent and its ounces to the running total ounces, then you divide again. That running update is exactly what a dollar cost averaging routine produces month after month.
• Including shipping and fees. If you paid shipping on a purchase, add it to that purchase's total cost before you divide. It was part of what the ounces cost you to acquire, so it belongs in your average.
• Keeping more than one currency separate. If some purchases were priced in a different currency, keep a separate total spent and total ounces for that currency, or convert each purchase consistently, rather than mixing currencies inside one division, a blended number that mixes currencies does not describe anything real.

Related posts

• What Is Dollar Cost Averaging in Silver? A Beginner's Guide
• Silver Spot Price vs the Price You Actually Pay: Premiums Explained

This post is general information about how dollar cost averaging maths works. It is not financial advice and does not recommend any purchase. Silver prices move both ways, do your own research before buying.