JM Bullion vs SD Bullion: which is better when you pay in crypto?
JM Bullion and SD Bullion publish the same discount structure for crypto: 3% off the card price, while check and bank payments get 4%. Where they part ways is the fine print. JM Bullion accepts up to $2,000,000 in crypto per order but ships only inside the US. SD Bullion caps Bitcoin at $250,000 and lets international customers pay through BitPay. On the morning of October 20, 2026, SD Bullion's listed Bitcoin price for a 1 oz American Gold Eagle was $109.17 lower than JM Bullion's crypto price for the same coin.
Side by side
Taken from each dealer's own payment pages, re-read on October 21, 2026, unless a row says otherwise.
| JM Bullion | SD Bullion | |
|---|---|---|
| Crypto discount | 3% off the credit/debit card and PayPal price | 3% off the credit/debit card price |
| Check, eCheck or wire discount | 4% | 4% |
| Card discount | none | none (cards are "not eligible for the 4% cash discount") |
| Crypto processor | BitPay | BitPay |
| Time to pay the invoice | 15 minutes | 15 minutes |
| Coins named | 13: BTC, BCH, ETH, WBTC, DOGE, LTC, XRP, POL, GUSD, USDC, USDP (listed as PAX), DAI, BUSD | BTC, BCH, ETH, plus "other BitPay coins" (no full list published) |
| Crypto order limit | $0 to $2,000,000 | Bitcoin up to $250,000 |
| ID check | One-time identity verification on Bitcoin orders over $3,000 (JM help article, updated December 20, 2024) | No crypto-specific rule; SD says "additional documentation is sometimes required to confirm identity" |
| Bank payment limits | Check and ACH eCheck up to $100,000; wire $500 to $1,000,000 | eCheck up to $10,000; personal or cashier's check up to $20,000; wire only on orders of $2,500 or more |
| Ships to | US addresses only, no US territories | US, and international customers can pay by card, BitPay or wire |
| Free shipping from | $199 (site banner, October 19, 2026) | $199 (site banner, October 21, 2026) |
| Refunds on crypto orders | Paid in crypto at the new USD rate; JM converts crypto to USD instantly | Not stated on the payments page |
Sources: JM Bullion payments, JM Bullion Bitcoin help, SD Bullion payment and pricing, SD Bullion on Bitcoin.
One wrinkle on SD Bullion's page: it says "Bank wire is the only method of payment accepted for orders greater than $20,000", yet the same page accepts Bitcoin "for orders up to $250,000". We report both lines as written. If you plan a Bitcoin order above $20,000 at SD Bullion, ask them which rule applies before you pay.
Price check: the same coin at both dealers
Single-coin prices for a 1 oz American Gold Eagle, random year, as listed on October 20, 2026. We read SD Bullion at about 9:04 AM and JM Bullion at about 9:26 AM Arizona time (MST), so some of the gap may be spot-price movement in those 22 minutes. Sales tax isn't included, and the coin alone clears both $199 free-shipping thresholds.
| Payment | JM Bullion | SD Bullion | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Check, eCheck or wire | $4,349.56 | $4,242.84 | SD $106.72 lower |
| Crypto | $4,394.87 | $4,285.70 | SD $109.17 lower |
| Card or PayPal | $4,530.79 | $4,419.63 | SD $111.16 lower |
At both dealers, crypto came to 3.0% below the card price and about 1.0% above the bank price, which is what each dealer's published terms predict. The dealer gap (about 2.5% on this coin) is bigger than the payment-method gap, so comparing listed prices on the day matters more than the discount itself.
A second SD Bullion reading backs up the pattern: on October 19, 2026 its 1 oz SD Bullion gold bar (1 to 4 bars) cost $4,306.10 in Bitcoin, $4,263.04 by check or wire and $4,440.67 by card.
Product pages: JM Bullion 1 oz Gold Eagle, SD Bullion 1 oz Gold Eagle, SD Bullion 1 oz gold bar.
If you'd rather not pay in crypto
The two dealers' other payment options differ more than their crypto terms do, and that changes the math if you're weighing crypto against the alternatives.
- Cards and PayPal. JM Bullion takes Visa, Mastercard, Amex, Discover, Apple Pay and PayPal on orders up to $250,000, and Klarna from $35 to $30,000, all at the full card price. SD Bullion takes cards on orders up to $5,000 and PayPal up to $500.
- eCheck. JM Bullion's ACH eCheck runs to $100,000. SD Bullion's eCheck stops at $10,000, works only from a checking account (not savings), and new customers must link their bank through Plaid.
- Mailed checks. SD Bullion accepts personal and cashier's checks up to $20,000, postmarked within 3 business days. JM Bullion takes paper checks, money orders and cashier's checks up to $100,000.
- Wire. JM Bullion's wire runs from $500 to $1,000,000. SD Bullion doesn't offer wire under $2,500 and calls it the preferred method for large orders.
So for a mid-size order paid from a savings account, or one above SD Bullion's $5,000 card cap, crypto can be the practical middle option at SD Bullion even though it costs about a point more than a bank payment.
Which one to use
- Pick JM Bullion for a crypto order above $250,000 (its $2,000,000 is the highest published limit among the 14 dealers we track), or to pay in a coin JM names and SD doesn't, such as XRP, DOGE, LTC or a stablecoin like USDC.
- Pick SD Bullion if you live outside the US, since JM Bullion won't ship there, or if its listed crypto price is lower on the day, as it was for the Gold Eagle on October 20.
- Pay by bank instead if the lowest total matters most. At both dealers the bank price beat crypto by about one point. Mind the minimums and caps: SD Bullion offers wire only from $2,500 and eCheck only to $10,000, while JM Bullion's wire starts at $500.
- Check the ID rule before a big order. JM Bullion asks for a one-time identity check above $3,000 in Bitcoin; SD Bullion says it may ask for documents case by case.
Frequently asked questions
Do JM Bullion and SD Bullion give the same crypto discount?
Yes. Both take 3% off the card price for crypto and 4% for check, eCheck or wire, so crypto lands about one point above the bank price at each. SD Bullion's page also says Bitcoin "is not eligible for the 1% cash discount", which is consistent with that one-point gap.
Can I pay SD Bullion in USDC?
SD Bullion names only BTC, BCH and ETH and says other BitPay coins work, without a full list. JM Bullion names USDC. If you want to pay in USDC at SD Bullion, check the coin list on the BitPay invoice before you commit.
Which dealer ships crypto orders abroad?
SD Bullion. Its payments page says international customers can pay by card, BitPay or wire. JM Bullion ships only to US addresses.
No dealer pays us for this comparison, and the outbound dealer links above carry no tracking (our affiliate applications were still pending on October 21, 2026; see our disclosure). It covers published payment terms and listed prices only, not investment advice, so confirm the total at checkout. Related: JM Bullion alternatives, is it cheaper to buy gold with Bitcoin?, the JM Bullion and SD Bullion dealer pages, and our methodology.