No, not the same. Many of the coins cost more because they are considered collectors items. Also they typically are 90% silver or possibly less. So, do you want the collector items which only a collector will pay the higher price for or do you want .999 pure silver?

silver is only silver when you want to sell it,forget the coin collectors. buy bullion in 10 oz. bars only when the price is low as an investment at the current price (3/3) about 230.00 for 10 oz. plan on holding for at least 9 months... silver is a commodity and the value will fluctuate daily.

I've always beein interested in picking up some silver and/or gold as my finances allow but I'm a little confused.

I notice I can go to a bank or precious metals dealer and get, for example, a 1 oz silver bar for just over the current rate by the time you factor in extra costs . I've also noted from various online videos that lots of people prefer to buy fine silver coins but these coins can cost up to 50% (or more) in price. On the one hand the higher price makes sense because you are not just buying a small bar of silver but you are buying a coin, a work of art per se.

Given the fact that both items contain the same amount and purity of silver, wouldn't it make more financial sense to just spend the money on the bar form? Of course the same scenerio applies to gold bars and coins as well.