Buyback is simply the process of selling your physical gold or silver back to a dealer, rather than to a private individual or pawn shop. A dealer offering buyback will give you a quote based on the current spot price of the metal, minus a margin that reflects their cost of doing business and the risk they take on before reselling it.
Buyback quotes are almost always tied to the live spot price at the moment of the offer, not a fixed price. Because spot prices move continuously during trading hours, a quote given in the morning can differ from one given in the afternoon. Reputable dealers will show you the spot price they're using and how the offer was calculated, rather than giving an opaque number.
The gap between what you pay to buy an item and what you're offered to sell it back (sometimes called the bid-ask spread) covers the dealer's costs and only realizes as a "loss" if you sell shortly after buying - over time, movements in the spot price itself typically matter far more to your return than this spread.
Our Sell to Us programme gives you a live buyback quote based on the current spot price for both gold and silver. You can see exactly what you'll be paid before you commit to sending anything, and shipping for buyback items is fully insured.
If you're deciding what to buy in the first place, see our guide on 1g vs 1oz gold bars or bars vs coins.