What the choice is
Physical gold and silver come mainly as minted coins or as cast or stamped bars. Both are metal. The difference is fabrication, recognisability, and how you later divide or resell a holding.
Dealers will have a view. So will forums. This site only needs the trade-off: bars usually cost less per ounce above spot; coins usually cost more and are easier for a stranger to recognise.
Bars
A bar is weight and fineness with a maker’s stamp. Larger bars spread minting and assay cost over more ounces, so the premium over spot is often lower. Storage is denser. Resale of a large bar can mean finding a counterparty who will assay or who trusts the brand and serial.
Small minted bars (one ounce and under) sit closer to coins on premium. The bar-vs-coin slogan is really about large wholesale bars versus government coins. Name the size, or the comparison is empty.
Coins
A bullion coin is a government or mint product with a face value that is far below the metal. The coin is recognised by design: Maple, Philharmonic, Krugerrand, and so on. That recognisability is what you pay the extra premium for. It can make small sales simpler. It does not make the coin “money” in the legal-tender-for-rent sense in most places.
Numismatic and proof coins are a different market. These pages are about bullion — metal as metal — not collectibles. Mixing them is how beginners overpay.