Silver has more than doubled since the start of 2025, breaking a 45‑year price record and beating gold’s roughly 75% gain over the same period, as seen in TheStreet’s “Gold, silver bets shift ahead of 2026” recap of the year’s metals moves.
Prices have shattered previous highs in January 2026, jumping above $87 an ounce and logging a roughly 210% gain in about 13 months, according to reporting from The Economic Times.
Silver’s rally has become so intense that it “quietly crashes Nvidia’s party.” The metal’s total market value briefly rivaled or even topped Nvidia’s market cap in late 2025, according to my recent coverage on TheStreet of the surprise matchup between a commodity and an AI titan.
A separate look at the rally said silver’s market value surged toward about $4.7 trillion after spot prices ripped above $80 an ounce, putting it in the same conversation as the market’s hottest tech name, as cited in that same piece.
For you as an investor, this isn’t just a nice chart. It’s a signal that the metal has moved from a sleepy inflation hedge to a front‑page asset class, and that shift is pulling silver miners into the spotlight alongside it.
Why silver and silver miners are in the spotlight
The silver market is on course for a fifth straight structural deficit, with global demand projected around 1.12 billion ounces while supply stays constrained, according to The Silver Institute’s 2025 outlook.
Industrial demand is expected to hit new records, led by solar, electronics, and other high‑tech uses, while supply dips again and deepens the deficit, according to LevelFields’ review of top silver stocks for 2025.
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A March 2025 note said spot silver’s 14% year‑to‑date rally into the spring was driven by a mix of safe‑haven flows, industrial demand, and supportive monetary policy rather than pure speculation, according to IG’s silver price analysis.
In my previous coverage, I connected those trends directly to AI and electrification, arguing that silver’s surge is tied to “the emergence of artificial intelligence and the resulting wave of construction of new data centers” because of the metal’s high electrical and thermal conductivity.
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The bull case isn’t just about fear. It’s about a metal that sits at the intersection of data centers, solar panels, EVs, and investor worries about inflation and currency debasement.
That combination is exactly why silver miners have suddenly become core watch‑list names for a lot of retail portfolios.
Best silver mining stocks to watch
You don’t have to buy every miner riding this wave. If you want leverage to silver without simply owning bullion, you can build a watch list around large, liquid names with strong balance sheets and clear links to the metal’s price.
Pan American Silver (PAAS)
Pan American Silver offers one of the broadest pure‑play portfolios in the space, with large silver and gold operations across Canada, Mexico, and South America, according to LevelFields’ rundown of the stock.
The same analysis said the company produces roughly 25 million ounces of silver annually and has been using acquisitions to deepen its reserve base and lower all‑in sustaining costs.
Related: Stock Market Today, Jan. 12: Fed independence worries? Nowhere to be seen in U.S. stocks.
Pan American’s 2025 rally was supercharged by its acquisition and integration of MAG Silver, which is expected to lift silver output by roughly 35% and support record free cash flow, according to MarketMinute’s coverage of the deal.
Bank of America analyst Lawson Winder “raised his price target to 50 dollars and maintained a ‘buy’ recommendation” after the integration progress and stronger outlook.
If you want a core holding rather than a lottery ticket, PAAS sits in a sweet spot between small speculative names and diversified mining giants, and that makes it a logical starting point for a silver‑stock watch list.
First Majestic Silver (AG)
First Majestic is one of the closest things to a true silver pure play, with more than half its revenue tied directly to the metal and a portfolio anchored in high‑grade Mexican mines, according to coverage from LevelFields and Yahoo Finance.
Over the past year, AG’s market cap has climbed toward %7.9 billion and the stock is up close to 195%, riding the wave of silver’s explosive move, according to recent performance data cited by Yahoo Finance.
That upside has come with bumps. First Majestic’s latest quarter delivered 7 cents per share in earnings versus an 11‑cent consensus, a roughly 36% miss, even as the stock retained a “moderate” consensus rating and a high‑end price target that implied about 14% additional upside, according to Yahoo Finance’s analyst snapshot.
If you’re comfortable with volatility and want a stock that tends to move more than the metal itself, AG is one of the clearest expressions of the “higher‑for‑longer” silver thesis.
Wheaton Precious Metals (WPM)
Wheaton Precious Metals gives you silver and gold exposure through a streaming and royalty model instead of owning and operating mines directly, which can reduce operational risk without completely muting upside.
Sixteen analysts currently rate WPM a “strong buy” on average, with a consensus price target around 132.86 dollars that implies about 8% upside and a high estimate pointing to roughly 30% gains, according to Yahoo Finance’s January 2026 roundup of the stock.
Royalty and streaming companies like Wheaton convert higher commodity prices into cash flow with relatively predictable margins because they avoid much of the day‑to‑day cost and capex burden miners face, according to LevelFields’ explanation of the model.
That setup can make WPM a more defensive way to play silver: You still get meaningful exposure to price upside, but your risks are spread across multiple counterparties and projects, instead of hinging on a single mine.
Other silver-related names to keep on your radar
If you want to broaden your watch list, there are several other silver‑linked stocks worth monitoring as this cycle unfolds.
- MAG Silver (MAG) holds a 44% stake in the high‑grade Juanicipio mine in Mexico and reported 2023 net income of $58 million with more than $75 million in cash reserves, according to LevelFields’ company profile.
- Fresnillo (FRES) controls long‑life, high‑quality silver and gold assets and has been highlighted in TheStreet Pro coverage of top silver stocks during inflationary periods as a key London‑listed name in the space.
- Hecla Mining (HL) ranked among the standout performers in 2025’s metals rally, with the stock up roughly 291% for the year, alongside big gains in Newmont and Freeport‑McMoRan, according to TheStreet’s look at metals and miners in 2026.
You don’t need to own all of them. Watching how these stocks trade against silver’s price can help you understand which business models the market is rewarding, and which names are most sensitive to pullbacks.
