An old coin is worth its metal content or its collector value, whichever is higher. Silver dimes, quarters and halves dated 1964 or earlier, silver dollars and U.S. gold struck before 1933 all have a melt floor set by the spot price. Date, mint mark, grade and eye appeal decide whether a coin is worth more than that floor.
Melt value and collector value
Every old coin has two possible prices. Melt value is what the gold or silver inside is worth at today's spot price. Collector value, often called numismatic value, is what people who collect coins will pay for that date, mint mark and condition. A fair offer pays you the higher of the two.
Think of melt value as a floor. A worn 1950s Washington quarter will never be worth less than its silver, and most are worth little more. A Morgan dollar from a scarce date in sharp condition can be worth many times its silver. Trouble starts when a buyer pays every coin as melt, because that is how a better date ends up priced as bullion.
Copper and nickel coins have little metal value, so for them collector value is nearly the whole story. An old cent or nickel brings more than face only when its date, mint mark and grade earn it.
Gold works the same way. U.S. gold coins struck before 1933 are 90% gold, so even a worn $5 half eagle or $2.50 quarter eagle has a firm metal floor. Some dates and grades of pre-1933 gold bring a collector premium above that floor, which is why each gold coin gets its own line on our offer.
Sort a jar or box at the kitchen table
You do not need a price guide to make a useful first pass. Lay a towel on the table, hold coins by their edges, and sort them into piles by type and date. Do not rub, rinse or polish anything along the way, since cleaning lowers a coin's grade.
Once the piles are made, jot a rough count of each on a sheet of paper. That sheet helps you compare buyers and makes an appointment go faster. These are the piles worth making:
Paper money belongs in a pile of its own. National Bank Notes, issued from 1863 to 1935, carry the name of the local bank that put them out, and notes from Philadelphia and small-town Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware banks draw regional collectors. Check the face of any older bill for a bank name before you set it aside.
- Silver dimes, quarters and half dollars dated 1964 or earlier
- Kennedy half dollars dated 1965 to 1970
- Nickels dated 1942 to 1945, since many are 35% silver war nickels
- Morgan dollars (1878 to 1904 and 1921) and Peace dollars (1921 to 1935)
- Any gold coin, U.S. or foreign
- Large cents, Indian Head cents and Lincoln wheat cents
- Proof sets, mint sets and anything in a PCGS or NGC holder
- Foreign coins and paper money, each in a pile of its own
Metal content of common silver and gold coins
For melt coins the math is short. Find the metal content below, multiply it by the live spot price, and you have the metal value. A buyer's offer will sit somewhat under that figure, and an honest buyer will show you how far under.
These figures only tell you the metal floor. A scarce date or a high grade can push a coin well above it.
| Coin | Years | Metal | Precious metal content |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dimes, quarters and half dollars | 1964 and earlier | 90% silver | About 0.715 troy oz of silver per $1 face value |
| Kennedy half dollars | 1965 to 1970 | 40% silver | Less silver than a 90% half |
| Jefferson war nickels | 1942 to 1945 | 35% silver | A small amount of silver per coin |
| Morgan and Peace dollars | 1878 to 1904, 1921 to 1935 | 90% silver, 26.73 grams | 0.7734 troy oz of silver |
| American Silver Eagle | 1986 to date | .999 silver | One troy oz of silver |
| U.S. $20 double eagle | Struck before 1933 | 90% gold | 0.9675 troy oz of gold |
| American Gold Eagle, one ounce | 1986 to date | 22K gold, 33.93 grams | One troy oz of gold |
| South African Krugerrand | Modern bullion coin | 22K gold | One troy oz of gold |
| Mexican 50 pesos (Centenario) | Mexican gold coin | Gold | 1.2057 troy oz of gold |
What lifts a coin above melt
Date and mint mark come first. Some years and some mints turned out far fewer coins, and collectors pay for that scarcity. The mint mark is a small letter showing where a coin was struck: D for Denver, S for San Francisco, O for New Orleans, CC for Carson City and W for West Point. Philadelphia coins mostly carry no mint mark at all, which surprises plenty of people who grew up here.
Grade measures wear and quality on the 1 to 70 Sheldon scale. A coin that spent fifty years in pockets and one that went straight into a dresser drawer can share a date and still be far apart in price. Eye appeal counts as well: strong luster, attractive toning and no distracting marks.
Copper coins bring one more factor, color. Graders note whether a copper coin is red, red-brown or brown, and original red is the hardest to find on old cents.
Coins graded by PCGS or NGC come sealed in plastic holders called slabs, with the grade printed on the label. Leave them sealed. A coin taken out of its slab loses the grade that buyers rely on.
Coins that are often worth less than people hope
Plenty of old-looking coins carry no premium. Dimes, quarters and halves dated 1965 and later are copper-nickel clad with no silver, apart from the 40% silver Kennedy halves of 1965 to 1970. Most clad coins are worth face value unless they are in unusual condition.
Age alone does not set value either. A worn coin from a common year can be more than a century old and still sell for little, while a much younger coin in top grade can bring more. We look at each piece for that reason instead of guessing from the date.
Silver certificates are another surprise. They were issued until the 1960s and can be redeemed only at face value today, although collectors may pay more for some of them, such as star notes and notes in crisp condition. Large-size notes from before 1929 are a separate and more collectible group.
Proof sets and mint sets are a mixed group. Mint sets hold uncirculated coins, and proof coins are struck twice on polished dies for collectors. Silver proof sets carry 90% silver coins in many years, so their silver sets a floor. Clad sets without silver depend almost entirely on collector demand.
What happens at a free evaluation
Bring the piles, or the whole unsorted box, to a private appointment and we go through it with you. Each coin is checked for date, mint mark, grade and eye appeal. Gold and silver are confirmed by non-destructive testing and weighed on a calibrated scale. We keep collector coins apart from melt coins so a better date is never priced as bullion.
You get a written list with an offer beside each item. Take payment that visit, or keep the coins and the list to compare with other buyers. The evaluation costs nothing, and you are never obliged to sell.
If you are short on time, bring the box unsorted. Sorting at home only shortens the appointment, and nothing in your piles has to be right. A coin in the wrong pile is no trouble for us, while a coin rubbed clean to read its date has already lost part of its grade.
Old coins in Philadelphia homes
People in this city have a family connection to old coins whether they know it or not. The U.S. Mint began here under the Coinage Act of 1792, and today's Philadelphia Mint on Independence Mall, near the Liberty Bell, is the fourth Mint building in the city's history. Coins made a few blocks from Independence Hall have been passing through Philadelphia pockets, piggy banks and dresser drawers for more than two centuries.
The coins we see from local homes are usually everyday savings. A Mayfair twin might yield a coffee can of silver dimes set aside from change in the 1950s. A Haddonfield or Media attic might hold a grandparent's Peace dollars in paper sleeves and a stack of proof sets bought one year at a time. Sorting that kind of mix by date and metal turns a heavy box into a short list you can price, and it often shows that a handful of coins carry most of the worth. Other families bring Kennedy halves still in bank paper, or a tube of Silver Eagles found behind books on a shelf.
If you would rather not sort alone, call 215-798-9204 and set up a private appointment. We see sellers across Philadelphia and its four suburban counties, in South Jersey near Cherry Hill, around Trenton and Princeton, and in Wilmington. There is no counter and no line, the evaluation is free, and a family with a large estate can ask about a home visit. A first pass at your own kitchen table is a good start, and a second look from us costs nothing. Bring a government-issued photo ID in case you decide to sell that day.