AboutMyCoinSilver, Gold and Spot Prices
The metal in a coin is the part of its value that is calculated rather than judged.
Spot price, the troy ounce and the fineness of the alloy are the three things that sum turns on, and none of them depends on anybody’s opinion of the coin. That makes the metal the floor under every other question about the coin.
The figures themselves are on the melt value pages, each one dated and shown with the price it was worked at. These answers are what the figures mean.
What is spot price?
Spot price is what one troy ounce of a metal is trading for on the international market right now. It is the number a coin’s melt value is calculated from, and it is not the price a dealer will pay you for a coin.
How can I tell if a coin is silver?
For United States coins the date settles it: dimes, quarters and half dollars dated 1964 or earlier are 90% silver, and those dated 1965 or later are not. Where the date does not settle it, the edge, the weight, a magnet and the sound of the coin will.
What is a troy ounce?
A troy ounce is the unit precious metal is weighed in, and it is 31.1035 grams — about a tenth heavier than the 28.3495 gram ounce used for everything else. Metal weights and spot prices are quoted per troy ounce, because mixing the two units overstates what you have by a tenth.
Other topics
- What a coin is worth — Four things set what a coin is worth, and the year stamped on the front is only one of them.
- Grading and condition — Condition is the largest variable in a coin’s price and the one most easily destroyed at home.
- Selling coins — Nobody pays what a coin is worth, and knowing why is what makes an offer judgeable.