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Silver and gold content of U.S. coins
The mint constants behind every melt value: weight, fineness, pure content.
The minted specifications behind every melt value on this site: weight, fineness and pure metal content for each U.S. coin. These are U.S. Mint constants - they never change, only the spot price does.
Silver coins
| Coin | Years | Weight | Fineness | Silver (ASW) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Morgan Silver Dollar | 1878-1904, 1921 | 26.730 g | 90.0% | 0.77345 ozt |
| Peace Silver Dollar | 1921-1935 | 26.730 g | 90.0% | 0.77345 ozt |
| Trade Dollar | 1873-1885 | 27.216 g | 90.0% | 0.78751 ozt |
| Walking Liberty Half Dollar | 1916-1947 | 12.500 g | 90.0% | 0.36170 ozt |
| Franklin Half Dollar | 1948-1963 | 12.500 g | 90.0% | 0.36170 ozt |
| 1964 Kennedy Half Dollar | 1964 | 12.500 g | 90.0% | 0.36170 ozt |
| 40% Silver Kennedy Half Dollar | 1965-1970 | 11.500 g | 40.0% | 0.14789 ozt |
| Washington Silver Quarter | 1932-1964 | 6.250 g | 90.0% | 0.18085 ozt |
| Standing Liberty Quarter | 1916-1930 | 6.250 g | 90.0% | 0.18085 ozt |
| Barber Quarter | 1892-1916 | 6.250 g | 90.0% | 0.18085 ozt |
| Roosevelt Silver Dime | 1946-1964 | 2.500 g | 90.0% | 0.07234 ozt |
| Mercury Dime | 1916-1945 | 2.500 g | 90.0% | 0.07234 ozt |
| Barber Dime | 1892-1916 | 2.500 g | 90.0% | 0.07234 ozt |
| War Nickel (35% Silver) | 1942-1945 | 5.000 g | 35.0% | 0.05626 ozt |
| American Silver Eagle | 1986-present | 31.101 g | 99.9% | 0.99892 ozt |
Gold coins
| Coin | Years | Weight | Fineness | Gold (AGW) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $20 Double Eagle | 1849-1933 | 33.436 g | 90.00% | 0.96749 ozt |
| $10 Gold Eagle | 1795-1933 | 16.718 g | 90.00% | 0.48375 ozt |
| $5 Half Eagle | 1795-1929 | 8.359 g | 90.00% | 0.24187 ozt |
| $2.50 Quarter Eagle | 1796-1929 | 4.180 g | 90.00% | 0.12095 ozt |
| $3 Gold Piece | 1854-1889 | 5.015 g | 90.00% | 0.14511 ozt |
| Gold Dollar | 1849-1889 | 1.672 g | 90.00% | 0.04838 ozt |
| American Gold Eagle (1 oz) | 1986-present | 33.931 g | 91.67% | 1.00003 ozt |
| American Gold Buffalo (1 oz) | 2006-present | 31.108 g | 99.99% | 1.00005 ozt |
Base-metal coins
| Coin | Years | Weight | Composition |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lincoln cent (copper) | 1909-1982 | 3.110 g | 95% copper, 5% tin/zinc |
| Lincoln cent (zinc) | 1982-present | 2.500 g | 97.5% zinc, 2.5% copper plating |
| Jefferson nickel | 1946-present | 5.000 g | 75% copper, 25% nickel |
ASW and AGW ("actual silver/gold weight") are computed as weight × fineness ÷ 31.1035 and cross-checked against published Mint specifications on every build.
Turn any row into a dollar figure on its coin page, or with the junk silver calculator.