90% Junk Silver Coins
Junk silver is the trade name for circulated US dimes, quarters and half dollars made of 90% silver, worth roughly their metal content and not much more. The name sounds dismissive, but these coins are one of the most practical ways to hold small amounts of silver: they are recognizable, divisible and genuine US Mint products.
This page explains which coins count, how much silver they contain, what to check before you buy, and how 90% silver coins trade one coin at a time on Changes Hands.
Quick facts
| Years | Pre-1965: dimes, quarters and half dollars dated 1964 and earlier |
|---|---|
| Designers | Various: Barber, Mercury, Roosevelt, Standing Liberty, Washington, Walking Liberty, Franklin and 1964 Kennedy designs |
| Denomination | Dimes, quarters and half dollars; traded one coin per unit |
| Composition | 90% silver, 10% copper |
| Weight | 25.00 g per one dollar face value (dime 2.50 g, quarter 6.25 g, half dollar 12.50 g) |
| Diameter | Dime 17.91 mm, quarter 24.26 mm, half dollar 30.61 mm |
| Mints | Mostly Philadelphia, Denver and San Francisco; older Barber coins also from New Orleans |
| Edge | Reeded, with no copper stripe |
Where junk silver comes from
Until 1964, US dimes, quarters and half dollars were made of 90% silver and 10% copper. As the price of silver rose in the early 1960s, the metal in a coin threatened to exceed its face value. The Coinage Act of 1965 replaced silver with copper-nickel clad in the dime and quarter and cut the half dollar's silver content. People quickly sorted out the old coins and kept them, and within a few years silver had all but vanished from circulation.
Those coins became a bullion product in their own right. Dealers buy and sell them by face value, and their price moves with silver.
Which coins count
Every US dime, quarter and half dollar struck for circulation through 1964 is 90% silver. In practice, junk silver means coins from the Barber designs of 1892 onward; older silver coins usually carry collector premiums. The common types are:
- Dimes: Barber, Mercury and Roosevelt through 1964.
- Quarters: Barber, Standing Liberty and Washington through 1964.
- Half dollars: Barber, Walking Liberty, Franklin and the 1964 Kennedy.
What is not junk silver
Not included: Kennedy halves from 1965 to 1970, which are 40% silver; wartime Jefferson nickels, which are 35% silver and trade as war nickels; and silver dollars, which trade on their own. Any quarter or dime dated 1965 or later is clad unless it is a special collector issue.
How much silver is in junk silver
A new dime contains about 0.0723 troy ounces of silver, a quarter about 0.1808 and a half dollar about 0.3617. Any one dollar of face value therefore holds about 0.7234 troy ounces when new. Circulated coins have lost a little metal to wear, so the trade conventionally treats one dollar face of worn coins as about 0.715 troy ounces. Heavily worn coins hold slightly less than lightly worn ones, which is one reason the denomination and condition of a lot matter. Premiums over silver can also differ between dimes, quarters and halves, depending on demand for small units at the time.
What to check
The date tells you most of what you need. The edge confirms it: a 90% silver coin has a solid silver edge, while a clad coin shows a copper stripe. Weight is the third check; a clad quarter weighs about 5.67 grams against 6.25 for silver. Silver-plated clad coins exist, which is why a metal test is worth doing on larger lots. Standing Liberty quarters from 1916 to 1924 had a raised date that often wore away, so dateless examples are common in bulk.
Also check for key dates before treating a coin as bulk. A 1916-D Mercury dime, a 1932-D or 1932-S Washington quarter or a 1921 Walking Liberty half is worth far more than its silver. See common dates versus key dates for why.
Buying and selling 90% silver on Changes Hands
Changes Hands lists 90% silver by the coin, one class per denomination: 90% silver dimes, quarters and half dollars. Each lot is screened at intake: every coin's edge is checked, lots are weighed against face value, a sample is metal-tested and any failure triggers a check of every coin. Key and semi-key dates are pulled out and listed in their own classes. Cleaned or scratched coins are accepted; holed, bent, corroded or harshly cleaned coins are not.
Buyers pay no fees; sellers pay 3% plus a small one-time bulk intake fee when a coin sells. Shipping home costs $35 per shipment plus $3 per coin, so with low-value coins it pays to ship many together or keep them vaulted and resell here. Silver prices can fall as well as rise; nothing here is investment advice.
Key dates
| Date | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| 1916-D Mercury dime | The most important dime to pull from a bulk lot. |
| 1921 and 1921-D Mercury dimes | Low-mintage keys worth checking on every worn Mercury. |
| 1932-D and 1932-S Washington quarters | The two keys of the Washington series. |
| 1916 Standing Liberty quarter | The first-year key of the Standing Liberty series, rarely found in bulk. |
| 1901-S and 1913-S Barber quarters | Barber keys that occasionally surface in old accumulations. |
| 1921, 1921-D and 1938-D Walking Liberty halves, 1949-S Franklin | Half dollar keys and semi-keys pulled before bulk. |
90% Junk Silver markets
Frequently asked questions
What is junk silver?
Junk silver is circulated US 90% silver coinage, mainly dimes, quarters and half dollars dated 1964 and earlier, that has no collector premium and trades for its silver content.
How much silver is in junk silver coins?
One dollar of face value contains about 0.7234 troy ounces of silver when new. Because of wear, circulated coins are conventionally counted at about 0.715 troy ounces per dollar of face value.
Are 1965 quarters silver?
No. Circulating quarters and dimes dated 1965 and later are copper-nickel clad. You can see the copper core as a stripe on the edge.
Are 1965 to 1970 Kennedy halves junk silver?
They contain 40% silver, not 90%, so they are not part of 90% junk silver. They trade separately, often called 40% halves, and are not listed on Changes Hands.
Is junk silver a good way to own silver?
It has practical advantages: it is genuine US coinage, easy to recognize and comes in small units. Its price follows silver, which can be volatile, and dealer premiums vary. This is general information, not investment advice.