An old silver dollar is never worth just one dollar. The two you are most likely to have, the Morgan dollar and the Peace dollar, were struck in 90% silver, so each holds more than three quarters of a troy ounce of silver before any collector has a say in the price. Some are worth many times that. Where yours lands depends on three things: its date and mint mark, its condition, and whether it is genuine.
Which dollar do you have?
The Morgan dollar was struck from 1878 to 1904 and again in 1921. It shows a left-facing Liberty on the front and an eagle with spread wings on the back. The Peace dollar followed in 1921 and ran until 1935. Its Liberty wears a radiant crown, and the eagle on the back sits on a rock with the word PEACE beneath it.
Two near-misses are worth ruling out. Eisenhower dollars (1971 to 1978) made for circulation are copper-nickel and contain no silver; only some collector issues carried 40% silver. Older types such as Seated Liberty and Trade dollars exist as well, and are worth having looked at properly rather than guessed at.
The silver in it
Morgan and Peace dollars share one specification: 26.73 grams, 90% silver and 10% copper, set by the Bland-Allison Act of 1878 and carried over to the Peace dollar (the U.S. Mint's history of silver dollar coinage covers it). The arithmetic is short:
- 26.73 g × 0.90 = 24.06 g of pure silver
- 24.06 g ÷ 31.1035 g per troy ounce = 0.7734 troy ounces
Multiply 0.7734 by the silver price and you have the metal value, usually called melt value. For illustration only, at $60 an ounce the silver in one dollar would be worth about $46 (0.7734 × 60 = 46.40). The live figure is on our melt calculator.
Treat melt as a floor, not an offer. A buyer has to cover costs, so an ordinary worn dollar will usually be bought a little under its melt value, and a better one for well above it.
Mint marks and dates
The small letter low on the back of the coin tells you where it was struck. No letter means Philadelphia. CC is Carson City, O is New Orleans, S is San Francisco and D is Denver. It matters because the mints struck very different numbers of coins in different years.
Carson City dollars usually sell above melt whatever the date, because that small Nevada mint closed in 1893 and its output is collected as a group. Among Morgans, the 1889-CC, 1893-S and 1895 are the best-known scarce dates, though far from the only ones. Among Peace dollars, collectors look first at 1921, the opening year, struck in higher relief, and at 1928, a low-mintage year.
Condition changes the price more than anything
A coin worn smooth is worth its silver. A coin that still has its original mint luster can be worth many times more, even when the date is common. Condition is described on the 1 to 70 Sheldon scale, and the premium climbs steeply at the top: a high-grade common date can be worth many times its melt value. Our guide to PCGS and NGC grading explains how the scale works.
Eye appeal counts as well. Two coins with the same grade can sell for different prices: a bright strike with soft, even toning is preferred to one with heavy contact marks.
Do not clean it
Polishing or dipping a dollar leaves fine hairline scratches and strips the surface that collectors want to see. The grading services will still authenticate a cleaned coin, but they will not give it a standard numerical grade, and it sells at a discount. If a dollar is dirty, leave it dirty.
Is it genuine?
Counterfeit silver dollars exist, and the better ones are made to weigh correctly. A few basic checks are a first pass rather than proof. The coin should be about 38.1 mm (1.5 inches) across, weigh close to 26.7 grams unless it is badly worn, and not stick to a magnet. Anything that fails is suspect. Anything that passes still needs a trained eye before you pay a premium for it, which is why expensive dates are normally sold already graded.
How to work out what yours is worth
- Read the date and mint mark, and look at the coin under a good light.
- Work out the melt value with the calculator. That is your floor.
- Judge the wear honestly: worn smooth, lightly worn, or still lustrous?
- Compare with what similar coins actually sold for, in a published price guide or in completed sales, not asking prices.
- For a scarce date, or a coin that looks uncirculated, have it graded or at least looked at by a dealer before you sell. The difference is too big to guess at.
- Ask any buyer to explain how they reached their number, and get a second opinion if it is more than a small sum.
Where we fit in
T&C Coin sells copper rounds and bars online. We do not buy or appraise coins through this website, and we do not list silver dollars. If you would like to talk a coin over with someone who handles them, Thomas takes calls monday to saturday, 8am to 6pm, on (505) 518-2288. If you are selling a whole collection, read how to sell a coin collection first.