2020 American Gold Eagle

Every 2020 Gold Eagle version

The regular 2020 lineup has nine versions. Bullion coins come without a mint mark in all four sizes. The four proofs combine mirror fields and frosted design with a mint mark. Burnished collectors had one coin, the satin finish one ounce W. The V75 proof looks like the regular one ounce proof apart from its small privy mark, so check closely. Collector coins came in capsules and boxes with certificates. Bullion coins are by far the most common 2020 Gold Eagles, so start by assuming a loose coin is bullion and look for reasons it might not be.

Quick answers

How much gold is in a 2020 Gold Eagle?

Each coin contains its stated weight of pure gold: 1/10 troy ounce in the $5 coin, 1/4 troy ounce in the $10 coin, 1/2 troy ounce in the $25 coin and one troy ounce in the $50 coin. The alloy is 91.67% gold, 3% silver, 5.33% copper.

How many 2020 Gold Eagles were made?

747,500 one ounce bullion coins plus 79,440 collector versions (proof, burnished and special finishes).

Is the 2020 Gold Eagle worth more than its gold?

The bullion coin trades close to its metal value plus a dealer premium. The scarcer collector versions of 2020 are a different story; see the table above.

Is the Gold Eagle legal tender?

Yes. Each size carries a face value ($5, $10, $25 and $50), but nobody spends them: the gold is worth far more than the face value.

2020 Gold Eagle by the numbers

The Mint sold 747,500 one ounce bullion Gold Eagles dated 2020. That ranks 27th lowest of the 39 bullion dates from 1986 to 2024.

Against the dates around it, 2020 bullion sales were 6.9 times the 2019 figure and 1.5 times fewer than 2021.

Collector versions dated 2020 add up to 79,440 coins across 6 versions. The scarcest is the 2020-W 1 oz proof (V75 privy) at 1,939; the most plentiful is the 2020 1/10 oz proof at 24,033.

Fractional bullion that year: 350,000 1/10 oz coins, 106,000 1/4 oz coins and 70,000 1/2 oz coins. The 1/2 oz is the scarce size of the year.

What to check on yours

• Weigh and measure it. A genuine one ounce Gold Eagle weighs 33.931 g and measures 32.7 mm; the fractional sizes are 3.393 g (1/10 oz), 8.483 g (1/4 oz) and 16.965 g (1/2 oz). Fakes are usually the wrong weight or the wrong thickness.
• Try a magnet. Gold is not magnetic, so a coin that sticks is not genuine. A coin that does not stick still needs the other checks.
• Look for the mint mark. Bullion strikes have none; proofs and burnished coins carry a small letter. A mirror field with frosted design means a proof, a soft satin look means burnished.
• Handle it by the edge and never clean it. Fingerprints, wiping and polishing leave marks that cost collector versions much of their premium.
• Keep the original capsule, box and certificate with collector versions. Coins that come with them are easier to sell and more likely to bring their full premium.

The burnished one ounce at 6,284 is the scarcest regular 2020 Gold Eagle and carries a collector premium. The half ounce proof at 14,020 also earns a collector premium in original packaging. The V75 privy proof is a significant rarity, so have any example authenticated, since copies of popular privy coins exist. Bullion coins trade close to metal value despite the strong demand of the year. Regular proofs with spots or haze bring less than clean ones, even in original boxes. Handle them by the edge.

One ounce burnished coins and shrinking proofs (2011 to 2020)

When the burnished W coin returned in 2011 it came in the one ounce size only, with 8,729 struck. Every year since has followed the same pattern. Through 2020 the burnished mintage stayed between 5,800 and 8,729, low enough that each of these coins carries a collector premium over metal value.

Proof sales fell sharply over the decade. The quarter and half ounce proofs, which sold more than 40,000 each in 2010, dropped to between about 12,700 and 15,800 from 2012 to 2015. In 2018 and 2019 the half ounce proof slipped below 10,000, with 9,961 and 9,454 struck. The 2017 one ounce proof managed just 9,245. For collectors this is the period when ordinary proofs started to become genuinely scarce.

Bullion demand swung with the gold market. One ounce sales ran from 857,000 in 2011 down to 108,000 in 2019, the lowest one ounce bullion figure of any year from 1986 to 2024. In 2020 the pandemic sent buyers back to physical gold and one ounce sales jumped to 747,500. The same year the Mint issued a one ounce proof with a V75 privy mark for the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II. Only 1,939 were sold, the lowest figure of any Gold Eagle from 1986 to 2024. For most finders, the bullion coins of this decade trade on their gold. The burnished and low mintage proof coins are where the premiums are.

Mintage chart

Specifications

Frequently asked questions