1954 Canadian Nickel

Quick answers

Is the 1954 Canadian Nickel rare?

No. 7 million were made, so circulated examples are worth face value.

How many 1954 Canadian nickels were made?

6,998,662 were struck for circulation.

What is the 1954 Canadian Nickel made of?

Plated steel. It weighs 4.54 g and measures 21.2 mm, with a 12-sided shape.

Is the 1954 Canadian Nickel still legal tender?

Yes. Canadian 5-cent coins are legal tender.

How to recognize it

The 1954 Canadian Nickel is 12-sided, 21.2 mm across and plated steel.

1954 Canadian Nickel by the numbers

By the numbers, the 1954 Canadian Nickel ranks 74th lowest of 161 Canadian nickel dates and varieties from 1858 to 2024. The next scarcer is the 1946 Nickel Canadian Nickel (6.95 million); the next more common is the 1957 Canadian Nickel (7.39 million).

For scale, the most common is the 2008 Canadian Nickel with 278.5 million, about 40 times as many. The scarcest is the 1884 Canadian Nickel with 200,000, 35 times fewer than this one.

Compared with the dates around it, the 1954 output was 2.4 times fewer than 1953 and 1.3 times the 1955 figure.

Over the 1950s the Mint produced 101.1 million five cent coins across 11 dates and varieties; the 1954 Canadian Nickel accounts for 6.9% of that.

What to check on your 1954 Canadian Nickel

• Try a magnet. Plated steel is magnetic, so a genuine 1954 coin sticks; a silver one would not.
• Never clean it. Rubbing or polishing leaves fine scratches and an unnatural shine that collectors avoid.
• Look at the high points of the portrait and the design. Wear there sets the grade. The grade in turn drives the value of older five cent coins.

Elizabeth II laureate portrait nickels (1953 to 1964)

Elizabeth II came to the throne in February 1952, but the first Canadian coins with her portrait are dated 1953. Mary Gillick's portrait shows the young queen with a laurel wreath in her hair and a draped gown. Two versions of the portrait were used in 1953, one with a shoulder strap on the gown and one without, which is why collectors look for strap and no strap coins of that year. The beaver stayed on the reverse.

The first two years were still struck on plated steel because of Korean War demand for nickel. Pure nickel returned in 1955 and remained in use for decades. The 12-sided shape lasted until 1962 and in 1963 the coin went back to round. Mintages exploded around 1960 as demand for coins grew with the economy and population. Output went from around 7 million in the late 1950s to over 78 million in 1964.

The 1955 is the low mintage date of the group at 5,355,028 and 1954 is also among the lower ones. Steel coins of 1953 and 1954 often show rust or flaking plating, so a clean piece is the goal. The 1953 strap varieties are worth checking with a magnifier: look at the queen's shoulder. Many early 1960s nickels survive in large numbers, so only well preserved coins draw interest. A magnet sticks to both pure nickel and plated steel coins, so it will not separate them.

Mintage chart

Specifications