1970 Canadian Nickel
The 1970 Canadian Nickel is a Canadian nickel struck for circulation with 5.73 million made. Value band: face value. Here is how to recognize it, what makes one worth more and what to check on yours.
- Year
- 1970
- Circulation mintage
- 5,726,010
- Value band
- Face value
- Composition
- Nickel (99.9%)
Original illustration of the coin's shape and metal. Tap to flip. Not a picture of the actual design.
Face value · Small premium · Collector premium · Significant rarity. We use bands because prices change daily.
What is a 1970 Canadian Nickel worth?
With 5.73 million made, the 1970 Canadian Nickel is common and worth face value in circulated condition. Only uncirculated coins with full luster, recognized varieties and genuine errors interest collectors.
What would make yours worth more:
- Full uncirculated luster
- A recognized variety or genuine error
- Coins from a specimen or proof set
For market prices, look at recent sold results for the same coin in the same condition, not asking prices.
Quick answers
- Is the 1970 Canadian Nickel rare?
- No. 5.73 million were made, so circulated examples are worth face value.
- How many 1970 Canadian nickels were made?
- 5,726,010 were struck for circulation.
- What is the 1970 Canadian Nickel made of?
- Nickel (99.9%). It weighs 4.54 g and measures 21.2 mm.
- Is the 1970 Canadian Nickel still legal tender?
- Yes. Canadian 5-cent coins are legal tender.
The 1970 nickel in context
The 1970 nickel is the modern sleeper of the series. After huge totals in the late 1960s, including 99,253,330 in 1968, the mint struck just 5,726,010 nickels dated 1970. Apart from the small 2000-P plated issue, no nickel since 1955 has a lower figure. The next year output bounced straight back to 27,312,609, so 1970 sits like a deep notch in the mintage chart. It was a remarkable drop in a single year.
Large orders in the years just before seem to have left plenty of coins in circulation, so the need for new nickels that year was small. Because the coin looks identical to the dates around it, few people noticed at the time and fewer saved one. As a result the 1970 is one of the few modern Canadian nickels that collectors actually hunt for. It still turns up in change and in old jars, which is part of the fun. Finding one in sharp condition is a small triumph for anyone searching rolls of old coins. Dealers and collectors alike know the date well. Coins dated 1970 also appear in mint sets for that year.
How to recognize it
The obverse carries Arnold Machin's portrait of Elizabeth II wearing a tiara, used on Canadian coins from 1965 to 1989. The reverse is the Kruger Gray beaver on a rock, with CANADA above, 5 CENTS below and the date. The coin is round, struck in pure nickel and weighs 4.54 g, so a magnet will pick it up. Nothing about the design changed for 1970, so the date is the only clue. Look carefully at the final 0, since a worn 1976 or 1978 can sometimes be misread. On a worn coin the fur and water lines fade, but the date usually stays readable.
1970 Canadian Nickel by the numbers
In mintage terms the 1970 Canadian Nickel ranks 68th lowest of 161 Canadian nickel dates and varieties from 1858 to 2024. The next scarcer is the 1939 Canadian Nickel (5.66 million); the next more common is the 1910 Canadian Nickel (5.85 million).
For scale, the most common is the 2008 Canadian Nickel with 278.5 million, about 49 times as many. The scarcest is the 1884 Canadian Nickel with 200,000, 29 times fewer than this one.
Compared with the dates around it, the 1970 output was 4.9 times fewer than 1969 and 4.8 times fewer than 1971.
Over the 1970s the Mint produced 850.2 million five cent coins across 10 dates and varieties; the 1970 Canadian Nickel accounts for 0.7% of that.
What to check on your 1970 Canadian Nickel
- Try a magnet. Nickel (99.9%) is magnetic, so a genuine 1970 coin sticks; a silver one would not.
- Never clean it. Rubbing or polishing leaves fine scratches and an unnatural shine that collectors avoid.
- Look for full luster and no scratches. Modern five cent coins only interest collectors in uncirculated condition or with a recognized variety.
The 1970 is the date to look for among the pure nickel beavers of the 1960s and 1970s. Worn coins are worth setting aside and uncirculated ones draw a collector premium. Check the date under good light and look for coins without scratches across the beaver. It is a fun coin to search for in rolls. Pure nickel coins of this age often show light toning, which is normal. Avoid coins with dark spots or rim knocks. If you find several, keep the best one and compare the rest with it.
Tiara portrait nickels in pure nickel (1965 to 1981)
A new, more mature portrait of the queen arrived in 1965. Arnold Machin showed Elizabeth II wearing a tiara and the same likeness appeared on coins across the Commonwealth. The nickel stayed round, 4.54 g and pure nickel, with the beaver on the reverse. The one big exception came in 1967, when every Canadian circulation coin got a special design for the centennial of Confederation. On the five cents Alex Colville placed a leaping rabbit with the dates 1867 and 1967.
Demand for change kept growing. Mintages that had been in the tens of millions climbed past 100 million in the middle of the 1970s and reached more than 186 million in 1979. There are a few sharp dips, most notably 1970 when only 5,726,010 were struck. In 1981 the Royal Canadian Mint produced proof coins for collectors, the first recorded year of proof strikes for the denomination.
These are the coins most people find in old jars and drawers. The 1970 is the date to look for, as its mintage is tiny compared with the years around it. The 1965 has small beads and large beads varieties, while the 1977 has a high 7 and low 7. Most dates have face value in circulated grades. Wear shows on the tiara and the beaver's back first. These pure nickel coins are attracted to a magnet.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Country | Canada |
|---|---|
| Denomination | 5 cents |
| Issuer | Royal Canadian Mint |
| Year | 1970 |
| Circulation mintage | 5,726,010 |
| Composition | Nickel (99.9%) |
| Weight | 4.54 g |
| Diameter | 21.2 mm |
| Shape | Round |
| Edge | Plain |
Frequently asked questions
Why is the 1970 nickel scarce?
Only 5,726,010 were struck, a small fraction of the totals for the years around it. The country already had plenty of nickels from big orders in the late 1960s, so very few new ones were needed.
Is a 1970 nickel found in change worth keeping?
Yes. It has one of the lowest mintages of any modern nickel. Worn coins are worth a little more than face value to collectors and well preserved ones draw a clear premium in sharp condition.
Mintage figures: Nickel (Canadian coin) (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from Royal Canadian Mint figures. How we build these pages.