Coin Metal Content & Melt Value Calculator

How the metal figures are calculated

Every number in the table starts from two fixed facts set by law: the coin's standard weight and its alloy. Multiply the weight by each metal's share and you have the grams of that metal. A 90% silver quarter weighs 6.25 grams, so it holds 6.25 x 0.90 = 5.625 grams of silver and 0.625 grams of copper. Silver is priced in troy ounces of 31.1035 grams, so 5.625 grams is 0.1808 troy ounces.

Base metals are priced by the ordinary pound of 453.59 grams. A pre-1982 copper cent weighs 3.11 grams and is 95% copper, which is 2.9545 grams of copper. Divide by 453.59 and one cent contains 0.0065 pounds of copper. The calculator multiplies those figures by the spot prices you type in and by the quantity, then adds the metals together.

Using the inputs correctly

Enter silver in dollars per troy ounce and copper, nickel and zinc in dollars per pound, because those are the units in which the metals are quoted. You only need to fill in the prices for the metals in your coin. A clad quarter needs copper and nickel. A modern cent needs zinc and copper, since its 2.5 gram weight is 97.5% zinc with a thin copper plating making up the other 2.5%. Use the quantity box for a stack of identical coins rather than adding coins one at a time.

What the composition table tells you about US coin history

The table traces the main metal changes in American coinage. Large cents of 1795 to 1857 were pure copper and weighed 10.89 grams. The five-cent nickel has been 75% copper and 25% nickel since 1866, apart from the wartime silver alloy of 1942 to 1945, which swapped nickel for 35% silver and 9% manganese. In 1965 dimes and quarters became clad: outer layers of 75% copper and 25% nickel bonded to a pure copper core, which averages out to 91.67% copper and 8.33% nickel. In 1982 the cent changed from 95% copper to copper-plated zinc.

Mistakes that throw off a melt figure

The most common error is mixing up ounces. A troy ounce is about 10% heavier than the ordinary ounce used on kitchen scales, so dividing grams of silver by 28.35 instead of 31.1035 overstates the silver. Another is using the coin's total weight instead of its pure metal content: a Morgan dollar weighs 26.73 grams but holds 24.06 grams of silver. The table also assumes unworn coins. Circulated silver coins have lost a little metal, so their real content is slightly lower. Finally, melt value is not what a buyer pays. Dealers usually bid somewhat below melt for common coins and well above it for scarce ones.

Frequently asked questions