900 Silver Calculator — Coin Silver Melt Value

What Is .900 Coin Silver?

.900 silver contains exactly 90 parts silver and 10 parts copper per 100 parts alloy — a purity of 90.0%. The copper addition is not incidental: pure silver is too soft to survive decades of daily handling in circulation, and the 10% copper alloy dramatically improves hardness and wear resistance without meaningfully reducing the silver content. The United States formally adopted this standard under the Coinage Act of 1792, and American coins maintained 90% silver composition for over 170 years of continuous production — one of the longest-running metal standards in monetary history.

The term "coin silver" originates directly from American silversmithing practice. In the 18th and 19th centuries, American silversmiths — including Paul Revere, Myer Myers, and companies such as Reed & Barton — routinely melted circulating US silver coins to obtain metal for flatware, hollowware, teapots, and serving pieces. Because the source metal was 90% silver coins, these handcrafted items naturally carry the same purity and are stamped "COIN," "COIN SILVER," ".900," or "900/1000." This is why a 19th-century American serving spoon may be stamped "COIN" rather than "STERLING" — it predates or deliberately uses the older coin silver standard rather than the British .925 sterling.

Understanding the distinction between coin silver and sterling silver matters for pricing. Sterling silver is .925 (92.5% pure silver) — higher than coin silver's 90%. At today's live prices, sterling silver is worth $— per gram while coin silver (.900) is $— per gram — a per-gram difference of $—. This difference compounds significantly across large quantities of flatware. An item stamped STERLING/925/STER is not coin silver and should not be priced as such — and vice versa.

The end of circulating US silver coins came with the Coinage Act of 1965. Rising silver spot prices had pushed the metal value of 90% silver coins above their nominal face value, causing Gresham's Law to operate exactly as predicted: people hoarded the silver coins and spent the copper-nickel replacements. The Act of 1965 eliminated silver from dimes and quarters immediately. Kennedy half dollars were reduced to 40% silver from 1965 through 1970, then eliminated entirely in 1971. This makes 1964 the critical cutoff year: any dime, quarter, half dollar, or dollar dated 1964 or earlier is guaranteed 90% silver by the US government, requiring no test or hallmark to confirm purity.

.900 Coin Silver Price Today — Per Gram, Ounce & Kilogram

These three prices are derived directly from the global silver spot price — the price of .999 fine silver trading on COMEX in New York — discounted by the 0.900 purity factor. The per-gram price is the most practical for evaluating small items. A single pre-1965 US silver dime weighs 2.50 grams total and contains 2.25 grams of pure silver, worth $— at today's price. A quarter contains 5.625 grams of pure silver ($—). A half dollar contains 11.25 grams ($—). A silver dollar contains 24.06 grams of pure silver ($—).

The troy ounce price is used when quoting larger quantities — a coin dealer or refiner will typically express an offer as a percentage of the spot price per troy ounce, applied to the pure silver troy oz content. For context: if sterling silver (.925) is $— per gram and coin silver (.900) is $— per gram, the per-gram difference is $—. Over a 500-gram lot of mixed flatware, that difference becomes significant — always confirm which hallmark standard you have before accepting any dealer offer. See our Silver Price Per Gram page for a complete cross-purity comparison.

How to Identify .900 Coin Silver Items

There are two distinct categories of .900 coin silver items you are likely to encounter: US circulating coins and American coin silver flatware. Each has its own identification method, and confusing them with other silver standards is a common and costly mistake. Proper identification before any sale determines whether you are paid fairly for your silver's actual purity.

For US coins: any dime, quarter, half dollar, or dollar coin dated 1964 or earlier is exactly 90% silver — no hallmark, acid test, or XRF needed. The date on the coin is the identifier, guaranteed by the full authority of the US government. Critical exception: the Kennedy half dollar from 1965 through 1970 is only 40% silver — do not confuse these with the 90% 1964 Kennedy half. Visually they are nearly identical; the date is the only reliable distinguisher. War Nickels from 1942 to 1945 with a large mintmark above Monticello are 35% silver, not 90%. See the Junk Silver Calculator for full coin type reference.

For American coin silver flatware: look for the following stamps on the back of each piece, typically near the handle base. Genuine .900 coin silver flatware is marked "COIN," "COIN SILVER," ".900," or "900/1000" — often accompanied by a maker's mark (name, initials, or city of origin). American silversmiths from the Federal period through the mid-19th century produced coin silver pieces that are now highly collectible in addition to their melt value. Pieces by known makers may carry antique premiums far above the scrap price — always research maker's marks before selling as scrap silver.

When in doubt about any unmarked piece, a silver acid test kit ($8–15, available at any jewelry supply store) confirms the presence and approximate purity of silver in under 60 seconds. For more certainty, XRF testing at a coin dealer or refiner reads purity to four decimal places at no charge or minimal cost. Never accept a dealer's purity assessment without verification — the difference between .900, .925, and plate translates directly to dollars in your pocket.

.900 Coin Silver vs .925 Sterling vs .999 Fine — Live Comparison

The five most commonly encountered silver purity standards each have distinct sources, hallmarks, and melt values. The table below shows the current melt value per gram, per troy ounce, and per kilogram for each standard at today's live spot price. The .900 coin silver row is highlighted — this calculator's primary standard. Note that purity differences that seem small in percentage terms (e.g., .925 vs .900 = 2.5 percentage points) translate to meaningful dollar differences at scale, particularly across large quantities of flatware or coin lots.

From a dealer's perspective, coin silver is often preferred over sterling for one critical reason: pre-1965 US coins require absolutely no testing — the date alone confirms the 90% silver purity guaranteed by the US Mint. This makes transactions faster and reduces the risk of purity disputes. However, certain specific dates among the coin types carry numismatic premiums that far exceed melt value — sometimes by a factor of 10 or more. Before scrapping any individual coin, verify its date and mintmark against a coin price guide. The 1932-D and 1932-S Washington quarters, the 1916-D Mercury dime, and key-date Morgan silver dollars are worth multiples of their melt value as collector pieces. For common dates, completed sales on eBay provide a reliable real-world market benchmark. See our Silver Dime Calculator and Silver Quarter Calculator for individual coin melt values.

900 Silver Melt Value by Weight — Live Reference

The table below applies the .900 coin silver melt formula — (grams ÷ 31.1035) × 0.900 × spot price — to the most commonly weighed quantities. Dealer payout columns show 88% and 93% of melt value, the typical range for coin silver flatware at local dealers and online buyers respectively. Pre-1965 coins typically receive 90–95% of melt because of their easy resale and guaranteed purity. All values update automatically with the live silver spot price.

Walking into any negotiation with your own calculated melt value gives you immediate leverage. If a dealer offers you a lump-sum dollar amount for your coin silver lot, divide that offer by your calculated melt value and multiply by 100 to get the payout percentage instantly. Most legitimate coin dealers pay 88–93% of melt for .900 coin silver flatware and 90–95% for pre-1965 circulating coins, because coins carry guaranteed purity and are easier to resell than unverified flatware pieces.

.900 Coin Silver Hallmarks — Identification Guide

Correctly reading hallmarks is the single most important skill when handling coin silver and scrap silver in general. A misidentified piece either loses you money (paid at a lower purity rate than it deserves) or creates a dispute when a dealer discovers the actual purity after purchase. The following guide covers the marks you will encounter on legitimate .900 coin silver and the warning marks that indicate a different standard or no silver content at all.

Valid .900 coin silver marks on flatware: "COIN," "COIN SILVER," ".900," or "900/1000" — typically paired with a maker's name, city, or workshop initials. These marks were applied by American silversmiths from roughly 1792 through the early 20th century. The absence of any hallmark on very old American pieces does not necessarily mean the piece is not coin silver — early American silversmiths did not always mark purity numerically. For US coins, no hallmark search is needed: any circulating US dime, quarter, half dollar, or dollar dated 1964 or earlier is confirmed 90% silver by the date alone.

Warning marks indicating different standards or no silver: Items stamped STERLING, 925, STG, or STER are sterling silver (.925) — not coin silver, though still valuable silver. Items stamped 800 or 835 are European silver standards — both contain genuine silver but at lower purity than US coin silver. Items stamped EPNS, A1, Silver Plate, EP, Sheffield Plate, 1/20, WM (White Metal), or "silver colored" contain zero silver regardless of how convincingly silver-colored they appear. A magnet is a fast first check: genuine coin silver is completely non-magnetic; stainless steel and base metal plate are magnetic. For any unmarked piece or any piece where the mark is ambiguous, a silver acid test kit or XRF testing at a coin dealer provides definitive confirmation.

Where to Sell .900 Coin Silver

The ideal buyer for .900 coin silver depends on what you have. For individual pre-1965 US coins, a coin dealer is almost always the best first stop — coin dealers understand numismatic value and will pay accordingly for any collectible dates rather than simply buying by melt value. Present your coins to a coin dealer before any bulk silver buyer, and always check PCGS, NGC, or the Red Book price guide for key dates before committing to a scrap sale. For common-date coins in bulk, and for coin silver flatware at any quantity, online bullion buyers — APMEX, JM Bullion, SilverRecyclers.com — post transparent live buy prices based directly on melt value. Local coin shops provide same-day cash for any amount. Professional refiners accept minimum lots of 500 grams of pure silver content and pay the highest percentage of melt. Pawn shops pay the lowest rates and should be used only in genuine emergencies — their offers on coin silver are routinely 50–70% of melt value, well below what any legitimate silver buyer would pay.

Frequently Asked Questions — .900 Coin Silver