Melt Value Calculator
Work out the metal value of coins from weight, fineness and spot price — and the legal and practical limits on acting on it.
Spot prices are entered by hand — nothing here calls out to a price feed, so the figures are only as current as what you type.
Scrap gold or silver
Junk silver by face value
Coin by coin
| Coin | Years | Mass | Metal, troy oz | Melt |
|---|
Metal content is calculated from mass and fineness rather than copied from a table, so a dime's 0.0723 troy ounces falls out of 2.5 grams at 90% rather than being typed in. 7 silver coins, 5 gold.
Melt value is not an offer
This is what the metal in the object is worth at the spot price you entered. It is not what a buyer will pay — a refiner takes a cut, a pawn shop takes a much larger one, and a collectable coin is frequently worth several times its metal. Melting something that has numismatic value is the expensive mistake in this hobby, and it is irreversible.
Things worth knowing
- Melt value is what the metal is worth, not what anyone will pay you. A refiner takes a cut, a pawn shop takes a larger one, and a collectable coin is frequently worth several times its metal.
- US circulating silver ends in 1964 for dimes and quarters. Half dollars kept 40% silver until 1970, which is the exception that catches people out.
- War nickels — late 1942 through 1945 — are 35% silver and are identified by a large mint mark ABOVE Monticello. It was the first US coin to carry a P mint mark, and that mark is the entire identification.
- A cent weighing 3.1 g is copper and one weighing 2.5 g is zinc, whatever the date says. The changeover happened mid-1982, so 1982 cents exist in both compositions.
- The 1943 steel cent is the only magnetic US cent. A 1943 that does not stick to a magnet is worth having looked at by somebody who knows what they are doing.
- Junk silver is quoted per dollar of face value: 0.715 troy ounces per dollar for circulated 90% coin. Struck weight is 0.7234, and the difference is the wear from actually being spent.
- Troy ounces are not ordinary ounces. A troy ounce is 31.10 grams against 28.35 for an avoirdupois one, and mixing them up overstates a holding by about ten per cent.
A troy ounce is 31.1035 grams against 28.35 for an ordinary one. Mixing them up overstates a holding by about ten per cent.
How to use
- Select the coin or enter weight and fineness.
- Enter the current spot price.
- Read the metal value.
- Compare against numismatic value before doing anything.
Frequently asked questions
What is melt value?
The value of the metal a coin contains, at current spot prices — weight multiplied by fineness multiplied by price. It is a floor on what a coin is worth, since below it the metal alone is worth more than the coin as currency.
Is melt value what I would actually receive?
No. Dealers buy below spot to cover refining, assay and their margin, so the realised figure is meaningfully lower — the spread varies by metal, quantity and dealer. Melt value is a reference point rather than an offer.
Is it legal to melt coins?
It depends on the coin and the country, and it is genuinely restricted in places. The United States prohibits melting circulating cents and nickels, with penalties attached. Obsolete and foreign coinage is usually treated differently, and the rules are worth checking before acting.
Could the coin be worth more than its metal?
Frequently, and this is the important warning. Date, mint mark, condition and rarity can make a coin worth many times its melt value, and melting it destroys that permanently. Anything old, unusual or in good condition should be identified before it is valued by weight.
What is fineness?
The proportion of the coin that is the precious metal — 0.900 fine silver is 90 per cent silver, and the rest is alloy for durability. Gross weight multiplied by fineness gives the actual precious metal content, which is what spot price applies to.
Should I use troy ounces?
Yes, for precious metals. A troy ounce is 31.1 grams against 28.35 for the ordinary ounce, roughly 10 per cent heavier, and spot prices are quoted per troy ounce. Using the wrong ounce introduces a 10 per cent error in the wrong direction.
🔒 This tool runs entirely in your browser. Nothing you enter is uploaded, logged, or stored.