What is junk silver?
Junk silver is common-date, circulated U.S. coinage that contains real silver but has no collectible or numismatic premium — so it trades on its silver content, or melt value. It's one of the most popular ways for stackers to own physical silver, because you're buying metal close to spot without paying for rarity.
There are three groups: 90% silver dimes, quarters and half dollars dated 1964 and earlier; 40% silver Kennedy half dollars from 1965–1970; and 35% silver Jefferson "war nickels" minted 1942–1945. Morgan and Peace silver dollars are 90% silver too. This junk silver calculator prices all of them at the current spot.
How to use the calculator
- Enter how many of each coin you have in the boxes above.
- The calculator multiplies each count by that coin's actual silver weight and by today's live silver spot price.
- Read your total silver ounces and melt value at the bottom — updated instantly as you type.
Want a paper version for sorting on the kitchen table? Grab the printable tally & reference sheet and fill it in by hand.
Silver content of common U.S. coins
These are the approximate actual silver weights (troy ounces) used by the calculator:
| Coin | Years / type | Silver (troy oz) |
|---|---|---|
| Dime | 1964 & earlier (90%) | 0.0723 |
| Quarter | 1964 & earlier (90%) | 0.1808 |
| Half dollar | 1964 & earlier (90%) | 0.3617 |
| Silver dollar | Morgan / Peace (90%) | 0.7734 |
| Half dollar | 1965–1970 (40%) | 0.1479 |
| War nickel | 1942–1945 (35%) | 0.0563 |
A common shortcut: $1 of face value in 90% silver coins contains about 0.715 troy oz of silver.
Track what you stack
Once you know what you've got, keep a record. GoldPayroll's free, private Vault Report catalogs your silver (and gold, platinum, palladium), values it at live spot, and generates a clean printable report — right in your browser, nothing uploaded.
Open the free Vault Report → or download the free inventory spreadsheet