Silver Half Dollar Melt Value
Enter your 90% and 40% silver half dollars separately, add today's silver price, and see the silver content and melt value of the lot.
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Melt value
$
Enter a price and a quantity.
Sample price, not live.
- Silver content
- troy oz
Melt value = (90% halves × 0.36169 oz + 40% halves × 0.1479 oz) × spot price.
The year decides the silver
The most common mistake with half dollars is treating every Kennedy as silver. The Kennedy half dollar was made in three compositions in its first years, so the date matters. This table follows NGC’s list.
| Series | Years | Composition | Silver (troy oz) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Barber | 1892–1915 | 90% silver | 0.36169 |
| Walking Liberty | 1916–1947 | 90% silver | 0.36169 |
| Franklin | 1948–1963 | 90% silver | 0.36169 |
| Kennedy | 1964 | 90% silver | 0.36169 |
| Kennedy | 1965–1970 | 40% silver | 0.1479 |
The 90% halves weigh 12.50 g and the 40% Kennedy halves 11.50 g. NGC’s 40% Kennedy range ends in 1970; Kennedy halves dated later are not on the silver list and are not counted here. A guide to the date cutoffs for every denomination is in how to tell if a coin is silver.
Melt values by count
| Coins | Troy oz | At sample $50.00 | At your price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0.3617 | $18.08 | — |
| 10 | 3.6169 | $180.85 | — |
| 20 | 7.2338 | $361.69 | — |
| 100 | 36.1690 | $1,808.45 | — |
| Coins | Troy oz | At sample $50.00 | At your price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 0.1479 | $7.40 | — |
| 10 | 1.4790 | $73.95 | — |
| 20 | 2.9580 | $147.90 | — |
| 100 | 14.7900 | $739.50 | — |
Figures marked “sample” use a made-up price of the stated amount so you can check the arithmetic. They are not today’s price.
A $10 roll holds 20 half dollars. At the sample price of $50.00 per ounce, 20 coins at 90% are worth $361.69 in silver and 20 at 40% are worth $147.90. The gap between the two is why the calculator keeps them separate.
Eisenhower dollars are on the silver dollar page. For a bag counted by face value, use the junk silver calculator.
Melt value is the value of the metal at the spot price. It is a reference point, not an offer. A dealer usually pays less than melt, and some coins sell for more than melt because collectors want them. This site does not buy or sell coins or give advice on either.
Sources
- NGC, Coin Melt Values: composition, weight and silver content per coin.
- MetalCharts, Silver Coin Melt Values: cross-check of weights and silver content.