Quarters minted from 1965 onward are 91.67% copper and 8.33% nickel — no silver. Pre-1965 silver quarters contain 0.18084 troy oz of pure silver per coin and carry real melt value tied to the silver spot price.
Modern quarters (1965+) are 91.67% copper / 8.33% nickel with no silver; pre-1965 silver quarters are 90% silver, containing 0.18084 troy oz ASW, and carry a melt value calculated by multiplying that silver content by the current spot price.
The Coinage Act of 1965 ended silver in US quarters. Quarters struck from 1965 through 2025 — including the five 2026 Semiquincentennial designs — are copper-nickel clad weighing 5.670 g, with a silver melt value of zero. Pre-1965 Washington, Standing Liberty, Barber, and Seated Liberty quarters are 90% silver and weigh 6.250 g, giving each coin 0.18084 troy oz of pure silver. Multiply that figure by the current silver spot price to get per-coin melt value. A roll of 40 silver quarters therefore holds 7.2336 troy oz of silver.
The quarter has gone through several composition changes since its introduction in 1796. The most consequential was the 1965 switch from 90% silver to copper-nickel clad. Every composition era is listed below with exact weight and metal content so you can identify any quarter by date and determine whether it carries silver melt value.
| Years | Composition | Weight | Metal content | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1796–1807 | 89.24% Ag / 10.76% Cu | 6.74 | ~5.46 g silver per coin | Draped Bust quarter; smaller diameter (~27.5 mm). |
| 1815–1838 | 89.24% Ag / 10.76% Cu | 6.74 (1815–28) / 6.68 (1828–38) | ~5.46 g silver per coin (1815–28); ~5.40 g (1828–38) | Capped Bust quarter; diameter reduced to 27 mm after 1828. |
| 1838–1891 | 90% Ag / 10% Cu (post-1853) | 6.68 (1838–53) / 6.22 (1853–73) / 6.25 (1873–91) | ~5.62 g silver (1838–53); ~5.60 g (1853–73); 0.18084 troy oz (1873–91) | Seated Liberty quarter; composition standardized to 90% Ag / 10% Cu from 1853. |
| 1892–1916 | 90% Ag / 10% Cu | 6.25 | 0.18084 troy oz silver per coin | Barber quarter; Liberty head with Phrygian cap on obverse. |
| 1916–1930 | 90% Ag / 10% Cu | 6.25 | 0.18084 troy oz silver per coin | Standing Liberty quarter; Type 1 (1916–early 1917) featured bare-breasted Liberty, replaced by armored Type 2 after public controversy. |
| 1932–1964 | 90% Ag / 10% Cu | 6.25 | 0.18084 troy oz silver per coin | Washington silver quarter; designed by John Flanagan based on Jean-Antoine Houdon's 1785 bust. |
| 1965–2025 | 91.67% Cu / 8.33% Ni clad over pure Cu core | 5.670 | 0 troy oz silver | Clad quarter introduced by the Coinage Act of 1965; copper stripe visible on edge. |
| 2026 | 91.67% Cu / 8.33% Ni clad over pure Cu core | 5.670 | 0 troy oz silver | Five one-year-only Semiquincentennial designs; same clad alloy as 1965+ quarters. |
Three tests reliably separate silver quarters from clad. The edge test is fastest: hold the quarter on its edge — a copper-orange stripe running around the circumference confirms clad; a solid silver-gray edge confirms 90% silver. The date test is definitive for business strikes: any quarter dated 1964 or earlier (excluding errors) is 90% silver. The ring test distinguishes them by sound: a silver quarter dropped on a hard surface produces a high, clear ring that decays slowly, while a clad quarter sounds duller and shorter. The weight test separates them numerically: 6.25 g indicates silver; 5.670 g (±0.227 g) indicates clad. No magnetic test is needed — neither composition is magnetic.
The calculator below computes the silver melt value of pre-1965 quarters using the live silver spot price and the coin's actual silver weight (ASW). Enter the number of coins, a roll count, or a face-value dollar amount. Clad quarters dated 1965 and later — including all 2026 Semiquincentennial quarters — contain no silver, so their precious-metal melt value is zero.
Melt value = ASW (troy oz) × spot price ($/troy oz)
Each pre-1965 Washington, Standing Liberty, Barber, or Seated Liberty quarter (post-1873 standard weight) contains exactly 0.18084 troy oz of pure silver. That figure derives from the coin's weight (6.250 g) multiplied by its silver purity (90%), then converted to troy ounces: 6.250 × 0.90 ÷ 31.1035 = 0.18084 troy oz.
For junk-silver calculations by face value, the industry-standard multiplier is 0.715 troy oz of silver per $1.00 face value of pre-1965 quarters. This figure accounts for average circulation wear reducing actual silver weight slightly below the theoretical maximum of 0.72336 troy oz per dollar face. The calculator applies a circulated multiplier of 0.9888 to adjust for typical wear; toggle to mint-state if your coins are uncirculated.
The silver spot price used in the calculator is fetched from the coins-value.com spot endpoint (XAG in USD per troy oz), updated three times per weekday and once per weekend. At the time any calculation runs, the displayed figure reflects the most recently published fix. Because spot prices move continuously during market hours, the displayed melt value is a market-floor reference — the minimum intrinsic metal value — not a transaction price.
Dealer buy offers for junk silver quarters typically fall in the 85–100% of melt range, depending on lot size, dealer overhead, and market conditions. See the dealer spread section below for a fuller explanation of why offers vary and how to evaluate them.
Two periods require special attention: the 1965 silver-to-clad transition (which produced a handful of transitional errors struck on silver planchets) and the 1976 Bicentennial quarter issued in 40% silver for collector sets.
Composition: A small number of 1965-dated quarters were accidentally struck on remaining 90% silver planchets intended for 1964 production.
Weight: 6.25 g (silver planchet) vs standard 5.670 g (clad)
How to spot: Weight-test at 6.25 g and edge-test for solid silver gray — confirmed examples show no copper stripe on the rim.
The Coinage Act of 1965 transitioned quarter production from 90% silver to copper-nickel clad mid-production cycle. A small number of 1965-dated quarters were inadvertently struck on leftover silver planchets. Confirmed 1965 silver transitional errors are valued at $7,000–$15,000 or more depending on condition and authentication. The exact survivor population has not been publicly published. Any candidate must be authenticated by a third-party grading service before a value conclusion can be drawn.
Composition: 40% Ag / 60% Cu clad (collector sets only); standard circulating Bicentennial quarters are standard clad.
Weight: Same standard weight; composition change only in collector-edition strikes.
How to spot: Look for the 'S' mint mark and the dual date '1776-1976' — circulating clad Bicentennial quarters carry the same dual date but no silver; only the 'S'-mint collector versions contain 40% silver.
The 1976 Bicentennial quarter bears the dual date '1776-1976' on both the obverse and reverse. The United States Mint issued 40% silver clad versions in proof and uncirculated collector sets, struck at San Francisco (S mint mark). Circulating versions — struck at Philadelphia and Denver — are standard copper-nickel clad with no silver content. The 40% silver collector versions have a silver melt value based on their silver content but are generally worth $5–$20 depending on condition; their numismatic premium is modest as they were produced in large quantities for the collector market.
The Coinage Act of 1965 (Public Law 89-81, signed July 23, 1965) eliminated silver from the quarter entirely. Every business-strike quarter dated 1965 or later is copper-nickel clad with no precious-metal melt value.
| Era | Years | Weight | Composition | Metal content |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Silver quarter | 1873–1964 | 6.250 | 90% Ag / 10% Cu | 0.18084 troy oz pure silver per coin |
| Clad quarter | 1965–2025 | 5.670 | 91.67% Cu / 8.33% Ni clad over pure Cu core | 0 troy oz silver |
| 2026 Semiquincentennial clad | 2026 | 5.670 | 91.67% Cu / 8.33% Ni clad over pure Cu core | 0 troy oz silver |
The most reliable way to identify a silver quarter from a clad quarter is the edge test: look at the rim head-on. A pre-1965 silver quarter shows a uniform silver-gray edge with no banding. A 1965-or-later clad quarter shows a distinct orange-copper stripe sandwiched between two silvery outer layers — the exposed copper core. The date test is definitive: 1964 or earlier means silver (with the narrow exception of confirmed 1965 transitional errors). A weight check with a digital scale provides a third confirmation: 6.25 g for silver; 5.670 g (±0.227 g) for clad. The acoustic ring test also works — a silver quarter resonates with a clear, sustained tone when dropped on a hard surface; a clad quarter sounds noticeably duller.
The 2026 quarter features five distinct one-year-only designs authorized under Public Law 116-330, the Circulating Collectible Coin Redesign Act of 2020. Each design honors a foundational moment in US history, released in succession throughout 2026. Washington's standard obverse does not appear on any of the five designs. This has led some collectors to wonder whether a composition change accompanied the redesign — it did not. All five 2026 Semiquincentennial quarters use the identical clad alloy as every quarter minted since 1965: 91.67% copper / 8.33% nickel bonded over a pure copper core, weighing 5.670 g. There is no silver in any circulating 2026 quarter.
The five themes in release order are: (1) Mayflower Compact (1620), depicting allegorical figures signing the founding compact; (2) Revolutionary War (1775-1783), featuring battle or Minutemen imagery; (3) Declaration of Independence (1776), drawing on Founding Fathers and Declaration imagery; (4) US Constitution (1787), referencing the Constitutional Convention; and (5) Gettysburg Address (1863), with Lincoln-era imagery including scrolls or speech references. Specific obverse and reverse designer attributions per design are pending final US Mint announcements; the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee minutes contain partial artist credits.
After 2026, the quarter enters the Youth Sports program (2027-2030), a four-year multi-design series. Washington does not return as a fixed standard obverse in 2027; the multi-design format continues uninterrupted. Collectors who confuse the redesign programs with a composition change should note that the US Mint has not changed the clad composition of the quarter since 1965, and no legislation currently authorizes a return to silver for circulating quarters.
| Design | Theme | Designer |
|---|---|---|
| Mayflower Compact | Founding compact of 1620 — allegorical figures signing the Mayflower Compact | |
| Revolutionary War | American Revolutionary War (1775-1783) — battle or Minutemen iconography | |
| Declaration of Independence | Declaration of Independence (1776) — Founding Fathers and Declaration imagery | |
| US Constitution | US Constitution (1787) — Constitutional Convention imagery | |
| Gettysburg Address | Gettysburg Address (1863) — Lincoln-era imagery, scrolls or speech references |
Pre-1965 silver quarters are widely traded as junk silver. Three main venues handle most transactions: local coin dealers, online precious-metal dealers, and auction platforms.
| Venue | Typical payout | Friction |
|---|---|---|
| Local coin shop (LCS) | 85–97% of melt value, depending on lot size and dealer | Low — same-day cash, no shipping; dealer sets their own spread |
| Online precious-metal dealer | 90–100% of melt value for large lots; slightly less for small quantities | Medium — requires shipping with insurance; payout after receipt and verification |
| eBay / online auction | 95–105% of melt value (buyers often pay slight premium); net after fees ~87–97% | Higher — seller handles listing, shipping, and eBay + PayPal fees |
Dealer buy prices for junk silver quarters move with the spot price and with supply conditions. In a rising silver market, dealers often compress their spread to attract inventory; in a flat or falling market, they may widen it to protect margin. Lot size matters: a single roll of 40 silver quarters ($10 face, 7.234 troy oz silver) will attract a lower percentage of melt than a $100-face bag (72.34 troy oz). If your silver quarters carry numismatic premiums — key dates like 1932-D or 1932-S, or high-grade examples — sell them through a numismatic channel rather than as junk silver, since melt value is far below their collector value.
The dealer spread is the gap between the melt value of your silver quarters and what a dealer will pay to buy them. Dealers buying junk silver quarters typically offer 85–100% of melt value, with the exact figure depending on several factors: the quantity of coins, current silver market volatility, the dealer's operating costs, and how quickly they expect to resell the silver.
Refining costs contribute to the spread. Even though silver quarters are a widely recognized form of silver, a dealer who sells them to a refinery will incur a per-ounce refining fee — typically a few percent of melt — which they factor into their buy price. Dealers who re-sell silver quarters directly to collectors or other dealers bypass refining costs and can offer a tighter spread, but they still need to cover storage, insurance, and transaction overhead.
Market volatility also affects the spread. When silver prices move sharply, dealers protect themselves by widening the buy-sell gap. A dealer who paid 95% of melt one week may reduce their offer to 88% the following week if silver has pulled back, to avoid holding inventory at a loss. To get the best price, compare offers from at least two dealers, know your melt value going in (use the calculator above), and sell in larger lots when possible — a $50-face or $100-face bag nearly always attracts a better percentage than a single roll.
Quarters minted from 1965 onward are 91.67% copper and 8.33% nickel, bonded as cupronickel cladding over a pure copper core, and weigh 5.670 g. Pre-1965 quarters are 90% silver and 10% copper, weigh 6.250 g, and contain 0.18084 troy oz of pure silver per coin. The 2026 Semiquincentennial quarters use the same clad composition as all 1965+ quarters.
No. The Coinage Act of 1965 (Public Law 89-81) eliminated silver from business-strike quarters beginning with the 1965 production year. All standard 1965 quarters are copper-nickel clad with no silver content. A very small number of 1965-dated quarters were accidentally struck on leftover silver planchets; confirmed examples of these transitional errors are valued at $7,000–$15,000 or more and must be authenticated by a third-party grading service.
Each pre-1965 quarter (post-1873 standard weight) contains exactly 0.18084 troy oz of pure silver. This figure comes from the coin's weight (6.250 g) multiplied by its silver purity (90%), then divided by 31.1035 g per troy oz. A roll of 40 silver quarters holds 7.2336 troy oz of silver; $1.00 face value of silver quarters contains 0.72336 troy oz at mint weight, or approximately 0.715 troy oz using the industry-standard circulated figure.
Melt value equals the coin's silver content (0.18084 troy oz) multiplied by the current silver spot price. At $30 per troy oz, one silver quarter's melt value is approximately $5.43; at $35, approximately $6.33; at $40, approximately $7.23. Use the calculator on this page with a live spot price for a precise figure. Clad quarters dated 1965 and later have a silver melt value of zero.
The 2026 quarter has five different designs honoring the 250th anniversary of US founding, authorized by Public Law 116-330. The themes are: Mayflower Compact (1620), Revolutionary War (1775-1783), Declaration of Independence (1776), US Constitution (1787), and Gettysburg Address (1863). Each design is minted in succession throughout 2026. Washington's standard obverse does not appear on any 2026 quarter. The composition remains standard clad — 91.67% Cu / 8.33% Ni, 5.670 g — no silver.
No. The five 2026 Semiquincentennial quarters use the same copper-nickel clad composition as all quarters minted since 1965: 91.67% Cu / 8.33% Ni bonded over a pure copper core, weighing 5.670 g. There is no silver in any circulating 2026 quarter. Their precious-metal melt value is zero. Any numismatic premium over face value comes from the one-year-only designs, not from metal content.
Three reliable tests: (1) Edge test — hold the coin edge-on; a silver quarter shows a uniform silver-gray edge with no banding, while a clad quarter shows an orange copper stripe. (2) Date test — any quarter dated 1964 or earlier (business strike) is 90% silver. (3) Weight test — a silver quarter weighs 6.25 g; a clad quarter weighs 5.670 g (±0.227 g). A digital scale accurate to 0.01 g separates them definitively.
George Washington has appeared on the quarter since 1932. John Flanagan's portrait, based on a 1785 marble bust by Jean-Antoine Houdon, has been the standard obverse through multiple reverse programs. The 2026 Semiquincentennial quarters are an exception: Washington's portrait does not appear on any of the five 2026 designs, which feature allegorical and historical imagery tied to US founding events. The Youth Sports program runs 2027-2030 as a multi-design series.
The industry-standard figure for junk silver quarters is 0.715 troy oz of silver per $1.00 face value. This accounts for average circulation wear reducing actual silver weight slightly below the theoretical mint-weight maximum of 0.72336 troy oz per dollar face. For uncirculated or lightly circulated coins, use the full 0.72336 troy oz per dollar face. The calculator on this page lets you toggle between circulated and mint-state multipliers.
The 1932-D (436,800 minted) and 1932-S (408,000 minted) are the key dates of the Washington quarter series. The 1932-S has the lower mintage of the two. In circulated grades, each is worth $80-$500; in mint state, $1,500-$12,000 or more depending on grade. Among modern errors, confirmed 1965 silver transitional quarters are extremely rare and valued at $7,000-$15,000+.
The clad quarter (1965 through 2025, including all 2026 Semiquincentennial designs) weighs 5.670 g with a tolerance of ±0.227 g. The pre-1965 silver quarter weighed 6.250 g. The weight difference — 0.580 g — is the fastest scale-based test to separate silver quarters from clad, though the edge-color test is faster without a scale.
The 50 State Quarters program ran from 1999 to 2008, issuing one unique reverse design per state in the order of each state's admission to the Union. All 50 state quarters are standard clad — 91.67% Cu / 8.33% Ni, 5.670 g — with no silver content. An estimated 147 million Americans collected them. The program was followed by the DC and Territories quarter (2009), America the Beautiful (2010-2021), American Women Quarters (2022-2025), and the 2026 Semiquincentennial.
Yes. The quarter has 119 reeds (small vertical ridges) on its edge. This reeded edge has been maintained across both the silver and clad eras. Historically, reeded edges on silver coins deterred clipping — shaving metal from the coin's rim. The quarter retains 119 reeds as a visual continuity element regardless of composition or reverse design program.
Melt value tells you the metal floor — but key-date Washington quarters, 50 State varieties, and Standing Liberty coins often carry significant numismatic premiums above melt. For year-by-year values across mint marks and grades, see the full quarter reference at coins-value.com.
View the silver quarter value guide by year →The Assay coin identifier app reads composition, date, and mint mark from a photo and cross-references it against known varieties — useful for identifying 50 State reverses, American Women designs, or potential key dates before you sell.
All melt-value figures are informational market-floor references only and do not constitute a transaction price, appraisal, or dealer quote; actual buy/sell prices depend on market conditions, lot size, and individual dealer terms.