Stack Value guide

Which Canadian coins are silver?

Updated November 2026 · Melt values below are live, in your chosen currency.

Canada's everyday coins were made with real silver until the late 1960s. If you have dimes, quarters, 50-cent pieces or dollars dated 1966 or earlier, they are silver. Coins from 1967 and 1968 need a closer look, and anything from 1969 on has no silver at all (apart from collector coins sold by the Mint).

The short answer

1919 and earlier: 92.5% silver (sterling).
1920 to 1966: 80% silver.
1967: dimes and quarters were made in both 80% and 50% silver. 50-cent pieces and dollars are 80% silver.
1968: dimes and quarters were made in 50% silver and in pure nickel. 50-cent pieces and dollars are nickel.
1969 and later: no silver in circulating coins.
Five-cent pieces: the small silver "fish scales" ended in 1921.

How much silver is in each coin

80% silver, 1920 to 1967

These are the coins most people find in jars and old collections.

Canadian 80% silver coins
Coin	Purity	Pure metal	Melt each
10 cents 1920–1967	.800	0.0600 oz	—
25 cents 1920–1967	.800	0.1500 oz	—
50 cents 1920–1967	.800	0.3000 oz	—
1 dollar 1935–1967	.800	0.6000 oz	—

A handy rule: in 80% Canadian silver, every dollar of face value holds 0.6 troy ounces of silver. Ten dimes, four quarters, two 50-cent pieces or one silver dollar all contain the same amount.

50% silver, 1967 and 1968

Canadian 50% silver coins
Coin	Purity	Pure metal	Melt each
10 cents 1967–1968	.500	0.0375 oz	—
25 cents 1967–1968	.500	0.0937 oz	—

Sterling silver, 1919 and earlier

Canadian sterling silver coins
Coin	Purity	Pure metal	Melt each
5 cents 1858–1910	.925	0.0346 oz	—
5 cents 1911–1919	.925	0.0347 oz	—
10 cents 1858–1910	.925	0.0691 oz	—
10 cents 1911–1919	.925	0.0694 oz	—
25 cents 1870–1910	.925	0.1728 oz	—
25 cents 1911–1919	.925	0.1734 oz	—
50 cents 1870–1910	.925	0.3456 oz	—
50 cents 1911–1919	.925	0.3469 oz	—

The Currency Act of 1910 set slightly heavier standard weights, so George V coins from 1911 on hold a touch more silver than the Victoria and Edward VII coins before them.

Older Victoria, Edward VII and George V coins often sell for more than melt to collectors, so check the date before treating them as scrap silver.

The 1967 and 1968 changeover

As silver prices rose in the 1960s, the Royal Canadian Mint cut the silver in dimes and quarters from 80% to 50% partway through 1967, and then dropped silver altogether partway through 1968.

1967 dimes and quarters can be 80% or 50% silver. They look the same, so unless a coin has been tested, value it as 50% silver to be safe.
1968 dimes and quarters can be 50% silver or pure nickel. Use a magnet: nickel coins are pulled to it, silver ones are not.

Collector silver dollars, 1971 on

Everyday dollars from 1968 on have no silver, but the Mint has sold commemorative silver dollars to collectors every year since 1971, usually in a case or capsule. Their silver content changed several times:

Canadian collector silver dollars
Coin	Purity	Pure metal	Melt each
1 dollar 1971–1991	.500	0.3750 oz	—
1 dollar 1992–2002 and 2007–2011	.925	0.7487 oz	—
1 dollar 2003–2006	.9999	0.8093 oz	—

Collector dollars from 2012 on are not listed yet while we confirm their weights.

Silver Maple Leafs

The Royal Canadian Mint's bullion coin, the Silver Maple Leaf, holds one troy ounce of .9999 fine silver. Bullion coins usually sell for a premium over melt.

Silver Maple Leaf
Coin	Purity	Pure metal	Melt each
Silver Maple Leaf 1 oz 1988–present	.9999	1.000 oz	—

Dates worth more than melt

A few Canadian silver coins are worth far more to collectors than their silver. Look out for:

1921 50 cents, the "King of Canadian coins", and the 1921 silver five cents.
1948 dollars, 50-cent pieces and dimes, all with low mintages.
1947 "maple leaf" coins, with a tiny leaf after the date.
1936 "dot" dimes and quarters, with a small dot below the date or wreath.

Each coin's own page lists more. When in doubt, ask a dealer before selling a coin for scrap.