Mercury1916–1945 · 90% silver
Roosevelt1946–1964 · 90% silver
Mercury reverseCheck the design
Roosevelt reverseCheck the designA dime dated 1964 or earlier is 90% silver and holds 0.0723 troy ounces of pure silver (2.5 g × 90%). A dime dated 1965 or later that you find in change is clad with no silver, and is worth 10 cents. Silver proof dimes were sold only to collectors (see the table below). The silver price today is $52.55 per troy ounce.
The silver price on this page is the reading from gold-api.com. Your browser fetches the newest reading when the page opens and again about every 45 seconds; if it cannot, you see the price saved at the last site build (Live · updated 19:00 UTC).
Silver dimes are 1916 to 1964. No dimes were struck in 1922, 1932 or 1933. Dimes dated 1965 to today that you find in change are clad. Years come from the mintage tables in our series data.
| Coin | Silver | Melt now |
|---|---|---|
| Mercury Dime1916–1945 | 90% | $3.80 |
| Roosevelt Dime1946–1964 | 90% | $3.80 |
To find the silver in a dime, multiply 2.5 g by 0.9 and divide by 31.1035 g per troy ounce; the result times the silver price is the melt. The copper adds nothing. Weights and silver shares here follow the statutes cited under Specifications.
ASW is actual silver weight. For the Mercury dime, 2.5 g × 90% = 2.250 g of silver, or 0.0723 troy ounces at 31.1035 g each. The copper is not counted.
Sources: Act of January 18, 1837, sections 8 and 9 (5 Stat. 136) (standard of nine hundred parts pure metal in one thousand; silver dollar 412.5 grains); Coinage Act of 1873, sections 13 and 15 (17 Stat. 424) (silver coins of nine hundred parts in one thousand; half dollar 12.5 g, quarter and dime one-half and one-fifth of that); Coinage Act of 1965, sections 101 and 204 (Public Law 89-81, 79 Stat. 254) (clad half, quarter and dime specifications; 40% silver half; 900 fine silver coins dated 1964); U.S. Mint, Coin Specifications (Wayback copy, page updated October 2, 2024) (diameter, edge and number of reeds of the coins in production today). Mintages for silver dimes come from the series data on each date page.
| Face value | 90% silver |
|---|---|
| $1 face value | $38.01 |
| $10 face value | $380.14 |
| $100 face value | $3,801.35 |
| $1,000 face value, one bag of 10,000 | $38,013.52 |
Silver dimes are the lightest common silver coin, so it takes many to add up: $100 face is 1,000 dimes. The table shows melt only. Dealers pay a share of it, about 80% to 95% for common 90% coins (a Lustre editorial estimate, not a quote). Use the junk silver calculator for mixed coins.
A dime holds the least silver of any coin on these hubs, 2.25 g, so offers on dimes depend on the whole lot. Why shops bid under melt
| Date | Lower grade | Higher grade |
|---|---|---|
| 1916-DMercury · Major rarity | $5,500–$6,000 | $18,000–$22,500 |
| 1942-D (2 over 1)Mercury · Key date | $525–$550 | $4,500–$9,500 |
| 1942 (2 over 1)Mercury · Key date | $525–$700 | $5,500–$7,750 |
| 1921-DMercury · Key date | $385–$475 | $2,475–$3,650 |
| 1921Mercury · Key date | $275–$380 | $2,100–$2,750 |
Prices from the PCGS and NGC price guides, checked October 29, 2026. Grade means wear. VF-20 is a worn coin with clear detail and MS-63 is a coin that was never circulated. Prices are guide figures for graded dimes and are not offers. “No guide price” means the guides list none. Minted is the number struck.
| Date | Lower grade | Higher grade |
|---|---|---|
| 1949-SRoosevelt · Semi-key · Lustre estimate | $7.25–$8.75 | $50–$60 |
| 1955Roosevelt · Scarce · Lustre estimate | $5–$6 | $20–$24 |
Rows marked Lustre estimate are Lustre editorial estimates, October 2026, not guide prices. These are not offers. The scarcer dime dates below carry a premium; the rest of the series sells near melt.
| Coin | Silver | Melt now |
|---|---|---|
| Silver proof dimes, 1992 to 2018Made for Silver Proof Sets, not for circulation. | 90% silver | $3.80 |
| Silver proof dimes, 2019 to dateSilver Proof Sets use .999 silver from 2019. Silver content is not tabulated here. | .999 silver | — |
These dimes were sold only in collector sets, so our date tables leave them out. Our series data does not list them, so no mintage counts are given. Weights and silver shares are U.S. Mint specifications (U.S. Mint coin specifications and product pages). Most sell for more than their silver.
A dime dated 1964 or earlier is 90% silver. From 1965, a dime found in change is clad.
A silver dime shows a solid silver-colored edge. From 1965 the edge shows a copper stripe.
A silver dime weighs 2.5 g.
The 1916-D Mercury dime is the key date. A 1916 dime with a D that looks added is likely an altered 1916 Philadelphia coin.
On a dime the date, the edge and 2.5 g are the three quick checks. See how to tell if a coin is silver for the weight, sound and magnet checks and their limits.
Junk silver calculatorSilver coin melt by type and yearCoin melt calculatorHow to tell if a coin is silverJunk silver explained
Silver quarter valueSilver half dollar valueSilver dollar valueSilver price today
Dimes that are silver are worth at least the value of their silver. A 90% silver dime (Mercury and Roosevelt, 1916 to 1964) holds 0.0723 troy ounces of pure silver. Multiply that by the silver price at the top of this page. Dates and conditions that collectors want are worth more; the key dates table shows examples.
90% silver dimes hold 0.0723 troy ounces of silver (2.250 grams), from a coin weighing 2.5 grams. The copper in the alloy is not counted.
Mercury dimes (1916 to 1945) and Roosevelt dimes dated 1964 or earlier are 90% silver. Dimes from 1965 found in change are clad. Silver proof dimes from 1992 on were sold only in collector sets.
Less than melt value, and the gap matters more on dimes because each coin holds only 2.25 g of silver. Shops pay a share of the silver value that changes by shop and by week, and the range here is an estimate, not a quote. The quarters page covers why shops bid under melt.
Common dates in worn condition sell close to their silver value. Key dates, low-mintage years and coins in high Mint State grades sell for more. For example, the 1916-D Mercury Dime: VF-20 $5,500–$6,000, MS-63 $18,000–$22,500. Those figures come from our series data (PCGS and NGC price guides) and are not offers.
Sources: Mercury dime (Wikipedia; composition, weight, diameter, edge, designer, mint mark position, key date); Mercury dime mintage (Landofcoins.com; mintage by year and mint); Roosevelt dime (Wikipedia; composition, weight, diameter, edge, designer, mint mark position); Roosevelt dime mintage figures (Wikipedia; mintage (business strikes), 1946 to 1964); Roosevelt dime mintages (Coindex; cross-check of mintage by year and mint). Silver price: gold-api.com. Grade values are described above. Estimates are dated October 2026 and are not offers.
