A quarter dated 1964 or earlier is 90% silver and holds 0.1808 troy ounces of pure silver (6.25 g × 90%). A quarter dated 1965 or later that you find in change is clad copper-nickel with no silver, and is worth 25 cents. A few later silver quarters were sold only to collectors (see the table below). The silver price today is $52.55 per troy ounce.
Silver spot comes from gold-api.com. When the page opens it loads the latest reading and checks again about every 45 seconds; if that fails it shows the price saved when the site was built (Live · updated 19:00 UTC).
Silver quarters are 1932 to 1964. No quarters were struck in 1933. Quarters 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Washington Quarter1932–1964 | 90% | $9.50 |
| Washington Quarter (Clad)1965 to today | None | Face value |
Silver in a quarter = 6.25 g × 90% ÷ 31.1035 g per troy ounce, times the silver price. Copper is not counted. Collector coins sell for more than this melt value. Composition and weight come from the statutes listed under Specifications.
ASW is actual silver weight. For the Silver Washington quarter, 6.25 g × 90% = 5.625 g of silver, or 0.1808 troy ounces at 31.1035 g each. The copper is not counted.
Sources: 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 quarters come from the series data on each date page.
| Face value | 90% silver |
|---|---|
| $1 face value | $38.01 |
| $5 face value | $190.07 |
| $10 face value, one roll of 40 | $380.14 |
| $20 face value | $760.27 |
| $100 face value | $3,801.35 |
| $1,000 face value, one bag of 4,000 | $38,013.52 |
Melt value of the silver at today's price, with no dealer discount and no collector premium. The dealer section below says what shops pay. Use the junk silver calculator for mixed coins.
| Date | Lower grade | Higher grade |
|---|---|---|
| 1932-DWashington · Key date | $150–$200 | $1,675–$2,000 |
| 1932-SWashington · Key date | $120–$145 | $650 |
Prices from the PCGS and NGC price guides, checked October 29, 2026. Grades describe wear: VF-20 is worn but clear, MS-63 is uncirculated, PR is a proof. These are guide values for graded quarters, not offers to buy. “No guide price” means the guides list none. Minted is the number struck.
| Date | Lower grade | Higher grade |
|---|---|---|
| 1936-DWashington · Scarce · PCGS and NGC | $30–$50 | $775–$800 |
| 1935-DWashington · Scarce · PCGS and NGC | $17–$30 | $285–$325 |
| 1934-DWashington · Semi-key · PCGS and NGC | $17–$28 | $265–$285 |
| 1937-SWashington · Semi-key · PCGS and NGC | $17–$35 | $225–$280 |
Rows marked PCGS and NGC come from those price guides. These are not offers. Most quarter dates sell close to their silver value; these show the premium for the scarcer ones.
As of March 2026, CoinWeek reports that record selling and full refinery capacity left many refiners quoting payment delays of up to eight weeks, so shops buy 90% coins below spot. It calls the cause logistics, not the value of the silver, and says the usual relationship to spot may return once refinery capacity catches up.
A shop that buys silver quarters carries the price risk until the coins are sold or refined. CoinWeek lists what the discount pays for: price swings, storage and security, transport to a refiner, assaying and verifying the coins, and financing the wait.
The same article says shops often pay closer to spot for .999 bars and American Silver Eagles than for junk silver, because those sell faster and are easier for refiners to take.
CoinWeek says 90% silver usually trades at a premium to melt when silver rises, because stackers and collectors want it, and that the Mint stopped making it after 1964. That premium is what buyers pay; a shop's offer to a seller is lower and can land above or below melt.
This section rests on one dated article, so treat it as one view of one month. In normal markets, shops have paid about 80% to 95% of melt for common 90% coins (a Lustre editorial estimate, not a quote); the figure changes with the shop and the week. Melt value assumes the quarter still has its full 6.25 g. Ask two or three shops for a bid before you sell. Source for the March 2026 reports above: Why 90% Junk Silver Is Trading Below Spot in 2026 (CoinWeek, March 18, 2026).
| Coin | Silver | Melt now |
|---|---|---|
| 1976-S Bicentennial quarterSold in collector sets. The 1776–1976 quarters found in change are clad. | 40% silver | $3.89 |
| Silver proof quarters, 1992 to 2018Made for Silver Proof Sets, not for circulation. | 90% silver | $9.50 |
| Silver proof quarters, 2019 to dateSilver Proof Sets use .999 silver from 2019. Silver content is not tabulated here. | .999 silver | — |
Quarters made after 1964 for collectors sit in Mint sets and do not turn up in change. 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 quarter dated 1964 or earlier is 90% silver. From 1965, a quarter found in change is clad.
A silver quarter shows a solid silver-colored edge. A clad quarter shows a copper stripe.
A silver quarter weighs 6.25 g. A clad quarter weighs 5.67 g.
The 1932-D and 1932-S are the key dates and are often faked by adding the mint mark. Have any 1932 D or S authenticated.
The date and the edge settle most quarters. See how to tell if a coin is silver for the weight, sound and magnet checks and their limits.
Washington Quarter1932 to 1964 · 83 issues Junk silver calculatorSilver coin melt by type and yearCoin melt calculatorHow to tell if a coin is silverJunk silver explained
Silver dime valueSilver half dollar valueSilver dollar valueSilver price today
Quarters that are silver are worth at least the value of their silver. A 90% silver quarter (Washington, 1932 to 1964) holds 0.1808 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 quarters hold 0.1808 troy ounces of silver (5.625 grams), from a coin weighing 6.25 grams. The copper in the alloy is not counted.
Washington quarters dated 1964 or earlier are 90% silver. Quarters dated 1965 or later that you find in change are copper-nickel clad and have no silver. Collector issues are the exception: the 1976-S Bicentennial quarter (40% silver) and silver proof quarters from 1992 on were sold only in collector sets.
Less than melt value. A dealer pays a share of the silver value and keeps the rest to cover price risk and costs. The share changes with the shop and the week, and the figure on this page is an estimate, not a quote. The selling section below gives the March 2026 market picture and its source.
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 1932-D Washington Quarter: VF-20 $150–$200, MS-63 $1,675–$2,000. Those figures come from our series data (PCGS and NGC price guides) and are not offers.
Sources: Washington quarter (Wikipedia; composition, weight, diameter, edge, designer); Washington quarter mintage figures (Wikipedia; mintage (business strikes) and Proof mintage, 1932 to 1964); Washington quarter mintage (Landofcoins.com; mintage by year and mint). Silver price: gold-api.com. Grade values are described above. Estimates are dated October 2026 and are not offers.
Washington1932–1964 · 90% silver
Washington reverseCheck the design