How Rare is Your Coin?

The value of collectible coins hinges on two major factors: condition and rarity. Most collectors are familiar with she Sheldon Coin Grading Scale that ranks condition numerically from 1 to 70. But even a Mint State 70 coin may not be that valuable if it isn’t rare. So how do you find that out?

Fortunately, the Professional Coin Grading Service (PCGS) has developed a trademarked Rarity Scale that gives US coins scores from 1.0 (over a million known survivors) to 10.1 (none known to survive).

A Million to One

A very few survivors can make a difference. For instance, if 10-12 are known, the rating drops to 9.5, still extremely rare and valuable, just not as much as a 10. If 951 to 1,000 coins exist, the rating is 5.0 (still considered rare) and a 1.0 means over a million are out there.

The PCGS Rarity Scale can be used to determine the overall rareness of a coin or to assess its rarity in a given grade. For instance, an 1895 New Orleans Morgan silver dollar isn’t terribly rare with over 7,500 known to still exist, a rarity grade of 3.4. Coins in lower grades can be bought for a few hundred dollars. But there has been only one rated MS-67 by PCGS, earning a 10.0 and commanding $575,000 at auction in 2005.

A Really Good Guess

The PCGS Rarity Scale is based on an average of expert estimates of coin populations. It’s an ongoing project and is updated as new data comes available. But while it’s only a guess, it’s a pretty good one that can be relied on to determine a coin’s scarcity.

Here’s a broad look at the scale and what it means:

Ratings are subdivided by tenths of a point for a detailed estimate of rarity.

For more information on the PCGS CoinFacts Rarity Scale™, visit this page on the PCGS CoinFacts website.

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