Silver Calculator

How to calculate the value of silver

Most silver items are an alloy, so only part of their weight is silver. Melt value is the pure silver they contain, priced at the spot price:

pure silver (g)  = weight (g) × purity     (sterling = 0.925)
price per gram   = spot price per troy oz ÷ 31.1035
melt value       = pure silver (g) × price per gram

So a sterling silver serving spoon weighing 80 grams holds 80 × 92.5% = 74 grams of pure silver, and its melt value is 74 times today's silver price per gram. That's the floor for what the silver is worth. Antique and designer pieces can sell for far more, and a scrap buyer's offer usually sits below it.

How to use the silver calculator

1. 1

   Find the purity mark

   Look on the back of a spoon handle, the base of a piece or inside a ring: 925 or STERLING, 999, 900 or COIN. Pick it in the purity menu.

2. 2

   Weigh the item

   A jewelry or kitchen scale in grams is fine. Troy ounces, kitchen-scale ounces, pennyweight, kilograms and tola are all supported.

3. 3

   Subtract anything that isn't silver

   Steel knife blades, wooden handles, stones and the filling in weighted candlesticks add weight but no silver. Enter their weight so they're left out.

4. 4

   Read the melt value

   The calculator multiplies the pure silver content by the live spot price. Add a price you were offered to see how it compares.

Frequently asked questions

What is the silver price today?

The silver price at the top of this page is the live spot price for one troy ounce of pure silver, refreshed every minute. The spot price is what silver trades for on the wholesale market right now. Change the currency to see it in euros, pounds, rupees and 14 other currencies, along with the silver price per gram, per kilogram and per tola.

How do I calculate the value of my silver?

Multiply the item's weight in grams by its purity, then by the silver price per gram. A 100 gram sterling silver bowl is 92.5% silver, so it holds 92.5 grams of pure silver; multiply that by today's price per gram and you have its melt value. This silver calculator does it at the live price, and can subtract the weight of handles, blades or fillings first.

What does 925 mean on silver?

925 is the fineness mark for sterling silver: 925 parts silver per 1,000, or 92.5%. The other 7.5% is usually copper, which makes the silver hard enough to use. Sterling may also be marked STERLING, STER or Ag 925, and British sterling carries a lion passant hallmark.

What do silver markings mean, and how pure is each one?

A silver number mark is the silver content in parts per 1,000, so divide it by 10 for the percentage. The common ones: 999 = 99.9% (fine silver, bars and bullion coins); 958 = 95.8% (Britannia silver, UK); 950 = 95% (French first standard, Minerva head, and much Japanese silver); 925 = 92.5% (sterling); 900 = 90% (coin silver, pre-1965 US coins); 875 = 87.5% (Russian and Soviet, also marked 84 zolotnik); 835 = 83.5% (Netherlands, Germany); 830 = 83% (Scandinavia); 800 = 80% (Italy and Germany). Pick the matching purity in the calculator, or choose 'Other purity' for any number not listed.

What are the Italian silver marks?

Italian law sets three silver standards: 999 (99.9%), 925 (92.5%) and 800 (80%), and pieces sold in Italy are stamped with one of those numbers. Next to it is the maker's identification mark: a lozenge holding a five-pointed star, the maker's registration number and the province code, such as MI for Milan, FI for Florence or AR for Arezzo. Much older Italian flatware and holloware is 800 silver.

What does a gram mark like "1g" mean on laminated Italian silver?

It's the weight of the silver, not a model number. Italian law (Legislative Decree 251 of 22 May 1999) covers objects made of resin, mastic or another filler covered with a thin sheet of precious metal, often sold as laminated silver. These must be marked with an R inside a square (for riempito, filled) and the weight of the metal in grams; an item of resin covered with 3 to 5 grams of 925 silver is marked with that weight. So "Ag 1g" on an Italian picture frame is a legally required statement that the frame contains about one gram of silver. To value it here, enter that gram figure as the weight and the stated fineness, usually 925, as the purity, not the weight of the whole frame.Source: Silver Collection: Italian silver hallmarks (in Italian)

How much are silver coins worth?

US dimes, quarters and half dollars dated 1964 or earlier are 90% silver, and $1 in face value of them holds about 0.723 troy ounces of silver as minted. The silver coin calculator works out the melt value of each coin, a roll or a whole bag at the live price. Rare dates and coins in top condition can be worth more than their silver.

Is silver-plated silverware worth anything?

Not for its silver. Plated pieces have a very thin layer of silver over a base metal, so their melt value is close to zero. Marks like EP, EPNS, A1, Silverplate or Sheffield plate mean plated. Nickel silver, German silver and alpaca are copper, nickel and zinc alloys with no silver in them at all, despite the name. Solid silver carries a number mark such as 925 or 800, or the word STERLING.

What is the difference between a troy ounce and a regular ounce?

Silver is priced per troy ounce, which is 31.1035 grams. A regular (avoirdupois) ounce, the one kitchen and postal scales use, is 28.3495 grams, about 9% lighter. If you weighed your silver on a kitchen scale in ounces, pick 'Ounces (kitchen scale)' in the calculator so the conversion is right.

Why do silver coins and bars cost more than the spot price?

The spot price is for large wholesale bars. Smaller bars, rounds and coins cost more to make, ship and insure, and dealers add their margin, so they sell at a premium over spot. Premiums vary by product and dealer, so compare the price you're quoted with the melt value here to see what you're paying on top of the silver.

How much will a buyer pay for my silver?

Buyers who melt or resell silver as scrap generally offer less than full melt value, since they have to cover refining costs and make a margin. How much less varies by buyer, purity and quantity, so we don't publish a single percentage. Use the melt value here as your reference point, enter each offer as the quoted price, and compare.

Where does the silver price come from?

Prices come from Gold API (gold-api.com), a real-time precious-metals price feed, and are converted into the currency you pick. Each price shows the time it was last updated. If the feed stops responding, the tool keeps showing the last price it received and says so, rather than showing nothing.

Can I add this silver price to my website?

Yes. Scroll to 'Add a live silver price widget to your site', choose a currency and a light or dark theme, and copy the two-line embed code into your page. The widget updates itself every five minutes, needs no API key, and is free to use.