Morgan Silver Dollar Value Chart (2026): Prices by Year, Melt Value & Key Dates

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I have been writing about precious metals for more than two decades, and no coin lands in my inbox more often than the Morgan silver dollar. Readers inherit a coffee can of them, find one in a dresser drawer, or spot a “rare” date online and want to know one thing: what is it actually worth? This page answers that with a live melt value, a value chart for all 96 dates and mint marks, and the honest truth about what dealers pay.

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Morgan Silver Dollar Melt Value Today

Every Morgan weighs 26.73 grams and is 90% silver, so each coin holds 0.77344 troy ounces of pure silver. Multiply that by the live silver price and you have the melt value, the floor under every Morgan ever struck. The numbers on this page refresh with the spot price.

The same math works for every pre-1965 US silver coin, only the silver content changes. My silver coin melt value guide covers dimes, quarters, halves and Peace dollars side by side.

Morgan Silver Dollar Value Chart by Year

This chart lists all 96 regular Morgan dollar issues with current values in six grades, from well-worn Good-4 up to gem MS-65. Tap a filter to see only the key dates, the coins that get expensive in top grades, or the Carson City issues. On a phone, swipe the table sideways to see every grade.

Source: PCGS Price Guide, retail values for PCGS-certified coins, updated October 18, 2026. 1878 7TF shown for the Reverse of 1878 type. Proof-only 1895 covered below.

Notice how flat the left side of the chart is. Most dates are worth the same in G-4 through AU-55, because millions survive. The money is on the right side, where a single grade point can multiply the price, and in the highlighted rows. If you want the full backstory on one of the most common dates, I wrote a separate deep dive on the 1880 silver dollar and its varieties.

Key Dates and Semi-Key Morgan Dollars

Morgans get expensive for three reasons: a low original mintage, a low survival rate after the melts of 1918, or a shortage of nice examples even when plenty survive in worn condition. These twelve issues come up most often when a reader thinks they have found something special. Values are from the PCGS guide linked above.

How Much Will a Coin Dealer Pay for a Morgan Silver Dollar?

This is the question I get most, and the honest answer depends on which of four buckets your coin falls into. Dealers need a margin, so the offer is always below the price you see on a retail website.

To give you a real benchmark: when I checked one large national online dealer on October 18, 2026, it was selling raw common circulated Morgans for $44.82 and buying them back for $33.32, with silver near $58. That buy price works out to roughly 75% of melt. Local shops vary a lot, and a bigger lot usually earns a better price per coin, so get at least two quotes. My guide to selling gold and silver walks through the process, and you can find established coin shops near you in our state-by-state dealer directory.

Where Is the Mint Mark on a Morgan Silver Dollar?

Flip the coin to the eagle side. The mint mark sits below the wreath, just above the letters “DO” in DOLLAR. No letter means the coin was struck in Philadelphia. That one letter can be the difference between a $92 coin and a $900 coin in the same date.

Coin design

The obverse shows Lady Liberty in profile wearing a Liberty cap with a ribbon that reads LIBERTY, trimmed with wheat and cotton for American agriculture. Thirteen stars stand for the original colonies, with the date below and E PLURIBUS UNUM above. Morgan's initial M sits at the truncation of the neck. The reverse shows an eagle with outstretched wings holding arrows and an olive branch, with IN GOD WE TRUST above and a wreath below.

Varieties worth a second look

• 1878 8 vs 7 tail feathers: the first coins had eight tail feathers on the eagle, later 1878 coins have seven.
• Overdates like 1880/79: a faint 79 under the 80 lifts the value in mint state.
• Prooflike (PL) and deep mirror (DMPL) coins: mirror-like fields can double or triple the price of a common date.
• VAM varieties: die varieties catalogued by Van Allen and Mallis, a collecting specialty of their own.

How to Grade a Morgan Silver Dollar (Quick Guide)

Grading runs on a 1 to 70 scale. On Morgans, look first at the hair above Liberty's ear and the eagle's breast feathers, the highest points of the design and the first to wear.

Grade matters more on Morgans than on almost any US coin. The 1884-S is the textbook example: $140 in XF-40, $50,000 in MS-63 and $280,000 in MS-65. A tiny bit of rub on the cheek is the difference.

Never clean a Morgan. A bright, shiny coin with fine parallel scratches has been cleaned, and collectors will knock it down to a fraction of its value. If you inherited a dull, toned group, leave them alone. My piece on why cleaning silver coins destroys value explains what to do instead. And before you buy any key date, read up on the most common precious metals scams, because fake Morgans are sold online every day.

Morgan Silver Dollar History and Specifications

In the mid-1870s the US Mint went looking for a new engraver. Mint Director H.R. Linderman wrote to the British Royal Mint, which recommended George T. Morgan, an engraver known for precise, beautiful work. Morgan arrived in 1876 and began on pattern coinage. His silver dollar started life as a half dollar pattern, with a Philadelphia teacher, Anna Willess Williams, as the model for Liberty. When Congress passed the Bland-Allison Act in 1878 and restarted silver dollar production, his design went to full size.

Hundreds of millions of Morgans were struck, and then hundreds of millions disappeared. The Pittman Act of 1918 melted more than 270 million silver dollars, many of them Morgans, and the 1980 silver spike sent many more to refiners. That is why some dates with big original mintages are hard to find in nice condition today. Carson City coins carry extra demand because that mint struck far fewer of them.

Modern Morgan Dollars (2021 and Later)

For the 100th anniversary of the last Morgan, the US Mint brought the design back in 2021. The modern coins are .999 fine silver with 0.858 troy oz of silver, slightly more than the 0.77344 oz in an original. Philadelphia, Denver and San Francisco versions were joined by coins with CC and O privy marks honoring Carson City and New Orleans, each limited to 175,000 coins at $85 apiece, according to CoinNews. The Mint has issued new Morgans in later years too, including 2024, 2025 and 2026 versions.

Modern Morgans sell on collector demand for their finish and packaging, so they usually trade above melt, especially in the original Mint box. If the difference between proof, reverse proof and uncirculated finishes is new to you, my guide to proof, uncirculated and bullion coins sorts it out.

Morgan Dollars vs Other Popular US Silver Coins

The Morgan and the Peace silver dollar hold exactly the same silver, so they melt for the same amount, but Morgans usually carry a slightly higher collector premium. If you only want ounces at the lowest premium, a modern bullion coin like the American Silver Eagle is the cleaner tool.

Buying Morgan dollars without regret

• Avoid cleaned coins when you pay a premium. “Shiny” is often a red flag. Natural surfaces and original toning hold value.
• Learn basic grading first. Grade is the biggest price multiplier in the series, as the chart shows.
• Buy key dates certified. Raw CC and S-mint keys are prime targets for counterfeiters.
• Buy the coin, not the story. “Found in grandpa's attic” adds nothing to the price. Date, mint mark, grade and authenticity do.
• Store them simply. Inert holders, low humidity, no PVC flips, minimal handling.

Can You Hold Morgan Silver Dollars in a Precious Metals IRA?

Short answer: no, not as a clean, standard choice. Morgans are 90% silver collectible coins, and IRS rules for precious metals IRAs center on bullion that meets minimum fineness standards, generally .999 for silver. Most custodians and IRA dealers steer buyers away from them, and I have never seen a reputable company push Morgans into an IRA.

• For compliant silver, start with our list of IRA-approved silver coins and bars.
• For the full rulebook, read what is allowed in a precious metals IRA.
• IRA metals must sit with an approved custodian and depository, not at home. Here are six trusted IRS-approved depositories.
• To compare providers on fees, reputation and buyback terms, see our gold IRA companies list.

Morgan Silver Dollar FAQ

Values from the PCGS Price Guide, updated October 18, 2026. Melt values update with the live silver price. Page maintained by the Gold IRA Guide editorial team.

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Disclosure: This content is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, tax, or investment advice. Always consult a qualified professional before making decisions about retirement accounts or precious metals.